Practical Attacks on NFC Enabled Cell Phones

Near Field Communication (NFC) technology enables devices to communicate wirelessly within proximity distance. These NFC devices are often embedded into smart posters that offer the ability to exchange small files, photos and contact details. The Nokia 6212 Classic is currently the most popular NFC phone. It allows users to easily exchange digital objects using the NFC interface. To do so, two phones should be within the proximity coupling distance of 5 cm. This paper shows that the NFC feature that invokes a Bluetooth connection without user consent can be abused to surreptitiously install malicious software on the phone. This results in a serious vulnerability when smart posters start installing malicious software or spreading viruses.