Many people are thrilled about the idea of using microchip implants in the human body. These implants could eliminate the need to carry cash, cards, or any form of identification. However, it’s important to think carefully before deciding to get such a device implanted, and we’ll discuss why in this article.
Definition of microchip implants?
Microchip implants are tiny devices that contain an RFID microchip, a small coil antenna, all enclosed in a special type of glass that doesn’t harm the body. These devices are quite complex in their design and how they work. Our article titled “What are microchips made of?” provides more details about their composition. These microchips can store various types of information, such as unique IDs, names, birth dates, medical data, and access permissions for certain facilities.
One important thing to note is that these implanted devices can’t use battery power. Since they’re inside the body, you can’t physically access them to change a battery. Instead, they use NFC technology, which allows an external reader to wirelessly provide the energy they need to work. This means that the implant is mostly passive and doesn’t emit any radio waves under normal conditions.
The complex procedure of making microchip implants, which involves transforming silicon crystals into integrated circuits, showcases the progress in microchip production. If you want to understand this better, you can look into the process of how microchips are created.
What are the potential applications of microchip implants?
Here’s a simpler explanation:
Microchip implants use NFC technology, which means they can replace any current NFC technology. For instance, an implant can act as an ID card. It can open doors that the user has permission to access, and security can use it to confirm the user’s identity. Implants can also replace contactless cards for small payments, like at vending machines, fast food restaurants, and stores. This means users don’t have to worry about losing their payment method, as long as the seller accepts NFC payments.
The story of microchip implants is really interesting. It mirrors the wider progress in the history of microchips. From the time they were first created to their many uses today, microchips have changed the way we use technology.
More Than Just Identification: A Range of Uses
Microchip implants can do much more than just help with identification and making payments. They’re being looked at for high-tech medical uses, like keeping track of health in real time and providing quick access to emergency medical information. At work, they could make security procedures smoother by taking the place of regular access cards. If microchips become a common part of daily life, it could make things a lot more convenient. But, we’d have to think carefully about privacy and security.
Disadvantages of implanted microchips
Using microchip implants can lead to a lot of problems, especially when it comes to privacy and safety. One big issue with devices that use NFC technology is that they’re easy to access. This means that most NFC readers can power an RFID system and read the data from the device. If the device isn’t encrypted, attackers nearby (who don’t need to touch you) could get the information stored on the device. So, if the device has information about medical conditions or personal identity, an attacker could easily clone the device.
One way to fight against this problem with insecure data is to use encrypted data. This means that only authorized readers can get the data. But, this can lead to more problems that might be even worse than letting an attacker steal data wirelessly. The first problem is that if only authorized readers can read an implant, then the implant can’t interact with many systems. This goes against the idea of having a wireless ID system to make life easier. If this isn’t a problem, maybe because the implanted device is being used for security in a research facility or sensitive area, then the user could be in big danger from attackers.
These devices usually can’t tell if the device is in the right host or if the host is alive. This means that a determined attacker might take the implant by force. If the user is lucky, the attacker might just make a small cut where the implant is. But if not, the attacker might remove a limb because it’s faster. This same principle applies to most biosecurity systems, like retina and fingerprint scanners. If the scanner doesn’t check the integrity of the biological part being scanned, then an attacker could take that part by force.
Thankfully, this hasn’t happened yet with implanted microchips because not many people use them. But, it has happened to animals. For example, a dog’s microchip was taken out by force so that someone could steal puppies. Removing the ID lets attackers deny theft (because the animal’s ID can’t be verified). So, using the microchip caused unnecessary harm.
Safety Hazards and Potential Dangers
There are also privacy worries when it comes to using implants in employees. Some companies around the world are starting to try out putting devices into their employees. People are worried that a company might use RFID devices to keep track of their employees and watch what they do. While this can help with security, it could also be seen as a big invasion of personal privacy and freedom. The implanted devices can’t be turned off. So, employees still have devices that could be taken advantage of, even when they’re not at work. These worries have even led to one state in the US making it illegal for companies to force their employees to use RFIDs.
Implanted devices also have the danger of being changed by attackers to do completely different things than they were made to do. For instance, if an RFID can be reprogrammed, an attacker could potentially use the RFID device to run harmful software when it’s near an RFID reader. This could give the attacker passwords, keys, and other sensitive information about the device or the system it works with. What’s even worse is that reprogramming is done wirelessly. This means that just shaking hands with someone could be enough for an attacker to get in, put in the new code, and then check it.
Moral Considerations and Issues of Privacy
Using microchip implants brings up big ethical issues, especially when it comes to privacy. The possibility of being tracked all the time and having data collected could limit personal freedom. Also, once these implants are put into employees by companies, they can’t be taken out. This could lead to companies going too far in watching what their employees do at work, and it could make it hard to separate work life from personal life. These worries mean we need to find a good balance between moving forward with technology and protecting individual rights.
Is it advisable to utilize implanted devices?
Deciding whether to use implanted devices isn’t easy and it really depends on how risky you think they are. RFIDs could be really helpful for people who often forget to bring their payment cards or other important IDs. Using implanted devices could make it easier to pay for things and could even give medical staff important information about allergies.
But, there are some big risks with using implanted devices. These include not having privacy and the chance that an attacker might take out the device by force. Some people might say that designers could just make the implants unhackable. But, the truth is that these devices need to be able to talk to readers, so they can’t be completely unhackable. Personally, the idea of having a big needle put into my hand to insert an RFID device that does the same thing as a contactless debit card doesn’t seem worth it.