A communication data protection method based on symmetric key encryption, and an apparatus for enabling the method are provided. A communication data protection method using a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) reader, the method including: receiving, from a tag, tag information including security parameter information and an encrypted Unique Item Identifier (UII); extracting the UII based on the security parameter information; transmitting, to the tag, a request message including a challenge value for replay prevention; and performing a tag authentication by receiving, from the tag, a response message including a handle and the challenge value.