Microchip Implants – Final Paper

Peunde Gaye

MCS 244- Communication in Society

Spring 2018

Final paper.

MICROCHIP IMPLANTS

Throughout the years, many new inventions were introduced into the digital word. Smart phones, tablets, and household electronics such as Alexa has taken over. It seems as if there is a new breakthrough everyday. In this essay, I will be talking about the microchip implant. I believe the microchip implant is the next big thing and I believe the microchip implant will make history sooner or later. A human microchip implant is typically an identifying integrated circuit device or RFID transponder encased in silicate glass and implanted in the body of a human being. RFID microchips, embedded under the skin with a procedure that’s already cheap and available, provide a digital interface to the real world centered about the holder’s identity: your ID, credit card information, bus pass, library card, and many other sources of information you currently carry in your purse/wallet can instead be stored on an RFID chip under your skin.

The microchip implant is nothing new. In many different places in the world, some people are able to open doors, start cars, and control their computers just by moving their hands or arms. These people are the first wave of people who have voluntarily allowed a miniature computer chip to be placed inside of their bodies. The microchip implant is very controversial in many different ways. Some people believe that the microchip is just another way for the government to spy on individuals and know what they are doing and when they are doing it. Religious people believe that this is the mark of the beast.

Just like everything else in the digital world, the microchip implant has some pros and also has some cons. Lets start of the with pros. Identification is one of the most important pros of the microchip implant. Our passports already have microchips, and airports, train stations, and bus stations transitioning from scanning your passport to scanning your arm would be a minimal infrastructure change. Same goes for your driver’s license and ID: all the police need is a chip scanner and you can ditch your wallet completely. Also, every year, about 28,000 babies get mixed up in hospitals every year. These kind of mix ups can also take place in funeral homes. A microchip implanted at birth help less-capable people be able to identify themselves. The microchip implant can also help when it comes to medical business. A simple scanner can tell your doctor what you’re allergic to, what antibiotics you’ve been prescribed to in the past, and what medicines you are currently taking. This is important because in case of an emergency and you are unconscious, doctors will be able to help and take care of you accordingly.

Another benefit is that it will be harder for theft to go on. Using the RFID chip in your palm to pay for things, borrow books, or open doors isn’t much different from using the RFID in a plastic card in your wallet. There’s at least one notable difference though: you can lose or get your wallet stolen pretty easily. Parts of your body are a lot harder to steal. Additionally, it’s a lot harder to criminals to secretly scan your card data when it’s embedded in your hand or arm, rather than a wallet in your front or back pocket. The microchip can also help in terms of gun control and gun laws. Browning and Smith & Wesson have already embraced an implant-firearm system that requires weapons to be within close proximity of their owner to fire. Whether your arsenal is stolen from your home or an officer’s gun is wrestled out of their hands in a struggle, no one but the registered owner will be able to fire them. This also means your kids can’t accidentally fire the pistol they found in your nightstand. This also means no more “lost weapons” at crime scenes: GPS readings in weapon chips can always report where they were, when they were fired, and who fired the actual weapon. This could be a lot of help especially in more urban areas where cases are usually never solved because nobody wants to speak with law officials.

Now let us move on to the cons of the microchip implant. Uncertainty is one of the cons. We don’t know what effects microchips will have on the body long-term. We don’t know the societal effects of widespread chipping. We don’t know what problems will arise across every facet of the idea, and we likely won’t know until we try it. Another con is data leaks. Any new technology is always rife with bugs and exploits. Putting so much information and reliance on a single chip makes it a prime target for hackers and other no-gooders. If information is writable (in addition to readable), there is also potential for impersonation or data corruption. Replacement hardware will also be a con when it comes to the microchip implant because there’s no doubt this technology will improve over time, adding more and more features. It’s possible these new features will require new hardware, and that early hardware may not have an easy way to be physically replaced. The FDA has stated that several risks for human microchipping include adverse tissue reactions, electrical hazards, and — potentially most importantly — “incompatibility” with strong-magnet medical equipment such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRIs). You can’t take anything metal into an MRI; that includes pacemakers, aneurysm clips, dental implants, hip/knee replacements (unless they’re nonmagnetic titanium), and embedded microchips.

The microchip implant isn’t big and popular yet, but there are some companies that are willing to give it a try. On Aug. 1, employees at Three Square Market, a technology company in Wisconsin, can choose to have a chip the size of a grain of rice injected between their thumb and index finger. Once that is done, any task involving RFID technology such as swiping into the office building, paying for food in the cafeteria can be accomplished with a wave of the hand. The program, a partnership between Three Square Market and the Swedish company Biohax International is believed to be the first of its kind in the United States, but it has already been done at a Swedish company, Epicenter. It raises a variety of questions, both privacy and health-related. The technology itself is not new. These kind chips are used as virtual collar plates for pets, and companies use them to track deliveries. But never before has the technology been used to tag employees on a much bigger and wider scale. Epicenter and a handful of other companies are the first to make chip implants broadly available.

As you can see, I believe the microchip is the future because this generation is obsessed with technology and sooner or later we will all be implanting chips into our bodies in our to go on with our daily functions.

SOURCES:

http://humansarefree.com/2015/03/nbc-reports-americans-will-receive.html

https://www.thenewamerican.com/tech/item/18184-will-microchip-implants-in-humans-become-mandatory

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/25/technology/microchips-wisconsin-company-employees.html