British computer scientists have uncovered weaknesses in electronic passports that could allow attackers to track individuals as they enter and exit buildings.

"The so-called traceability attack is the only exploit of an e-passport that allows attackers to remotely track a given credential in real time without first knowing the cryptographic keys that protect it, the scientists from University of Birmingham said," writes The Register's Dan Goodin.

"To exploit the weakness, attackers would need to observe the targeted passport as it interacted with an authorized RFID reader at a border crossing or other official location," Goodin writes. "They could then build a special device that detects the credential each time it comes into range."

Click here to read the article at The Register.