Would you allow your employer to implant a microchip in your hand? Three Square Market in Wisconsin is rolling out a program to do just that. So far, 50 of the company's 80 employees have agreed to have a chip embedded between their thumb and forefinger, which will enable them to open doors, pay for food in the cafeteria, and other tasks that can use RFID technology.
“It was pretty much 100 percent yes right from the get-go for me,” said Sam Bengtson, a software engineer. “In the next five to 10 years, this is going to be something that isn’t scoffed at so much, or is more normal. So I like to jump on the bandwagon with these kind of things early, just to say that I have it.”
Jon Krusell, another software engineer, and Melissa Timmins, the company’s sales director, were more hesitant. Mr. Krusell, who said he was excited about the technology but leery of an implanted device, might get a ring with a chip instead.
“Because it’s new, I don’t know enough about it yet,” Ms. Timmins said. “I’m a little nervous about implanting something into my body.”
What could possibly go wrong? Right off the bat, I can imagine the 30 employees who aren't so enthusiastic about it may be pressured into having the procedure sooner or later. It could become possible for the company to track your whereabouts 24 hours a day. It may eventually become mandatory for employment, there or at other companies. The chips could be hacked. The list goes on and on. There have been books and movies predicting such tech and how it could go wrong in so many ways. Read more on the story at the New York Times. -via Metafilter
(Image credit: Amal Graafstra)
How? Magic? That’s not how these RFID chips work.
Rfid chips are just passive devices that respond to the right frequency with a serial number. No way to"hack" them as such, and certainly no way to track someone with them.
It is possible for magnetic or rf fields to damage them, at which point you need minor surgery to cut them out and replace it with a functioning unit.
This has most all the same drawbacks as biometric identification... It encourages criminals to take your body parts instead of just your wallet/keys/phone. It is there for anybody to surreptitiously read even if you didn't want them to. It's very difficult to change if it gets copied and used illicitly. Etc.
I'd give it an immediate "hell no" and ignore anything else they try to tell me.