A 24-year-old engineer was arrested on Friday on suspicion of cracking the EasyCard encryption system and changing the value of cards to make purchases at convenience stores, Taipei EasyCard Corp said yesterday, maintaining that its security system remains sound.
Wu Dong-lin (吳東霖) allegedly decoded the encryption of three EasyCards he had in his possession and changed the value in each of the cards to NT$9,000. The company’s information security system detected the anomaly and the company worked with police in Taipei to apprehend him after he made a purchase with an EasyCard at a convenience store.
EasyCard general manager Cheng You-chin (鄭有欽) said the company reported the situation to the police immediately after its system detected the anomaly on Sept. 10, but did not lock out the cards so that the police could trace the suspect’s location.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Before the arrest was made, the suspect allegedly made six purchases totaling NT$608 using two of the three EasyCards at convenience stores, and the loss to the company was only NT$39 after deducting the original values in the cards of NT$569, Cheng told a press conference held at the company.
Chen Kuo-wen (陳國文), a division chief at the police department, said Wu claimed he only decoded the encryption code for his EasyCards and did not collude with others.
Cheng dismissed concerns about the information security of the EasyCard system, adding that while the encryption system on the cards could be cracked, the company’s transaction security mechanism and other protection systems would serve as the gatekeeper against any acts of theft.
“The suspect did not hack into the value store-up system or copy other users’ EasyCards. We remain confident about our information security mechanisms and we can promise that all customers’ rights will be protected,” he said.
Wu’s alleged crime violated the Act on Issuance and Management of Electronic Monetary Cards (電子票證發行管理條例) and he could face a sentence of one to 10 years, or a fine of up to NT$200 million (US$6.5 million), Chen said.
EasyCards, which are used mostly for public transportation, can be used to make a purchase of up to NT$1,000 per transaction with a daily cap of NT$3,000 after the Financial Supervisory Commission approved their use as an electronic cash card beginning in April last year.
EasyCard holders can store up to NT$10,000 in value and use the card as an electronic wallet at major convenience stores and more than 10,000 shops nationwide.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
RSS