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Microchip implants in humans
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Microchip Implant Technology is defined as an identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of a dog, cat, horse, parrot or other animal. The chip, about the size of a large grain of rice, uses passive RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology. This device may appear innocent on the surface but as we take a deeper look into the subject the demons reveal themselves. I do not feel it is necessary or ethical to track humans with this form of technology. There has been much controversy over the last decade on the subject of Implant Tracking Technology. Implantations in humans has a lot of futurists worried.
In October 2004, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of the VeriChip in humans. VeriChip is a microchip, the size of a grain of rice, which can be implanted under the skin with a simple injection. Like the bar codes on consumer products, it stores coded information that can be read with a scanner.
VeriChip is among the latest versions of an existing technology: radio frequency identification chips (RFIDs) that are small enough to be implanted in human beings, but used mostly by businesses to track their inventories and shipping companies to log cargo. RFIDs are also popular among wildlife managers, farmers, and pet owners: one million chips have been implanted in pets and livestock.
The idea of tracking animals does not bring a negative feeling upon me unlike implantation in humans. It is one thing to track your livestock but when it comes to tracking humans it seems like such an invasion of privacy. Many people would likely welcome these tracking devices such as those caring for people with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia, or parents worried about how well their day care center is wa...
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...ers? You could be a ticking time bomb with your life in someone else’s hands.
The Safe Medical Devices Act, which became a law in 1990, requires USA manufacturers of implants and medical devices, to adopt a method for identifying and tracking their products permanently implanted in humans, and to keep track of the recipients, in case malfunctions arise. Breast implants, pacemakers, replacement heart valves and prosthetic devices implanted in millions worldwide are all to be tracked. And one of the methods used to track these devices is implanting microchips which store data about the manufacturer, the surgeon, the date of implant, etc.
The best way to prevent an invasion of privacy by implant tracking technology is to not receive the implant. At this point it cannot be forced. It is rumored that millions may already be carrying microchips in their body worldwide.
Safire emphasizes his argument around a comparison of a lost dog with a newly developed chip fixed underneath their skin which would let animal shelter alert owner of their pets. He declares that using a chip to find a lost animal would be a good side of technology, whereas fear of terrorism has placed American in threat of trading our right to be let alone for the fake security.
These programmers communicate with the pacemaker via wireless radio frequency as well as telemetry to make device adjustments and monitor device functions. Physician programmers require no authentication to program pacemaker devices [15]. This is true for all pacemakers. The lack of required authentication is a point of concern because of the potential for risk. As was mentioned, pacemaker manufacturers warn of prolonged exposure to cellphones, metal detection systems, and other electrical devices for risk of misinterpretation by the pacemaker. The electrical impulses these devices emit could be read by the pacemaker as a heartbeat which could cause the device to malfunction or fail [17]. Deliberate attacks on pacemakers have been tested and provide troubling results. Within a 50-foot proximity, an attacker can deliver a lethal 830v jolt to a user’s heart from a laptop [13]. On the hard drives of two pacemaker devices both encrypted and unencrypted data was found by researchers for the technology research company WhiteScope. The researchers found that one unnamed pacemaker device stores unencrypted PHI such as patient and physician names, treatment data, and, most concerning, patient social security number [15]. This information can be collected and sold through black market
- In the Article “Will Microchip Implants in Humans Become Mandatory?” it states “[young adults/teens] will leap to be chipped just as they snatch up the latest smart phone. And not only will the technology be convenient, but it will lend an illusion of power. With just a wave of your hands doors will open for you --- literally and figuratively” (Duke3). In the future Microchips will be the new smart phone. This microchip will be the way that they are identified, pay for bills, open doors, and do anything that is required to do in everyday life. Doors will be unlocked by using the microchip and a scanner within the door that can sense the microchips that are registered within the door to let them enter. Doctors will be able to access all medical records by a scan of the microchip. All bills and clubs and everything will be run by the microchip to the point that it will be a requirement for everyone to have a microchip implanted into their body. In the same article it also states “In the future, the most obvious pro, of an implant is that it could be used as an extra means of identification – particularly in passports. If it meant that long passport queues could be by-passed, I believe many people would have such an implant as soon as possible” (Duke3). With the use of a microchip as an identity and use to use all things, it would be very time saving. As well as it will be able to make everyday life just that much easier. While many people are for the microchip identity, there are many others that are leery and are against this microchip idea
One of the big advantages of using technology in monitoring people lives, is keeping them safe and secured. While some people argue that it’s not the governments right to interfere in their privacy, they will appreciate the government act when the walk in the middle of the night, knowing that they
“I moved down the corridor lightly and sprightly, keeping my gait even and measured for the gait-recognition cameras” (pg. 30, Doctorow), says Marcus as he is monitored on his walk from the principal’s office. Marcus Yallow attends Cesar Chavez High located in the Mission district of San Francisco. They began using high-tech security measures even before the attack on the Oakland Bay Bridge. The school had used other security measures as well, “Every one of them has an arphid - Radio Frequency ID Tag - glued into its binding” (38, Doctorow). The school said that these arphids helped the school track books that were checked out by students AND they also allowed teachers to know where you were at all times. This security measure is similar to the one many students today have in their phone to help find the phones if misplaced. Also, another use for today’s “arphids” is the common implantation of these tracking devices into pets, most commonly dogs or cats, that may run
It is implanted into a living being using the same procedure as a routine vaccination. Immediately following implementation, the tiny device remains inside the device for life, where it provides unique identification numbers anytime it is scanned by a compatible electronic ID scanner.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Looking at the ethics in the framework of natural laws and rights, the “right to privacy” in our US Constitution emerges, which promises protection from privacy invasion. Building off the natural laws and rights framework, is it morally right for one human being to track another without consent? Is it morally right for companies to track, document, and analyze information pertaining to one human being without their consent?
The placement of implantable chips into patients for the purpose of accurately identifying patients and properly storing their medical history records has become a subject of a strong debate. Making sure patients are properly identified before a procedure and storing their health history records for future use has been difficult, if not impossible. The idea of being able to retrieve accurate patient’s medical history for a follow up care without relying on patient’s memory is a challenging task for many healthcare organizations. Many ideas and technologies have been introduced over the years to help solve this problem, but unfortunately the problem is still not fully resolved. There are still many errors in the healthcare due in part by improper record keeping and inaccurate patient identification. One idea that has being in discussion to eliminate these problems for good, is the introduction of a chip or radio frequency identification (RFID) technology implanted into human for the purpose storing medical data and accurately identify patients. VeriChip Corporation is currently the maker of this implantable RFID chip. They are the only corporation cleared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make this implantable radio frequency transponder system for humans for the purpose of identifying patients and storing their health history information. The chip was first developed for the use of radar systems by Scottish physicist, Sir Robert Alexander Watson-Watt in 1935 just before World War II. (Roberti, 2007). This technology helps identify approaching planes of the enemy from mile away. Today, RFID has several uses. It is used for animal tracking. It is attached to merchandise in stores to prevent theft. It can be instal...
Biometrics will become a standard of everyday living in the future. These systems will start being used everywhere that privacy should be ensured. The funny thing about that is that it raises the question are we really being ensured privacy when we are being watched and scanned?
According to IDEA an assistive technology device is “any item, piece of equipment, or product system, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with a disability.” However, the exception is any “medical device that is surgically implanted.” Cochlear implants can improve some functional capabilities of a child with a disability and it IS a surgically implanted medical device. However, during the procedure electrodes are surgically inserted into the patient’s cochlea… a medical device is NOT surgically implanted. While, electrodes are not typically considered “medical devices”, when in sync with other medical devices outside of the cochlea, it takes on the role of serving as a “medical device” of that network. This is why there is debate about whether or not a cochlear implant is assistive technology. The gray area comes into play with whether or not they are considered assistive technology because the law is specifically stating that the medical device must be surgically implanted to be considered assistive technology. Thus, because an electrode is only a medical device when the head set and transmitting coil is attached externally, it is questionable as to whether or not this would qualify as “medical device being implanted.” When the external features of the implant are removed (they can be removed at any time),
The first implant was a brain reading chip with micro electrode array that was placed at the leg area of the motor cortex of the monkey’s brain. This chip has around 100 electrodes in it. Those who don’t know, motor cortex is the area in our brain where planning and execution of all voluntary movements in our body is done.
Different people, cultures, and nations have a wide variety of expectations about how much privacy is entitled to or what constitutes an invasion of privacy. Privacy is the ability of an individual or group to seclude themselves or information. Personal privacy has been declining in the past year which is caused by today’s technological society. With the latest technology such as face scanners, data collecting, and highly advanced software’s, privacy can be compromised, which is exactly what is being done today and it is unconstitutionally intrusive.
The microchip is a tiny transponder the size of a grain of uncooked rice. The chip is a permanent radio-frequency identification (RFID) chip implanted under the dog's skin that can be read by a chip scanner or wand. Implantation is done with an injector that places the chip under the loose skin over the dog's shoulder. This is a quick and easy process that can be done by all veterinarians provided they have the right technology to do so. The chip identification number is stored in a tiny transponder that can be read through the dog's skin by a scanner emitting low-frequency radio waves (Woolf 1). The frequency is picked up by a tiny antenna in the transponder, and the number is retrieved, decoded, and displayed in the scanner readout window. The radio waves use a frequency much lower than AM broadcast stations use, and they must be approved by the Federal Communications Commission before they can be marketed (Woolf 1). The chip, antenna, and capacitor are encased in a tiny glass tube. The tube is composed of soda lime glass, which is known for compatibility with living tissue. The glass is hermetically sealed to keep moisture out.
One of the first problems with Digital Angel and the Verichip is the sparseness of information relating to the technology. A quick tour of the Applied Digital Solutions’ Verichip website will give you a quick synopsis of what RFIDs are, and then list a few possible uses of the technology. The Frequently Asked Questions page on the website is equally shortchanged on information, with just a short tidbit on how the chips are installed, among other information. With a device that people will be living with for the rest of their lives (should they choose to bestow it upon them), I feel that many would rather have available detailed information on the technology. This is even more applicable when you consider the hostility that many people breed to technology that could lead to their mass surveillance (i.e. fear of conspiracy); many of these people’s concerns will likely be alleviated just by releasing more detailed info out on the web for the public to see.
new advancements such as microchip implant for humans and animals can be very controversial. At first, the implants may seem to have benefits but in the long run they will actually cause more trouble than they are worth. These potential "troublemakers" are about the size of an elongated grain of rice and are injected in the skin under the arm or hand (Feder, Zeller 15). The chip is not powered by battery and there is nothing that can possibly leak out into the body (Posada-Swafford 8). An early form of this technology was used to monitor salmon and has been used for other wildlife research (Verhovek 5). The idea of the chips was started from the September 11 tragedy when the firefighters going into the Twin Towers were "IDing" themselves by writing information on their arm about their blood type, health conditions, and their identity with a permanent marker (Bentley 10). The VeriChip Corporation, which is owned by Applied Digital Solutions, saw this as an opportunity to market their product. As a result of their marketing ploys, Applied Digital claims that so far there have been about 1,000 human recipients of the chip.