Mobile Threat Catalogue

Malicious NFC tags

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Threat Category: Network Threats: NFC

ID: LPN-13

Threat Description: Malicious NFC tags can be created that redirect the user to a malicious website or application, which can install malware on the target device.

Threat Origin

NFC Threat Landscape 1

Exploit Examples

Near field communication (NFC) technology, vulnerabilities and principal attack schema 2

CVE Examples

Possible Countermeasures

Mobile Device User

Use devices with NFC features and apps that explicitly request user authorization prior to following URLs or executing potentially harmful instructions on the device. See QR Codes and NFC Chips: Preview-and-Authorize Should be Default 3

To reduce the opportunity for this attack, disable NFC when that feature is not in use.

To further reduce the opportunity for this attack, protect the device from malicious signals using a NFC-blocking case when that features is not in use.

References

  1. G. Vaughan, NFC Threat Landscape, OWASP Toronto chapter meeting, 31 Mar. 2013; www.owasp.org/images/3/38/NFC_Threat_Landscape_OWASP_Toronto_March_2013.pdf [accessed 8/24/2016] ↩

  2. P. Paganini, Near field communication (NFC) technology, vulnerabilities and principal attack schema, blog, 13 June 2013; https://resources.infosecinstitute.com/topic/near-field-communication-nfc-technology-vulnerabilities-and-principal-attack-schema/ [accessed 7/27/2022] ↩

  3. S. Cobb, “QR Codes and NFC Chips: Preview-and-authorize should be default”, blog, 23 Apr. 2012; www.welivesecurity.com/2012/04/23/qr-codes-and-nfc-chips-preview-and-authorize-should-be-default/ [accessed 8/24/2016] ↩