VeriChip Implants 222 People With RFID

cnet-declan writes "Anyone remember VeriChip, a company that came up with the idea of implanting chips in humans for tracking them? They've been behind ideas like RFID tagging immigrant and guest workers at the border, and they've persuaded a former Bush Health Secretary to get himself chipped. In this CNET News.com article, we offer an update on how successful the idea has been. It turns out that, according to IPO documents, 222 people have been implanted, with sales revenue of $100,000."

I'd do it

but I'd hate to have to eventually pull that glowing red ball through my nose just to get to Mars.

666?

Hey, if they triple the number of implanted, they will be spot on!

Re:666?

Think about this... They implanted 222 people with chips. 222 is three twos, which would could write as 32. Thirty-two, as everyone one knows, is twenty-three backwards. The number 23 is everywhere!

Re:I'd do it

IEEE recently published a series of papers on this subject:

IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON DEVICE AND MATERIALS RELIABILITY, VOL. 5, NO. 3, SEPTEMBER 2005

Paper overview (PDF) [ieee.org]

Re:Alternative suggestion

That's immoral and degrading. Now, if they could put it in the form of a suppository...

Fancy that

People aren't lining up around the block to have uniquely identifiable bits of technology inserted into 'em? How come?

Re:Fancy that

Those people should have gone to the vets. We got our cat microchipped for less that one tenth of that price.

Re:Fancy that

No doubt there are mechanisms to remotely enable GPS tracking, but I doubt that there is anything an end user can do to disable it.

May I smarmily suggest a Sledgehammer ?

Re:Fancy that

People aren't lining up around the block to have uniquely identifiable bits of technology inserted into 'em? How come?

Cause God beat the government to it. ;) We don't need another unique identifier. We have DNA, fingerprintes, footprints, retina scans, facial thermal imaging scans, picture photos, and voice scans. We've used race, sex, hair color, eye color, height, and wieght when searching for criminals or posting limited ID traits on DLs. Do we really need more? I could see family, friends, schools, religions, employeers, and community clubs (Greenpeace or NRA) wanting to track "their" members, employees, family, or those involved with that religion. I think it's funny. We don't know if God exists so we are going to build a system that can tell where everyone is at any given time because that's one of the things only God was suppposed to be able to do and then worship it. I have no religious reason to object to anyone trying to track or control others that's the fundamental thing that God, governments, and humans generally try to do (control those that don't have the power to stop them.) I'm fairly certain that privacy will become a myth within my lifetime and most people won't even notice its gone.

I would leave FAST

if they tried to put one of those in me. I am a Canadian, and am working under contract in the US. but lets say they make it so all workers like me in a few years are required to have these flags, I can tell you now I would be going back to Canada fast. to me its a complete violation of my rights, and I well not stand for it and no one else should. Where I am is my business, and no one else's.

Re:I would leave FAST

Where I am is my business, and no one else's.

Not if you are a guest in a foreign country.

The interest a government has in preventing an attack does not imply that it would be right for that government to track all foreign nationals within its borders. At least, I would not support government policy that wanted this level of surveillance on foreigners. Even if you've bought into this nationalist mentality that foreigners are inherently more dangerous than domestic citizens consider: Once that infrastructure to track large numbers of foreigners is in place it would not be difficult to expand it to include tracking of citizens. I'm not willing to support any policy that will bring the government under which I live any closer to that type of police state. Are you?

Re:I would leave FAST

When you consider the the rights gaurenteed through the constitution applies to all people, not just citizens. On might say they are inaliable to all men.

Re:I would leave FAST

Your ability to think rationally has been seriously degraded by fear and/or propaganda. Implating chips in all foreign nationals is very much like outlawing guns: only the criminal foreign nationals would have no chips (they'd remove them if necessary), and the monitoring effort would be focused on exactly the wrong group, the law-abiding foreign nationals. You'd have to implant chips in all citizens for it to be meaningful, but then you'd have to do something about the 11 million illegal aliens who wouldn't have chips, most of whom aren't terrorists and are instead looking after your babies, washing your clothes, picking your fruit, and writing your software.

But it is interesting to watch fascism bubbling from the grassroots up, apparently with an utter lack of self-awareness. Look in the mirror: you are responsible for the world around you. If you want it to ever change, learn to think past the jerking of your knee.

Re:I would leave FAST

See what I hate is that's not actually true. As a visitor to the USA I have the same rights as any citizen, more specifically, I am entitled to the protection of the constitution of america and it's amendments.

Note that voting [and some similar stuff] is a right only of citizens (as prescribed by law). So the law still applies to me, and bars me from voting because I'm not a citizen [etc].

So if I entered the USA and then they decided to chip me they would be violating my constitutional rights to, among other things, the 4th amendment.

The minute they toy with their own rules against foreigners they can expect retaliations around the world. Which is why, aside from the ban on habeas corpus, they don't really infringe the rights of legitimate visitors.

That being said, I've never been questioned by the police in the USA. The only time I've had to talk to any law related folk outside of the border was a border patrol in upper state new york (re: budget exercise).

Tom

Re:I would leave FAST

Can someone please explain to me how this is a violation of privacy? I'm seriously curious.

The medical benefits of EMTs being able to instantly know a person's blood type, allergies, and medical history are obvious.

What isn't obvious is why people think short-range RFID is the same as battery-powered wild animal tracking collars. Are they just stupid? Look at the way RFID works. A person CAN NOT use it to track someone as they walk around a city. A device capable of generating the power to operate these over more than a very short distance would be very obvious to spot and would probably break every PDA and wrist-watch in the area. Also, it would be IMPOSSIBLE to survey a large number of RFID devices at the same time because of the way collisions are handled.

If you are afraid of this yet you carry a cellphone, you are a hypocrite. For practical purposes, small* RFID tags are a slightly-longer-range barcode.

*I realize that large tags can be read from greater distances. But that's not what we are talking about here.

Re:I would leave FAST

The medical benefits of EMTs being able to instantly know a person's blood type, allergies, and medical history are obvious.

Then get a medical bracelet with a barcode. They can read it just as easily, but you'd KNOW if someone was reading it. RFID circumvents physical security constraints.

A person CAN NOT use it to track someone as they walk around a city.

A person can't. A large company or government could. Quite easily, in fact.

A device capable of generating the power to operate these over more than a very short distance would be very obvious to spot

You can "spot" anything. That doesn't mean you have any way of knowing that street light you're walking by actually has a built-in RFID reader.

If you are afraid of this yet you carry a cellphone, you are a hypocrite.

I could almost agree with that (I don't have a cell phone), except for the fact that cell phones can be disabled at will, left at home, given to someone else, etc. Cell phones are a big privacy issue, but implanted RFID takes it to a whole new level.

Re:I would leave FAST

I can tell you now I would be going back to Canada fast

And doing what? Sitting around wishing you had a job at American pay rates?

Getting health care and affordable prescriptions while you sit around with a chip in your head made by the guy who has your job in China.

So, not yet mainstream

However, sales will skyrocket as soon as the RFID chip is required to vote on American Idol.

I'm sure it'll get more traction...

When it becomes part of the hardware required to run Vista. That way, a generation of PCs later, everyone will need an implanted RFID chip.

Forehead or Back of the hand?

Where do they put said chip? The forehead or the back of the hand?

Re:Forehead or Back of the hand?

I'll tell 'em where they can stick it.

People please...

We need to stand united against this. No matter what, don't allow yourself to be implanted.

I'm really scared about this. The most scary part is that 222 people actually paid to have this done to themselves. What were they thinking? Can they really be that stupid?

Re:People please...

While I appreciate your plea for the safety of children and appeal to the terrorism boogeyman, both of which are highly effective ways to turn a discussion into an argument and villify your opponent, the type of RFID chip used by this company (almost certainly a one meter-range passive one, as opposed to a battery-powered active chip) would not have been helpful in saving people from terrorists or child molesters. When people talk about being "tracked" by RFID tags, they don't mean that Jack Bauer will have some unobtanium-powered device with which he pinpoints your exact location, but rather that, in a hypothetical world where you need RFID tags to make purchases and enter establishments, the FBI will be able to say, "Oh look, he went to Macy's at 12:00." That is, unless terrorists are stupid enough to take their victims to McDonald's (some child abductors probably ARE stupid enough, now that I think about it).

Delivery boy

This reminds me of the futurama pilot.

Excellent!

Excellent, We've hit 1/3 of our goal!

Congratulations Mr Bin Laden

Osama Bin Laden
Secret Mountain Stronghold
Durkadurkastan


You are a winner!

Congratulations Mr Bin Laden your name was selected from millions of entrants. However our couriers are having some difficulty in locating you so we are providing you with a bright new shiny RFID tag and tag injection device. Simply swab a spot on your arm (we dont want you getting an infection now do we), press the injection device against your arm and pull the trigger. Yes, its that simple! Shortly thereafter the light and sound extravaganza we have prepared for you will begin when the courier drops in your thermonuclear prize!


Yours etc.
G. W. Bush

Dachshund

No ID tag? Soon enough my neighbor may be mistaken for a runaway dachshund - Go get'm boy.

lets have the chip...

fucking modded!!!!!!

Solution

I read somewhere that if you want to defeat this scheme, you just need to microwave the person for like, 2 minutes tops.

Are they trying to bring about The End?

Rev 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:
Rev 13:17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Rev 13:18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

What's the point?

Can anybody suggest to me what the point of this may be? Is it for Alzheimer's patients who forget who they are? The website suggests that doctors can get your medical information quickly with these chips (assuming the doctors in whatever ER you land in have heard of this, or have a reader). Why not just keep your hospital ID card in your wallet? That's what I do. If I'm found dead or hurt, then whoever opens my wallet will see my drivers' license, and my hospital card, so they can call up my hospital and ask for my records.

I just don't get it.

What the hell

What the hell is wrong with some people? Who, outside of crazy, Nazi scientists and ralieans thinks its a good idea to voluntarily put a chip in a persons body for no good reason. The few people who this might help, the few who are randomly incapacitated by illness have several, better alternatives: bracelets, id cards and if you want to get medievil tattooing themselves. A better alternative would be to place the chip in body jewelery. At least then, you can remove it.

Why would you do this to yourself, and perhaps more importantly why would you invest millions in R&D? The only way this system would work on a national level was if it was mandated by government. If that happens its time to start the revolution and get in line at the gun shop not the chip shop.

I purchased one....

.... but it was lost during transit.

Same, but different

I can replace those RFID's for the fraction of the cost - with the same basic outcome.

Ladies (yeah, there are so many here) and gentlegeeks, I give you....

The dog collar and leash!

Already made fashionable by Goths and kinksters the world over - these handsome and/or lovely accessories come in a variety of shapes and colors to fit every occasion. Great for keeping track of guest workers, immigrants, and wandering children.

To do list for the tech community

1)Find a few people who've been tagged and experiment w/ this RFID tagging system.
2)Develop 3rd party hardware and a web application that integrates w/ the google maps api to pin-point where such a person is.
3)Create a web page called Tommy Thompson Watch that shows exactly where in the world Tommy Thompson is at any given minute! At the very least, Tommy's wife might use the site. Hell, I would... Tommy's a sexy for an old man.

In other news...

... A former Bush health secretary has been deported to Mexico for violating his guest worker agreement.

Upgrades

What happens when Microsoft gets into the RFID reading business? The standards in place today will be meaningless. The people with the "fist generation" RFID chips will have to have those removed and upgraded. I can see people with two, three or even four different RFID chips in their arms, legs, foreheads just to make sure all of their info is readable by whoever wants it.

Have we learned nothing from 20 years of consumer electronic devices?

I've seen this before

I saw an article (I can't remember where, sorry for the hearsay) about someone modding their keyboard with an RFID reader, and he programmed it to the codes of the RFID he already had injected under his skin. This must be something different though, because he had two different types and they were both relatively inexpensive, nothing over $100.

I really don't see a problem with this so long as it's provided without persuasion. I don't want to have to get one with my costco membership or anything like that, and I don't want the gov't putting it in, but if it's just an easy injection (no surgery) and it would make my life easier (I wouldn't ever need my wallet) then I'd be all for it. It would be nice to be able to deactivate it, but that would sort of ruin it wouldn't it? I could probably ruin it by swinging my arm over the counter at Circuit city anyway.

Jurassic Park

Wasn't something like this done in Jurassic Park? It was proven ineffective as all of the tagged and monitored dinosaurs were accounted for. Too bad there were others that were not tagged. Untagged or unchipped terrorists would be the ones to lookout for. Although I'm more worried about chippers than the chippees.

Re:Jurassic Park

Wasn't something like this done in Jurassic Park? It was proven ineffective as all of the tagged and monitored dinosaurs were accounted for.

Well I know that America has an obesity problem, but comparing yourselves to dinosaurs...

"Beep-Beep"? It must be Earth humor!

"During the war, I was in my world's warrior class. We saved each other's lives a dozen times over."

"Commendable! But what does that have to do with..."

"With nanotechnology? Glad you asked! You've heard of it, haven't you? Machines too small for the human eye to see? You can even shield them, make them invisible to electronic detection. Like the one you just swallowed in that drink. I imagine it's firmly latched on to your intestinal tract by now."

"What??!"

"Oh, it's nothing harmful, Ambassador! It's a location transmitter."

[He points a pen-like device at him and presses a button. A light flashes and it emits a "beep-beep".]

"See? It should dissolve in about... five years. But until then, Ambassador, my friends in my warrior caste have this frequency. And if anything should happen to [this place], they have instructions to track down that transmitter and... well, why spoil the surprise?"

"This is an outrage!"

"This is insurance. What you do here is your own business. You can scheme, and plan, and play all the games you want, but get this straight. If you ever endanger this [place] again, my people will find you. And the results will be most unpleasant."

"I'd say he took that pretty well. Think they'll ever find that transmitter you slipped [him]?"

"No... because there isn't one."

"There isn't? Wait --"

"I lied. I figured if there were a transmitter, sooner or later they'd find it and remove it. But if I just told them there was, they'd keep looking! Indefinitely!"

"Commander, do you have any idea of the tests they'll put him through, the things they'll do to him trying to find a transmitter that's not there?"

"Yes."

Why this can be a good thing

People have asked why it's not better to just have a bracelet, ID in your wallet, or whatever. Here's why I'd like one so that a paramedic or whoever can get the info they need about me.

Two reasons:
1) I cannot leave home without it. I can't go anywhere without it, and as importantly, I can go anywhere with it. I can go to the pool and if I have some medical emergency it won't matter that my wallet is in the locker or whatever. If you're a parent, your kid can't choose to leave it behind (and if you're wondering why they might want to leave their ID behind see point 2)
2) It actually preserves your privacy. Sure, someone with an RFID scanner might spot get some serial ID number, but without access to a corresponding database they don't get my medical info. There are tracking issues, but they're minor. On the other hand, anyone who sees I've got some bracelet on immediately knows I have some medical condition, and they don't need to be scanning for RFID to tell that.

The sooner some of us have the option to get these the better.

RF...ID?

I wonder if these people are being assigned personal IDs? I wonder if they started at like, 000000001, or something. If so, in about 400 or so more people... are we going to have the man whose number is 666? If so, maybe we should kill that man (or woman, or little girl, whatever), just to be safe. It'd be the reasonable thing to do, I think. In FACT, they should go ahead and make the 666 chip, put it in someone, kill them, and then announce that they've single-handedly stopped the apocalypse, and God and his silly prophecies have no more power here. This is 'MERICA!

Seriously, why do people do these things? I mean, Im not a big believer in the bible, koran, or Nostradamus, but when you've got a horrible "this will signal the end of the world" prophecy, shouldnt you avoid it rather than run straight at fulfilling it ASAP? I have the same issue with all the scientists who seem to be determined to make killbots and "true" AI. Have we not seen enough Terminator/Matrix movies? What more must hollywood do to show us our folly! OUR FOLLY!!

Doubleplusgood!

I think this is a grand idea. However, instead of using it for guest workers, we make it tied to the activation of iPods. Then everyone will get 'em!

MRI with this implant?

I have to wonder if implantable RFID could survive the intense magnetic and RF conditions inside of an MRI unit. The RF energy is sufficient to cause heating of tattoos in some cases, and RFID chips are basically tiny antennas, if I understand how they operate. Not only could these units destroy said chips, but localized heating from the RF absorption could cause some serious internal burns--especially if they're implanted deep or near to important organs.

The obvious next question is to ask how well these chips show up on standard radiographs. If medical record of these things is lost or somehow never made (i.e. company goes out of business and the patient forgets there's one in his stomach, or some records mistake happens) then I imagine x-ray imaging is basically the only way to find them just by chance. Metal usually does a pretty good job of causing artifacts on a radiograph, but these chips could be small enough to escape notice--especially if they're at the fringe of the field of view, or not in view at all.

It's not something to stay up at night about, no, but I think they're valid concerns to raise.

My Issues with RFID

I don't really have a problem with a permanent identification system. It would solve a lot of problems, mostly with our rediculously antiquated medical administration system. I cannot see why, in 2007, we are so reliant on dead trees to store our medical information and trust to verify a person's identity. Not to mention the problems that could be avoided if emergency room doctors could see an unknown person's medical history and allergies.

My problem with RFID is that it's permanent and easily read illicitly. Can you remove or revoke a chip if it gets copied? Probably, but it'll be hard. And if someone can read your chip, they'll be able to spoof your identity. Maybe a better system would be to put a hash on the chip of a person's fingerprint. Then the chip can be quickly verified, probably in the same reader, and would be more secure than relying only on the chip's information.

MOTB

Just let me know when you get to number 666.
I just thought of a jingle for Verichip:

If you're evil and you know it get a chip.
If you're evil and you know it get a chip.
If you're evil and you know it,
Get the Mark so you can show it:
If you're evil and you know it get a chip.

Let me know...

when it gets up to 666 people implanted...then I'll be scared.

hah

If I am forced to, can I at least get the chip installed on my shoulder for cheap laughs down the pub?

Then you obviously haven't seen...

America, from freedom to fascism: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_from_freedom_ to_fascism [wikipedia.org] IF you take that seriously, which sadly i do for the most part, you will be depressed and freaked out as hell. Mark of the beasT? more like DANCE PUPPETS, DANCE...