Is it possible to use my iPhone to "swipe" into my apartment building instead of this RFID (?) tag?

Forums › Gadgets, robotics, home automation, electronics (including wearables) › Is it possible to use my iPhone to "swipe" into my apartment building instead of this RFID (?) tag?

mmd

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#274531 27-Aug-2020 12:12

Here's the key tag:

I've looked it up with an NFC scanner and I get this:

I've had no luck figuring out if this is doable so far. I understand these are designed to be somewhat impossible to reverse engineer so to speak. But I imagine that our building access is quite a "dumb" one where it simply checks to see the tag number and then allows or disallows it so figured it might be easier to do?

sbiddle

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#2550649 27-Aug-2020 12:21

Simple answer is no.

Complex answer is yes or maybe depending on the access control system used and requires an app and phone keytag # to be added to the system.

neb

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#2550795 27-Aug-2020 17:04

The Mifare Classic has broken crypto so it can be cloned, but it's not clear if you can get iPhone emulators that'll fake out the tag. Probably more effort than it's worth.

Handle9

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#2550859 27-Aug-2020 18:52

sbiddle:

Simple answer is no.

Complex answer is yes or maybe depending on the access control system used and requires an app and phone keytag # to be added to the system.

Simple answer is the most probable. If the apartment complex had paid for the technology then they would probably be offering it as some sort of service.

mmd

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#2551445 28-Aug-2020 16:37

Handle9:

sbiddle:

Simple answer is no.

Complex answer is yes or maybe depending on the access control system used and requires an app and phone keytag # to be added to the system.

Simple answer is the most probable. If the apartment complex had paid for the technology then they would probably be offering it as some sort of service.

Not entirely sure what you mean by them offering "some sort of service".

My understanding is that its a very 'dumb' system and essentially just checks the keytag ID rather than anything smarter. The responses here and the ones I've gotten on Reddit both suggest the MiFare Classic has been heavily reverse engineered.. however looks like there's little to no possibility of iPhone emulation.

I'm very surprised by this.. thought more people would want this to be a phone-based option. I love not having to carry a credit card anymore thanks to the phone. I'd love even more to not have to ever carry keys!

alasta

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#2551448 28-Aug-2020 16:39

Would you really trust a computer to take care of your keys?

"Hey Siri, unlock the front door"

"I'm sorry, I've randomly decided for no reason that you're not allowed into your house today. Goodbye".

Handle9

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#2551452 28-Aug-2020 16:42

mmd:
Not entirely sure what you mean by them offering "some sort of service".

My understanding is that its a very 'dumb' system and essentially just checks the keytag ID rather than anything smarter. The responses here and the ones I've gotten on Reddit both suggest the MiFare Classic has been heavily reverse engineered.. however looks like there's little to no possibility of iPhone emulation.

I'm very surprised by this.. thought more people would want this to be a phone-based option. I love not having to carry a credit card anymore thanks to the phone. I'd love even more to not have to ever carry keys!

There are solutions that let you use a phone as your keycard. They need to be managed (it's not as simple as issuing keyfobs) so typically have a service component to cover the administration.

It doesn't look like your building has this.

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neb

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#2551454 28-Aug-2020 16:44

mmd:
I'm very surprised by this.. thought more people would want this to be a phone-based option.

The problem is that you're circumventing a protection mechanism, which is illegal in many countries and very much a grey area in the rest. No commercial vendor is going to get involved in that, all the tools around are hobbyist things which sit below NXP's radar. If you started making money off it and it gained visibility you'd hear from NXP's lawyers pretty quickly...

Handle9

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#2551470 28-Aug-2020 16:46

alasta:
Would you really trust a computer to take care of your keys?

"Hey Siri, unlock the front door"

"I'm sorry, I've randomly decided for no reason that you're not allowed into your house today. Goodbye".

All large buildings have computerised access control. It's far more efficient and secure than keys.