'MythBusters' co-host backpedals on RFID kerfuffle

This post was updated at 1:50 p.m. PDT to correct the spelling of Tory Belleci's name.

MythBusters co-host Adam Savage is stepping back from public comments suggesting that legal counsel from several credit card companies led the Discovery Channel to pull the plug on an episode dedicated to security holes in RFID.

At the Last HOPE conference in New York in July, Savage told a crowd of several thousand people that his theory on why MythBusters had not gone forward with a planned episode on RFID (radio frequency identification) hackability was that on a conference call to discuss the matter with technicians from Texas Instruments, the lawyers for the credit cards companies had put the hammer down on the show.

"Texas Instruments comes on along with chief legal counsel for American Express, Visa, Discover, and everybody else (co-host Tory Belleci and a MythBusters producer) were way, way out-gunned," Savage told the crowd, "and (the lawyers) absolutely made it really clear to Discovery that they were not going to air this episode talking about how hackable this stuff was, and Discovery backed way down, being a large corporation that depends upon the revenue of the advertisers. Now it's on Discovery's radar and they won't let us go near it."

But Texas Instruments spokeswoman Cindy Huff told CNET News on Tuesday that things had gone a bit different than Savage had said.

"In June 2007, MythBusters was interested in pursuing some great myth-busting ideas for RFID. While in pursuit, they contacted Texas Instruments' RFID Systems, who is a pioneer of RFID and contactless technology, for technical help and understanding of RFID in the contactless payments space," Huff said. "Some of the information that was needed to pursue the program required further support from the contactless payment companies as they construct their own proprietary systems for security to protect their customers. To move the process along, Texas Instruments coordinated a conversation with Smart Card Alliance (SCA) who invited MasterCard and Visa, on contactless payments to help MythBusters get the right information. Of the handful of people on the call, there were mostly product managers and only one contactless payment company's legal counsel member. Technical questions were asked and answered and we were to wait for MythBusters to let us know when they were planning on showing the segment. A few weeks later, Texas Instruments was told by MythBusters that the storyline had changed and they were pursuing a different angle which did not require our help."

And now, even Savage is saying that he got his facts wrong.

In a statement from Savage--who was speaking for himself at the conference and not appearing on behalf of the show--provided to CNET News by Discovery Channel on Wednesday, the MythBusters co-host retracted the substance of what he'd told the Last HOPE audience.

"There's been a lot of talk about this RFID thing, and I have to admit that I got some of my facts wrong, as I wasn't on that story, and as I said on the video, I wasn't actually in on the call," Savage said in the statement. "Texas Instruments' account of their call with Grant and our producer is factually correct. If I went into the detail of exactly why this story didn't get filmed, it's so bizarre and convoluted that no one would believe me, but suffice to say...the decision not to continue on with the RFID story was made by our production company, Beyond Productions, and had nothing to do with Discovery, or their ad sales department."

From his statement, it's also logical to conclude that when he told the Last HOPE audience that co-host Belleci was on the conference call, he had meant Grant Imahara, another MythBuster co-host.

Further, a Discovery Channel representative told me that MythBusters did end up running an episode, last January, on RFID, but that the issue of the technology's security holes was not addressed.

[Michichael]

Interesting...

[Lerianis]

Hey, he might have actually been told by someone, who had been told by someone else, that the RFID episode WAS pulled because of legal threats. The fact is that RFID tags are NOT very secure at all today (neither are credit cards, in all honesty) and that security on them needs to be improved.

[Manhattan2]

RFIDfirewall.com is needed.

[rfidchaff]

How about http://www.rfidchaff.com ?

[badasscat]

Here's a translation of this story for the slow-witted among you:

Discovery Channel: Adam, we don't like what you said about us last month.

Adam: Oh no?

Discovery Channel: No. And further, we'd like you to "correct" it. As would our buddies at AMEX, Mastercard, Visa and Discover.

Adam: And why would I do that?

Discovery Channel: Well, see, here's your contract, right? And if we just take this cigarette lighter here...

Adam: No, wait! Clearly, I had my facts wrong.

Discovery Channel: That's all we've been saying.

[mishmash0101]

Right on!

[`WarpKat]

I'm starting to feel like the credibility of Savage is coming into question. I mean...to make an outlandish statement that an army of lawyers from several credit card companies told Discovery to stop...it could almost be considered truth only because of what we see with DRM companies and the "don't ask, don't tell" equivalent of the DMCA relative to security researchers.

I'm more inclined to believe that he was told by Discovery to retract his statement and stay in line with what the "official" reasons are - as told by Texas Instruments.

With that said, if that is the official story, then Beyond Proudctions, Discovery Channel and The Mythbusters no longer have any reason NOT to show the episode.

Sorry, Adam, but from where I'm sitting, it appears someone has your nads in a vice-grip and is threatening to squeeze them off...

[whogrant]

I've read your report on this three times now and it is clear Savage's opinion of what happened hasn't really changed and reading between the lines it is pretty clear that Discovery was leaned on to make it sound like they were not leaned on to drop the negative part of the story in the first place. This whole retraction story sounds like a PR gloss over to make Visa and friends look good - let me also guess that there is some financial relationship between Discovery channel and those companies or their directors etc. As Savage says, even after the "If I went into the detail of exactly why this story didn't get filmed, it's so bizarre and convoluted that no one would believe me," - it really doesn't take much imagination to believe Beyond Productions realized they just couldn't afford the consequences of running the negative part of the story and since Discovery wouldn't indemnify them from legal action so they decided to drop it.

[quash_bug]

oooo.. how do you like you eggs? scrambled?..

[Dalkorian]

Guess you have no experience reading between the lines. Take a look at the post "whogrant" made above, or one of the 'cats above that. Try to think for a moment, please. It'll be good for you!

[jessepluna]

This story is too convoluted to not be what it appears - credit card companies intimidating a TV show to censor its content. Period.

[padillah]

Seriously guys, why can't this simply be a case of Adam telling tales out of school? Do you really think TI is hiding the security holes in RFID? Do you really think anyone that wanted to exploit those holes has to depend on the Mythbusters to do it? Do you really think Visa and the rest can afford to dump the huge market share Discovery Channel represents? Do you really think Discovery Channel is so married to these various credit companies that simply pulling their ads would sway them? If you think all this is true I have ocean front property in AZ to sell, cheap!

[padillah]

Seriously guys, why can't this simply be a case of Adam telling tales out of school? Do you really think TI is hiding the security holes in RFID? Do you really think anyone that wanted to exploit those holes has to depend on the Mythbusters to do it? Do you really think Visa and the rest can afford to dump the huge market share Discovery Channel represents? Do you really think Discovery Channel is so married to these various credit companies that simply pulling their ads would sway them? If you think all this is true I have ocean front property in AZ to sell, cheap!

[drgnCabe]

Yup, just like the worry that the Boston MTA might shut down some MIT students over an RFID research project... Oh, wait.. Never mind..

[itsumishi]

Do you really think TI is hiding the security holes in RFID?
- Certainly seems like it!

Do you really think anyone that wanted to exploit those holes has to depend on the Mythbusters to do it?
- Certainly not, but that's really not the point!

Do you really think Visa and the rest can afford to dump the huge market share Discovery Channel represents?
- Hell yes. VISA and Mastercard have a whole lot more revenue than Discovery Channel.

Do you really think Discovery Channel is so married to these various credit companies that simply pulling their ads would sway them?
- Yes I'd bet that they make a very large portion of their corporate funding.

[esbeesue]

The Mythbusters/RFID story appeared on an interesting site called nonais.org. It outlines how microchips will be used to implant in every last privately livestock animal in our country under the guise of tracking animal disease and protecting our food supply (horses, camelids are included in this insane plan)

This program is a so-called "voluntary" called NAIS (national animal identification system)that will force everyone who owns even one livestock animal on a private level, say as pets or for their own consumption, to register their premises with the government, microchip and file reports to the govt on every birth, death and off property move those animals make. If animal disease is suspected an entire 6 mile radius of animals can be depopulated (killed). Think I am kidding? I only wish I were.

NAIS is in reality, a business plan for corporate agriculture, even though the USDA is pushing it as an animal disease tracking plan. But even Granny's hens, my horses and pet pot belly pigs in suburbia are included by having to tag and track and report all their births, deaths and off property movements. Why? So corporate ag can tell the world what a safe meat supply they have and Japan will buy that beef. But they only have one lot number per groups of animals, no chipping and few reporting events. Yup! Makes sure sense to me. Just like me having a disease but I force YOU to take and pay for the meds, then I travel the world declaring I am disease free. I am not against big ag making money, but the rest of us are forced to be part of that scheme and get none of the profits, just the onerous responsibilites of making is seem like big ag has safe beef.

[pepperpots]

that's about what i figured. rfid is pretty hackable and ... from what i read at wikipedia, there's a lot of people who DON'T want this known.