Cybersecurity usually means firewalls and encryption, but one often-overlooked area is physical security — and RFID/NFC access cards are exactly where these two worlds meet.
Why can access cards be insecure?
Many organizations still use RFID cards with old standards and no strong encryption — meaning a card that can be read and copied in seconds, without direct contact, using a cheap device. That means an attacker could read your card's data from a short distance (say, in an elevator or a checkout line!) and create a copy of it.
Physical penetration testing checks exactly this
In an authorized physical security assessment, the pentest team uses an RFID/NFC cloning tool to check whether an organization's access cards are easily copyable, or whether they rely on more secure standards (like MIFARE DESFire encryption). The result directly informs decisions about upgrading the organization's access control system.
The legal line
This tool may only be used on cards you own, or with the organization's written permission. Cloning someone else's access card without authorization is a crime.
If you work in physical penetration testing or want to learn, an RFID/NFC cloning tool is available from my site's hardware store.
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