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Exxon And Timex Release The Speedpass watch
introverted writes "Exxon and Timex have released a Speedpass-enabled watch. From the article, this sounds like a regular Timex watch with an RFID chip in it. According to a radio news story, you can not only use the watch to buy gas, but at some locations in Chicago you can also use it at McDonald's. The watch is available from Timex. This was first mentioned on Slashdot in March last year."
Swatch have been making them for years.
I'll have a filet-o-fish meal and a side order of invasion-of-privacy, please. :)
"you can not only use the watch to buy gas, but at some locations in Chicago you can also use it at McDonald's"
Hello, I'll take premium fuel for my car and sub-standard fuel for my body.
And Super Size it.
OddManIn: A Game of guns and game theory.
A month later, all of them has taken down the receivers and nary a word was said. I think the central problem in this one example is that nobody wants to hand 10 bucks to a holding company to buy burgers on 49-cent Wednesday.
We want to use our debit cards like we do almost everywhere else.
GTRacer
- 1077, same as a cheese pizza and a soda...
Defending IP by destroying access to it? That makes sense, RIAA/MPAA. Go to the corner until you can play nice!
I want to pass an RFID receiver over everybody's watches (especially at gas stations), collect the RFID, and then transmit it every time I need some gas. Cool - free gas, MacDonalds, etc.
Lost your wallet?
Lost the time?
Which do you value more? I hope the watch band is sturdy.
- Dan
So now I can ask someone if they have the time beside a drivethru at mcdonalds, and have them pay for my meal! Sweet!
---
Programming is like sex... Make one mistake and support it the rest of your life.
The UN is offering an RFID-embedded tattoo! The bearer is guaranteed the ability to buy and sell in any member countries without currency! Suggested locations for the tattoo are on the back of one's hand or the forehead.
Gamingmuseum.com: Give your 3D accelerator a rest.
Apparently, their motto of "Keeps a lickin but keeps on tickin" doesn't apply to their web site.
Wer mit Ungeheuern kämpft, mag zusehn, dass er nicht dabei zum Ungeheuer wird. --Nietzsche
So how long until you can buy a small RF snooping device that lets you record and replay RFID signatures, kind of like the kind for garage door openers.
Or is thinking of this a violation of the DMCA.
Science is the Real TRUTH!
It's kind of cool (not really) how when we were little we saw visions of distopia and laughed. Now we see the building blocks being built before our eyes.
I sure hope they build tinfoil hats with "speedpasses" so I don't have to take mine off to get a cheeseburger.
postmodernsideshow.com
It's been a Mobil item for some time. Exxon is now equipping their stations faster and should catch up with Mobil-branded places.
The RF chip is in the band, not the watch.
I swapped the Timex watch body for a decent Casio
The watch works much better at the POS terminals inside the stations/stores, where the key tags have always had mediocre luck.
They both work well on the pumps.
"Win treats sysadmins better than users. Mac treats users better than sysadmins. Linux treats everyone like sysadmins."
Come on people, form an orderly line! There's enough for everybody to have one!
Get your own mark of the beast right here!
You idiot geeks and your gadget fetish. You'd scream bloody murder if GW Bush forced you to wear one of these. But since it's a neat gadget and a convienence, you'll don your shackles eagerly. ex - see CELL PHONES
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
What sort of security is built into these things? If it's stolen can anyone just go and use it to buy some fries, or does it require some sort of user interaction like a credit card (pin/signature)?
--
This sig is inoffensive.
What are some of the current great geek watches?
There are: watches with simple computer functions, watches with atomic clock radio recievers, watches with digital cameras, watches with IR remotes, watches with calculator/basic PIM functions, watches that run on Mars time and pager watches.
Any others? What is your fav?
does it support Ogg? because if it doesn't support Ogg, who's gonna buy it?
If you don't know what AltaVista is (was), get off my lawn.
Get them to pay for the privelege! But what if someone steals my watch?
What if someone steals my credit card? Come on, its the same threat you can make about anything (what if someone steals my wallet?).
Good quote, too many chars. Seriously, the slashdot 120 char limit sucks!
How long until (1) someone makes a device to read others RFID chips (without them noticing), and (2) can create RFID tags with programmable IDs?
Really, how is the security / authentication implemented here?
)9TSS
Just like they can buy gas with your CC if they steal your wallet. Oh that's right, there's fraud protection on that credit card, and since your speedpass is usually linked to it, you have the same protection. Just call and get it canceled.
Free Mac Mini
Sign the back. I don't see anywhere to sign the back of my watch.
what if someone steals my wallet?
So I don't carry cash. But I'll be damned if I'll go from a more secure to less secure method of transaction. I also imagine there's no credit protection for this speedpass system, as there is for all credit cards. No go.
-Looking for a job as a materials chemist or multivariat
So just have one kid who carries all the watches to school, and the others ditch. The watch carrier could be rotated so everyone gets a chance to ditch...
Now, if we imbed the RFID chip in their skull, then it might work... With enough science, technology, and BigBrother (TM) we can get kids to go to school.
Or we could just pay attention to our kids, and make our schools interesting enough that kids want to go, and get parents to stop ignoring their kids as soon as they can use the bathroom on their own....
Hmm, looks like science and technology will win this one, eh?
A chain of grocery stores near my home ran a promotion: spend at least $30 and pay with your speedpass, get a free Timex/Speedpass watch.
The grocery chain is running a pilot program in my area-- as soon as we found out about it, we went up to the customer service desk, hooked our speedpass into their accounting system and a month later had a new watch!
I love it when moderators mod posts as "Trolls" when they disagree or don't understand. The parent poster had a perfectly valid point. How is this an invasion of privacy? It's nothing more than a credit card you don't have to swipe or sign for. I've been using a Speedpass for my cars' gas for about 5 years now (Esso has 'em in Canada), and let me tell you, it's damn convenient. It's even faster than debit.
Pull up to the pump. Exit car. Wave Speedpass over receiver. While it is authorizing, take off your gas cap, lift the nozzle, and select your fuel type. By then, the authorization's gone through and you're already pumping. When full, replace nozzle. By the time you screw the gas cap back on, the receipt is ready. Get back in car and drive off. And if you don't want to wait for your receipt, no worries, it doesn't have your credit card number on it anyway.
Debit might sound like not much more hassle, but remember: I'm in Canada. It gets damn cold up here in the winter. I can pay with Speedpass and pump my gas without ever having to remove my gloves or mitts. Not so with debit. Try taking out your wallet, removing and swiping your card, then punching a bunch of buttons with mitts on in -35 degree weather. Aside from being slower, it's just plain not possible.
People who shriek about "privacy" regarding these types of benign things have either never used them, or are just whoring for karma. There is no privacy issue. They're basically just a credit card you don't have to sign for.
If you lose the tag, cancel the credit card. Same as if you'd lost the card itself. Since the Speedpass tags are almost always with your car keys anyway, if you lost your tag, then you probably lost your car keys too, and you've got more things to worry about than privacy. Like, say for example, canceling that credit card and finding your car!
Like woodworking? Build your own picture frames.
Do PROM-style RFIDs exist? Could you overhear the challenge-response interaction at the pump and make your own copy?
Enquiring thieves want to know.
Wah!
however, ALL gadget watches (with the sole exception of the Breitling with the emergency beacon in it) look like cack on your wrist and mark you out as a sad sack.
USB watch storage? Ugh. Microsoft Spot? Ack. That Fossil Palm-on-your-wrist? Please.
Real men buy Omega Seamasters and leave the gadgets in their pockets.
Years ago, when speedpass first came out, I filled out an application, but declined to put my SSN on it. If I link it to a credit card, why should you have my SSN?
Needless to say, I never heard back, and I don't intend to ever get one if the SSN is required. Or maybe I'll just make one up and see what happens.
For those who don't know - it is not a credit device, it is a billing device. It links to an existing credit card. They may have expanded to granting credit, but it was not part of the deal when I tried to sign up.
Minor nit. Another multi-year Speedpass user here, and we were typing at the same time about using it in the cold. Nit: If you lose the fob, don't cancel the credit card! Just call Speedpass customer service and cancel the fob. That way, you can still get gas with your card until the replacement fob arrives..
I'm surprised how many people have said, "just cancel the card" here. Its not THAT tightly bound to the card. I had mine bound to a check card a year before they approved it. Also, they call you when they detect unusual activity. I had to fill up every 2 days for 2 weeks, so they called to see if everything was ok.
Intelligent Life on Earth
Using a Speedpass to buy McDonalds... is probably a sign that you're eating too much McDonalds!
It used to be the Chicago muggers would leave your watch alone unless it was a Rolex. Now they're gonna take my plastic Casio SciCalc Compass Watch too, "just in case."
How hard would it be for some unscrupulous person to just hood up a speedpass reader in a high traffic area and try to read, and charge, every speedpass that happened to pass within a foot or so?
Wireless internet connection + speedpass reader + batterys or whatever power source...
I don't know about you, but I'd rather not have my pocket picked electronically...
I can't wait until they create a watch that works with the I-PASS system. You know, the little box that automagically pays your toll as you drive past the toll gates at 20 mph? If I only had an I-PASS watch, I could just stick my arm out while I drive past the scanner like this and AAAAAGH MY HAND!!! THE BLOOD!!! OH GOD THERE'S SO MUCH BLOOD!!! AAAGGGHH!!!
how is this different in security? Everyone is doing the standard "invasion of privacy" and "lack of security" response here. I'll agree it lessens privacy a little more (as if it could go any lower), but is it any less secure than anything else.
Consider, for example, the following:
1. We give our credit cards to a less-than minimum wage employee each time we pay for a meal at a restaraunt. The credit card leaves our sight for several minutes.
2. We give our credit card with no signature over the phone and internet all the time.
3. Does anyone match the signature on the credit card with the signature you provide anyway? I've seen it done in some cities, but here in the West people normally give you the card back before you even sign.
4. This could go on, but the point is made.
Credit cards work because the companies cover the losses (for the most part). It's cheaper to cover losses than to prevent them. These watches and whatever else comes in the future will probably work the same.
Nothing's changed here, people. Move along...
And believe it or not, more places check than you'd think.
My experience (and I'm sure other people will chime in) says the complete opposite. I've used my parents credit cards to buy many things. I'm not talking about going and buying a pack of gum. I'm talking about TVs, air conditioners, stereo systems. Thousands of dollars. I was almost never questioned, even though I was signing a different name than was on the credit card (some times I just signed anything, who can read the scribble that is some people's signature?). The one time I can recall being questioned, the salesman said to me "just sign whatever name is on the front, and we'll be fine". And now, when I use my card, it is rarely in a situation where anyone can check the signature. At the grocery store, the card readers are on my side of the counter, and I sign on the reader. The clerk never sees the card. At the gas station (this is NJ, no self serve), at places where they don't have on-pump readers (which require no signature), they hand me back my card and my reciept, then I sign the store copy. How can they check the sig if they just handed me back the card? Before my card expired a few months ago, my signature had rubbed off the back. I specifically didn't resign it just to see if anyone noticed. No one did.
If you lose the tag, cancel the credit card.
Not sure how it works in Canada, but here in the Chicago Area, the Speedpass has a unique number that is tied to a credit card. Lose the Speedpass, you just cancel the pass and not the card itself.
As for the privacy aspect, I've had one of these for about three years and it sure comes in handy. It gets cold here in Chicago as well so the less time standing by the pump, the better. We can also use them at McDonald's. I don't have to juggle the kids, keys, and cash. My Speedpass in on my keys, so I just juggle two things.
If it is of some value to someone to know how many happy meals my kids eat or how often I fill the tank of the Jeep, they are welcome to it.
Viv
Gmail invites for ip
With Pat. Act II, we no longer need SSNs or universal IDs. Now the government can locate us quickly via the use of corporate DBs. I am guessing that in the future if you do not have one of these marvelous devices, then the government will simply focus on your movements in the traffic cams.
Yeah, yeah. No doubt several of you will post something about tin foil hats and all, but then you obviously do not read your history.
First they came for the jew, but I did nothing....
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
This does not condone vendor lock-in at all. If they were handing out free gas caps that only their nozzles would fit in then yes. You are still free to use that first cheap gas station if you desire and still use your existing CC. It does add a slight tickler in your mind to use an Exxon/Mobile but that is far from a lock-in. I just got my SpeedPass last month and have only used it once so far. The station I used it at was one I frequently use anyway. The SpeedPass is nice to have but I choose not to go out of my way to use it.
Bad boys rape our young girls but Violet gives willingly.
http://www.ti.com/tiris/docs/news/news_releases
"RFID systems feature a digital signature encryption protocol that has a challenge/response authentication to ensure complete consumer protection.
This technique makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible to duplicate the transponder (tag), or the secret encryption key. And, even if the key were duplicated, it would only be valid for one tank of gas, making it a very expensive tank of gasoline for a would-be criminal. "
My take is that it's more secure than the credit cards in my pocket. So what's the problem then?
I hope you do not really think that signing the back will help much. For one, many places take CC's without a live person seeing the card like the self check-out's and gas stations. Every one of my CC's has a signature of "See ID". One out of ten times, someone will ask for my ID.
There is CC protection with the SpeedPass, same as with the CC itself. Using the SpeedPass is no different then authorizing a business to charge a specific CC every month for a continued service.
Don't let your lack of information get in the way of making an informed decision.
From the SpeedPass web site:
Steps to take when you discover an unauthorized Speedpass purchase on your credit or check card linked to your Speedpass:
1. Contact your financial institution immediately to report any disputed purchase made with your Speedpass, and to request a credit. Be sure to follow your financial institution's instructions for disputing charges. This Agreement does not change the procedures or rights you have with your financial institution.
2. If you are unable to resolve the situation satisfactorily, contact Speedpass Customer Service (toll free 1-87-SPEEDPASS, 1-877-733-3727). We will process a credit to your financial account if the disputed purchase made with your Speedpass is unauthorized.
Bad boys rape our young girls but Violet gives willingly.
One trick is to NOT sign the back of your credit card. Instead, write the words, "Please ask for ID". Some clerks won't bother to look for the signature but most will check and ask you for ID. This may also make your stolen card less likely to be used or sold.
Sure I'm all for anyone who wants to "use" these technologies but those who choose NOT to use these technologies should have alternatives that don't cost any MORE then the current "popular" offering. then its a real choice and not a choice driven by cost and/or user fees.
A good example is the rapidly disappearing acceptance of personal cheques in Canada. In fact most big chains like WALMART don't accept cheques anymore.
So if I chose NOT to use a debit card and I can't write a cheque, I guess I should start carrying my bag of loonie and toonies around with my bag of coal! (:-
If technology is all about choice then lets be fair about the types of choices offered and how they are being offered.
Not to mention the fact that you don't technically have to sign for a credit card either. Do you sign anything when you pay at the pump with your credit card?
(sound of crickets)
Yeah, that's what I thought. Even on purchases, you don't always have to sign. What do you sign when you make an internet transaction? If you go to a store, they technically don't have to make you sign something if it is under a certain dollar amount (can't remember offhand what it is).
Personally, I don't use a Speedpass because I don't always go to Mobil. If I had one, I would probably always go to them, and I refuse to be controlled by their clever, evil marketing ideas. :-)
My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.
... I keep wanting to go back to using CASH for everything.
-- I am. Therefore, I think!
My father works for Shell, and I remember him telling me about the robotic fill-up system they'd developed a few years back. Although he wasn't terribly forthcoming with the nitty-gritty details, I imagine it simply operated based on a database of your cars' particular measurements coupled with a few at-the-pump IR measurements to fine adjust. The coolest part of the system was when he told me that it could fill an entire 15-gallon tank in (I believe) a little under a minute when coupled with an RF payment system.
But they couldn't use it, because there are federal regulations governing the pressure allowed on a gas pump. Not for safety reasons relating to the car, but so that the jack-holes that try to top-off their tanks can't send a boatload of gas spewing out in all directions. The system was well past prototype stage, as result, because they were trying to convince whatever governing body (EPA, probably) that, "hey, this is a robot! It doesn't try to top-off. The pressure regulation is kind of pointless in this situation."
Unfortunately, nothing ever came of it, and so Shell's newly re-done stations simply have the highest pressure allowed by the regulations.
It's my understanding that the best kind of security is physical security. i.e. Don't put your credit card out over the air...even if it is only six inches.
Though you may have a point there. I guess I don't see RFID being any less secure, than, say, the internet. And I'm sure as hell not going to stop using Amazon.
Where that approach hasn't quite reached c'cards just yet.
Take a pill, jill :)
Get a clock embedded in my credit card?
;)
Get a calendar printed on paper currency?
Get a sundial added to Sacagawea dollars?
I can go on....
Edith Keeler Must Die
And some places will specifically not accept that. The Post Office, for instance. Big sign on the counter:
"Credit cards MUST be signed. The words "Ask for ID" are not acceptable."
I made my own 2 years ago.
I simply ground down my speedpass dongle until I got to the thickness I desired and then ground down the sides for length. Then after I broke that one, I did it to the second one knowing what to expect and called in the first one as lost.
I then superglued it inside the leather band of my watch.
really simple and sounds like the exact same thing they did.
NOTE: record your speedpass numbers and keep them in a safe place when you need to report it lost/stolen.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.