Penza, 25 February 2015. PenzaNews. Penza city urban amenities workers began installing magnet-spoofing tamper seals on in-house water meters.

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The official expect to use them as means to detect tampering with devices using magnets.

A magnet-spoofing seal is a glue strip of special duct tape with an embedded capsule of magnetically sensitive suspension.

Originally, it is formed as a small black point no more than 1.5-2 mm in diameter: however, under the influence of magnetic field the contents spread around the capsule, activated even by short bursts.

Each seal is assigned its own unique ID, and is impossible to temporarily remove without breaking the capsule and leaving a particular kind of marking on the device. Any signs of seal tampering will be grounds for enacting fines against owners.

“We have decided to use magnet-spoofing seals after uncovering numerous cases of magnet tampering among water users. They will help us solve the problem among organizations and citizens in the neighborhood,” says the official website of property management companies in the Arbekovo neighborhood.