Paper 2008/406

An asymptotically optimal RFID protocol against relay attacks

Gildas Avoine and Aslan Tchamkerten

Abstract

Relay attacks are a major concern for RFID systems: during an authentication process an adversary transparently relays messages between a verifier and a remote legitimate prover. We present an authentication protocol suited for RFID systems. Our solution is the first that prevents relay attacks without degrading the authentication security level: it minimizes the probability that the verifier accepts a fake proof of identity, whether or not a relay attack occurs.