Walt Augustinowicz is payments and security expert, consumer advocate, founder and CEO of Identity Stronghold Identity Stronghold was founded in 2005 with two thoughts in mind: Educate consumers about Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips embedded in such things as credit and debit cards, passports, access cards and room keys, and then protect those consumers from the inherent threats of Electronic Pickpocketing, Phantom Keys, and other RFID-related identity theft and financial crimes. Founder, Walt Augustinowicz is an RFID security and payments industry thought-leader, consumer advocate, and has a diverse technology background that has helped him to become a successful inventor, consultant and media expert. When discussions about national ID card for all residents with an embedded RFID chip began to gain national attention, Walt began to research the technology and applications, as well as the limitations and hazards associated with such a program. To his dismay, Walt found that the embedded RFID chip in the proposed ID card would be 'wireless,' therefore allowing any radio frequency, authorized or not, to communicate with the card and pull the owners data. More alarming was the contactless nature of this interaction would provide little warning or notice, and go undetected. How could the public protect themselves? Walt's tireless research and testing lead to the development of a protective sleeve that the card would slide into. He called it the "Secure Sleeve." As the use of wireless cards became mainstream for the Federal Government, the government mandated the protection of all RFID cards with either protective sleeves or protective badge holders. Identity Stronghold met this need with the Secure Sleeve®, the first product sold to the government. Today, the company's RFID protective products meet the high-standards of, and are used by government agencies such as, but not limited to, the FAA, TSA, FBI, NIH, DOT, Homeland Security, FEMA, Office of the President, DHS, IRS, US Senate, and NASA. RFID in Credit and Debit Cards When the credit card industry was looking for a way to increase the total number of consumer credit card transactions, RFID technology was chosen as the solution. Through wireless interaction between the payment terminals at checkouts that cardholders would traditionally swipe their card through, the new RFID-chip embedded cards would now only have to be held within range of the reader. The transaction would be completed via radio waves, and the payment made without the cardholder even having to remove the card from the wallet or purse, in some cases. The problem as Walt saw it -- anyone could buy a wireless payment terminal reader online, disguise it in an Ipad case, and walk through unsuspecting crowds while taking peoples credit and debit card information. But what information would the reader get, and would it be enough to make a purchase? By first testing it on his own credit cards, and then later demonstrating it with hundreds of credit cards belonging to everyday people on the street for TV news consumer and national news reporters, the scanner would in fact pull the everything needed from the credit card to make a purchase. And the news reporters did just that to the horror of millions of viewers. This crime was coined by Walt during his visit with WREG and became known as "Electronic Pickpocketing." In an effort to educate the public and protect the 1 billion radio frequency identification chip-enabled contactless cards the credit card companies plan on issuing consumers by 2016, Walt has visited with nearly 100 radio, print and television outlets throughout the U.S., Canada, Germany, England, Japan, Australia, Kuwait and the UAE. Their stories have collectively garnered more than 30 million views online, alone. He recently presented to state and federal law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Marshals Service, Financial Surveillance Unit, and anti-fraud task forces via a mixture of private briefings and public trade shows. To interview Walt contact Michael Bilello at info@centurion-strategies.com

• published: 11 Feb 2014
• views: 1