YES and NFC attacks just surged 188% in the first four months of 2026. What NFC is: Near Field Communication. The technology behind tap-to-pay, transport cards, and those square stickers on restaurant tables that open menus when you scan them. Range: about 4 centimeters. you have to physically tap or get very close. The simple attack: tag tampering An attacker replaces a legitimate NFC tag on a poster, restaurant table, parking meter, or public kiosk with their own. your phone taps it. instead of opening the menu or paying the parking, it opens a phishing site. you enter your card details. done. An NFC tag costs under $1. a Flipper Zero can read and clone most unlocked tags in seconds. no technical skill required. The advanced attack: NFC relay This is where it gets serious. Malware called NFCGate turns your phone into an NFC relay device. here's the chain: — you're tricked into installing a fake banking or security app — the app runs silently — when you tap your physical bank card to pay for something, the malware intercepts the NFC signal from your card — it transmits that signal in real time to an attacker's phone anywhere in the world — the attacker taps their phone to a payment terminal — the terminal thinks it's talking to your card — the transaction goes through You tapped to pay at a coffee shop, someone in another city just bought a laptop with your card. simultaneously. What to do: — never scan NFC tags in public unless you know exactly what they link to. preview the URL before opening. — never install apps from links sent via WhatsApp, SMS, or messaging apps. not even from people you know. — enable transaction notifications on your bank app. real-time alerts catch unauthorized charges immediately. — some card holders and phone cases block NFC signals. useful in crowded areas. — on iPhone: NFC only activates in specific contexts. the risk is lower. not zero. — on Android: check which apps have NFC permission. revoke anything that doesn't need it. the tap that takes a second and can cost you everything in your account.