Magicband battery removal?

[Nudoru]

DH has played around quiet a bit with our bands and the RFID reader on our phones. All that you get from it is a string of numbers. For them to mean anything you have to be directly connected to Disney's database first. There are so many levels of protection that even my paranoid it husband says it would be way more trouble than its worth.

And FYI the signal is so weak that you have to have actual physical contact for a few seconds completely still for any scanner to get a read. Pretty sure you would notice that.

That is very good to know, that kind of takes the wind out of the Active Tracking arguement as well since it would have to be a pretty strong receiver to pick up signals that weak i would think.

 

[doconeill]

DH has played around quiet a bit with our bands and the RFID reader on our phones. All that you get from it is a string of numbers. For them to mean anything you have to be directly connected to Disney's database first. There are so many levels of protection that even my paranoid it husband says it would be way more trouble than its worth.

And it probably was only one particular ID. The MagicBands actually have three, given off at three different frequencies.

And FYI the signal is so weak that you have to have actual physical contact for a few seconds completely still for any scanner to get a read. Pretty sure you would notice that.

That does depend on the equipment being used. Something giving a more powerful magnetic field will induce the radio circuit from a greater distance, and with a refined antenna can read it from a distance. But then it's getting more cumbersome to pull it off.

And to gain very little.

Not entirely true. Disney is using long range readers to connect attraction photos to people's PhotoPass+ accounts. It's apparently still in the testing phase (like everything else), but it happened for us on ToT. We had no FP+ for it, didn't use our Magic Band at the attraction for anything, and didn't go claim our photo after the ride. However, the picture still showed up in our PP+ account. I was totally mystified, until I saw some other guests reporting similar experiences, and was then told by a CM that that's what Disney was doing.

OK, I hadn't realized they were doing that. For group shots like on TOT, I can see it working pretty well. For more individual ones, like on the coasters or Splash Mountain, I wonder if it would have trouble identifying which bands were in particular seats...

Exactly. My DH and I have also played around with reading the RFID signals from our bands. He has an IT background, and came to the same conclusion. He said with the encryption that Disney is using, it's virtually impossible that someone outside of Disney could get any sort of identifying or useful information from scanning a Magic Band.

It isn't so much the encryption (the chip does support encryption, but I'm not sure it is used for this application), but that someone also needs access to the massive "Disney Database of Everything" (DDE as I call it)...which if they have access to that, they don't NEED the RFID info and there is a much, much larger problem.

Even the various kiosks, terminals, etc. probably only have access to compartmentalized information. A Fastpass+ kiosk, for instance, could not pull up resort information even if hacked, etc. (I believe - I don't have direct knowledge)

 

[Autumnslight]

OK, I hadn't realized they were doing that. For group shots like on TOT, I can see it working pretty well. For more individual ones, like on the coasters or Splash Mountain, I wonder if it would have trouble identifying which bands were in particular seats...

Yeah, it only happened for us on ToT, not on RnRC or even Splash Mountain (both attractions where we forgot to link the photo!), so I'm wondering the same thing. Trying to pinpoint it down to that level may be difficult.

It isn't so much the encryption (the chip does support encryption, but I'm not sure it is used for this application), but that someone also needs access to the massive "Disney Database of Everything" (DDE as I call it)...which if they have access to that, they don't NEED the RFID info and there is a much, much larger problem.

Right. I'm getting mixed up. The database access thing applies to the Magic Bands. The encryption thing actually applies to the Disney Infinity Power Discs. We were trying to figure out if we could use our RFID scanners to tell which discs were in the bags...

 

[doconeill]

-They could not get in the park. You still need fingerprint scan which if they're going to fake that they're gonna spend more money than the price of the 1 day admission anyways.

Yes, I forgot to mention that fact. Was typing three different thread responses at once.

But there are some classes of tickets that don't require finger scans, even for adults. Of course they are pretty rare compared to the whole, and how would they know?

-All of your points are hinging on the fact that someone steals your magic band RFID information and then somehow transmits them to a MYW card/magic band. They can't just walk around with a random RFID card and scan it. Cast Members would hopefully be trained to immediately call attention to it.

Which I did mention at the end...

That is very good to know, that kind of takes the wind out of the Active Tracking arguement as well since it would have to be a pretty strong receiver to pick up signals that weak i would think.

I don 't think we're talking about some random schmo tracking someone through the parks through the band. Disney has the antennas...they even tell you they are doing it. The active transmitter, based on the FCC information, can be read around 9-15 feet. But I don't believe the phones are set up to read that particular protocol, which is different than the typical RFID/NFC passive tags. NFC on phones operates on a standard HF RFID frequency, whereas the active transmitter operates on the 2.4GHz Bluetooth/Wi-Fi spectrum, but it is not the same as either of those.

 

[PatMcDuck]

How long til someone posts instructions for removing the battery from a magic band? I have no problem with the passive portion, it's really the same as we had on our KTTW on our last trip. Nice and convenient. But I'm not interested in being tracked as I wander the property via the active RFID so if there was an easy way to pluck the battery out and disable the active portion I'd be on board with the bands.

It might be easier to get a little bag to put the band in, between rides. I know with the EZPASS here in the NJ area, they give you a little silver colored thick plastic bag with your sensor thing. They tell you to place your EZ pass in the bag if you do NOT want it to register on the machine as you go thru a toll. I would think that this bag might block a Magic Band signal as well. ??

Personally, this is not my issue, I don't worry about this sort of stuff.

 

[Pixel Dust]

There are plenty of people who don't like the "creepy" factor, like Disney knowing how often you use the restroom, etc.

Actually, knowing when and how often people use the bathroom is beneficial information. They can use that info to build more bathrooms, like at the American Adventure at Epcot. Or, increase the cleaning frequency based on usage. In the end, it is a better experience for us, as guests.

 

[doconeill]

Actually, knowing when and how often people use the bathroom is beneficial information. They can use that info to build more bathrooms, like at the American Adventure at Epcot. Or, increase the cleaning frequency based on usage. In the end, it is a better experience for us, as guests.

I'm not sure they need tracking information for that. Simple inspection should suffice.

 

[Yellowstonetim]

I'm not sure they need tracking information for that. Simple inspection should suffice.

That is the whole point. There is no simple inspection. How many bathrooms are there? How often are they used? How often does someone need to walk into each and check? One female and one male needed for each. What if a large number of people visit right after an inspection?

Being able to monitor and evaluate visitor movements and patterns will help Disney adjust to meet OUR needs.

This is the problem every business faces: You walk up to a checkout counter at the store and either there are 100 people and 2 cashiers, or there are 20 cashiers and 2 people. These scenarios can alternate in minutes. Neither are good for customers or business.

I like the fact that Disney will immediately know that the large crowd that just got out of a show has headed for area A when they usually head for B. Or that the bathroom just inspected has seen 50 visitors in 5 minutes.

This vast amount of data will allow Disney to understand where I am going and what I want so they will be able to give me what I want, where I want, when I want. And in return they get my money. Everybody's happy.

 

[Happy99]

I am more afraid of what the government and other tracking things out in the world than what the MB has the capability of doing. Have you ever entered your address into an internet search? If you haven't you would be surprised at how much information is out there on your home that even a technically challenged person like myself can access with a simple internet search