University of Surrey researcher, Thomas P Diakos, created an inexpensive receiver, small enough to fit into a backpack, using the above items along with other off-the-shelf electronics.
Using this equipment he was able to eavesdrop on cards at distances of 20 - 90 centimetres, maintaining good reception at up to 45cm - despite the fact that one of the main security features of contactless cards is a requirement not to transfer payment data in excess of 10cm from a reader.
A NEW word to learn ===> eavesdropper <===!!!