There are over 20,000 RFID-blocking wallets and similar products on Amazon. Do you really need one to protect your credit card or passport?

In this article, I cover the basics of RFID tags, review the risks of someone skimming data from your credit card or U.S. Passport, and tell you what Angie and I have decided to do.

What’s an RFID tag?

In a nutshell, an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag consists of a memory chip and an antenna. When the antenna receives a signal, it responds with the information on the chip. After an RFID tag is created, it only sends information one way, from the chip to the reader.

I worked with RFID tags for cargo containers way back in 1995 when I was responsible for tracking and managing a couple million line items of prepositioned military equipment. They were pretty big then, around the size and shape of a deck of cards. They were super useful for tracking items moving through a container terminal on rail or by truck.

After I moved on to my next assignment, I never really thought about them again… until our new contactless credit cards arrived in the mail. Now I have to wonder, can these RFID tags be triggered from 30 feet away like the ones I used back in 1995? Just how safe is my information?

I wondered the same thing when our newly renewed U.S. Passports arrived. I didn’t realize that all U.S. Passports have an RFID-tag holding biometric information about the individual passport holder. So I went looking for information. 

What’s the risk for credit cards?

Not surprisingly, most of the first articles I found were by companies making RFID-blocking products like wallets, sling bags, and even clothing with RFID-blocking pockets. To their credit, many were up front and honest about the low risk of scammers skimming credit card information from your RDIF-tagged credit card.

This Verify article from 2023 had the best explanation and sourcing for the risks of all contactless payment methods. Their research concluded that contactless payment was safer than chip or swipe credit card payment for a variety of reasons, including contactless card data encryption, one-time-only transaction codes, and having to be within an inch or two of the scanner.

RDIF-tagged credit cards are less vulnerable to “skimmers,” pieces of equipment inserted into the point of sale machine to copy card information during the physical contact required by using a chip or swiping the magnetic strip. Consumer Reports also has a nice article about contactless payments as part of its effort to support consumers’ digital security.

So, contactless credit cards look pretty safe from skimming without an RDIF-blocking wallet or sleeve.

What’s the risk for passports?

Unlike the tag on your credit card, you cannot see the U.S. Passport RFID-tag. That’s because it and its’ antenna are embedded into the photo page. There are layered protections built into the chip and the passport book itself to minimize the threat of data loss.

This AFAR article from 2018 cites two U.S. State Department experts who work passport issues and a white-hat hacker who specializes in hacking RFID tags. It turns out the passport cover has RFID-blocking tape built in. So, unless your passport is open, no RFID signal will reach the chip. Even when the passport is open, the information stored on the RFID-chip is the same as that on the data page of the passport, with the addition of a digital photo and an encrypted code that allows the Department of Homeland Security to verify the passport hasn’t been tampered with or altered. As someone who has had hotels from Bolivia to Morocco take photocopies of my passport information page, I feel pretty comfortable with the level of risk.

Warning For those of you with a U.S. Passport Card

One caveat: the U.S. Passport card has a similar RFID chip as the passport, but no built-in RFID-blocker. Turns out, it was designed to be read while driving up to a vehicle inspection station just like a carpool or vehicle toll tag is read on the highway.

For that reason, the card comes with an RFID-blocking sleeve to prevent data loss. In fact, the reverse of the card recommends the card “should” be kept in the sleeve when not in use. Sounds like good advice to me.

Bottom-line: Use an RFID-blocking wallet or sleeve if it makes you feel comfortable.

All that said, I’m still going to keep my credit card in a sleeve because it’s an inexpensive and easy “just in case” protection. These are the sleeves we use: Samsonite 3-Pack Credit Card RFID Sleeves, White, One Size.

Since our U.S. passports already have embedded RFID-blockers, I don’t feel the need for an additional blocker. If you feel differently (like I do about my credit card), this inexpensive sleeve has pretty good reviews: Travelon Safe ID RFID Protected Passport Sleeve Set of 2 Gray

If you need to replace the RFID-blocking sleeve that came with your US Passport Card, I recommend using the Samsonite 3-pack above. Or, if you’re worried about telling the difference between your protected cards, consider a package of multi-colored sleeves: Boxiki Travel RFID Blocking Slevves, set of 12 assorted

Last but not least, if you want a sleeve for each of these items, you can buy them together as a set: Boxiki Travel RFID Blocking Sleeves, set of 6 Credit Card and 1 Passport Sleeve.

In closing, the only item you need an RFID-blocking sleeve for is your U.S. Passport Card, and it comes with one!