Hacker Uses Flipper Zero and Nail Art to Open Their Hotel Room

A person attending a hacker convention has used NFC chips and the Flipper Zero to clone a hotel room key onto their nail art, allowing them to easily open their hotel room door.

Although CES and Computer have ended, this does not mean that the tech convention scene is quiet. Def Con, the hacker convention held in Las Vegas, started on August 8, 2024 and attendees are already showcasing their newest hacked innovations.

Among the attendees was a hacker who successfully cloned their hotel room credentials onto their nail art using an open-source NFC-compatible device, allowing them to gain entry to their hotel room.

Babybe_Doll, a staff member of Def Con and a user on X/Twitter, shared a video showcasing their impressive hacking abilities, while also displaying their nail art talents. In a thread on social media, the hacker described how they achieved the finger-nail modification by cloning their hotel room key using the Flipper Zero.

Unlocking my hotel room door with my fingernails!New #defconnails for #defcon inspired by Jon Buckley’s “High Tech Monopoly”with 2x hidden Mifare Classic magic chips and 2x NTAG+LED nail stickers that I designed. I used @flipper_zero to clone my room key to the Mifare chip! pic.twitter.com/XrsfKltF4P

— @baybedoll@infosec.exchange (@Baybe_Doll) August 6, 2024

The compact Flipper Zero device is capable of interacting with RFID and NFC signals, such as those found on a hotel room keycard. In this particular scenario, Babybe_Doll cleverly utilized the device to transfer the information stored on the keycard to a Mifare branded chip.

Babybe_Doll decided to incorporate the chip into their nail art rather than simply attaching it to their phone. The hacker also stated that the inspiration for this nail art came from artist Jon Buckley’s work, ‘High Tech Monopoly’.

The nail art stands out on its own and is suitable for being featured on the Def Con convention floor. Each nail is modeled after a different tech-inspired Jon Buckley Monopoly square, featuring detailed renditions of the classic Monopoly illustrations.

Despite their carefully painted appearance, the nails created by Baby_Doll actually contain two concealed Mifare classic magic chips and two NTAG LED nail stickers.

Image of the Def-con nails by @Baybe_Doll on X/Twitter. — @Baybe_Doll

The hacker has placed the classic Mifare NFC chip on each of their middle fingers, and the exposed nail stickers hold the LED and NTAG213 tag. This clever setup allows the hacker to access their hotel room without needing a keycard.

The highly anticipated DEF CON 23 began on August 8 and will continue until August 11 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Undoubtedly, this yearly hacker convention will showcase an array of unique hacks that we have yet to witness.