The Social Implications of Humancentric Chip Implants: A Scenario-‘Thy Chipdom Come, Thy Will be Done’ (original) (raw)
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This paper provides insights into the culture, values and ethics of do-it-yourself microchip implantees. Microchip implantees are people who have opted to bear a radio-frequency identification (RFID) device beneath their skin for particular electronic applications. This paper uses a single case study of the most prominent hobbyist microchip implantee, Mr Amal Graafstra of the United States, to explore the preliminary motivations for being implanted, the actual chip experience, and the subsequent repercussions of being an implantee. The data for this paper was collected using two main techniques, a primary interview with the case subject, complemented by secondary documentary evidence available mainly in online form. The outcomes of the paper indicate that hobbyist implantees are for the greater part, particularly ethically aware of the information and communication technology (ICT) implications as well as being technically competent individuals. Surprisingly the research found that do-it-yourself implantees are usually critical of commercial subscription implant applications and value highly the ideas of consent, choice, and the ability for consumers to opt-in or out of given applications.
Ethical Issues of Radio Frequency Identification Chips Implanted in Human Bodies: A Review
Indian Journal of Science and Technology, 2020
Objectives: This study belongs to the overview of an IT innovation technology known as "Radio Frequency Identification" (RFID) and its implantation in human bodies. Methods/analysis: This study provides critical analysis and review on ethical issues of RFID chips implanted in human bodies. Although there are some certain benefits to use this innovation in human bodies but on the other side its usage has very severe health impacts on human life. This study deals with RFID ethical issues, boundaries and constraints which confined its use. Findings: The major outcome of this study is to discuss and highlight these ethical issues and challenges due to which the deployment and implementation of this technology has become a controversial and debatable issue. Also focus on "legislation deficiencies" lying in RFID usage and suggest recommendations to improve it, so that its usage may continue for the betterment of mankind. Novelty /improvement: This article provides cutting edge knowledge on ethical issues of RFID chips implanted in human bodies for researchers of this domain.
Privacy, surveillance, and implanting RFID microchips to humans
International Journal of Human and Health Sciences (IJHHS), 2024
Background: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is specifically designed for the remote identification of objects. The first patent for human implantable RFID microchips was granted in 1997, and the FDA approved these microchips in 2004. Since then, they have found applications in humans for diverse reasons. Objective: This study aims to make an ethical evaluation of using RFID microchips in humans, focusing on privacy and surveillance. Methods: A literature review was conducted, exploring the conceptual dimensions of privacy and surveillance, and ethical evaluations were made regarding potential privacy violations caused by RFID microchips, as well as their potential uses for surveillance purposes. Results: Privacy is a multidimensional concept that spans various disciplines such as psychology, sociology, anthropology, medicine, theology, and law, and throughout history it constitutes an indispensable and intrinsic necessity for humanity. On the other hand, surveillance is a process wherein certain groups employ methods to gather, accumulate, analyze, process, and utilize data, with the objective of regulating the behavior of specific groups, entailing potential physical, ideological, or structural interventions, ultimately aiming to guide individuals toward predetermined behavioral patterns. Discussion and Conclusion: A major concern with RFID microchips is potential privacy violations and their use for surveillance. These microchips and their connected networks hold a significant amount of information, including sensitive data like healthrelated information. Thus, they make individuals become easily identifiable and make them vulnerable to surveillance practices.
The use of chip implants for workers
2018
This paper briefly explains the technology of RFID chip implants; explores current applications; and considers legal, ethical, health, and security issues relating to their potential use in the workplace. Compulsory use would be likely to encounter legal and ethical challenges. Even voluntary use might be subject to challenges, for example, on data protection grounds. It seems that the risks of adverse health effects in humans might be considerably less than some have suggested, although they cannot be entirely discounted without better evidence. Contrarily, although there are indications of improvements in recent years, the benefits in terms of enhanced security might not be deliverable with the vulnerability of current RFID chip technology.
2012 IEEE Conference on Technology and Society in Asia (T&SA), 2012
This mixed methods study with a sequential explanatory strategy explored qualitatively the statistically significant quantitative findings relative to Indian respondents' perceptions about RFID (radio frequency identification) transponders implanted into the human body. In the first analysis phase of the study, there was a significant chi-square analysis reported (χ2 = 56.64, df = 3, p =.000) relative to the perception of small business owners (N = 453) that implanted chips are a more secure form of identification and/or access control in organizations and the respondents' country of residence. Countries under study included Australia, India, the UK and US. The country contributing most to this significant relationship was India. Additionally, frequency data comparing the relationship of the respondents' generation and perceptions of implants as a more secure technology (yes-no) was examined. The significant chi-square (χ2 = 29.11, df = 2, p =.000) analysis indicated that there was a very significant relationship between the respondents' opinions and such generations as Baby Boomers (those born 1946-1965), Generation X (those born [1966][1967][1968][1969][1970][1971][1972][1973][1974][1975][1976][1977][1978][1979][1980] and Generation Y (those born [1981][1982][1983][1984][1985][1986][1987][1988][1989][1990][1991][1992][1993][1994][1995][1996][1997][1998][1999][2000]. The second analysis phase of the study explored qualitative data gleaned from open-ended questions asking Indian Millennials (born 1981-2000) about their feelings about being implanted with a chip. Over one third of the world's population is considered part of the Millennial generation. Of India's 1.2 billion people, approximately half are under the age of 25; that is, over 250 million are categorized as Millennials. Based on the quantitative and qualitative findings, researchers in this study concluded that three factors affect perceptions of RFID implants. One key factor is that Indian Millennials appear to describe more feelings of positivity and neutrality when compared with the two prior generations. © 2012 IEEE.
2010 IEEE International Symposium on Technology and Society, 2010
VeriChip product which typically carries a 16 digit number was first marketed as an identification device in the ehealth space (e.g. for emergency response), then as an access control mechanism (e.g. security), and finally as an epayment solution (e.g. the purchase of drinks at clubs). This paper investigates the story behind RFID implants for club patronage access control and epayment. The study uses a two-fold qualitative approach in the collection of data for the single case study of the Baja Beach Club in Barcelona, Spain. A single semi-structured interview was conducted with the IT Manager who created the application at the club that utilised the human chipping product. The full length interview was conducted in Spanish, translated into English, and analysed using content analysis. The interview was supported by an exhaustive search online for documents that met the criteria "Baja Beach Club + implants". The documents returned by this search included academic articles, government policy documents, publicly accessible blogs and media commentary. Search engine results online uncovered one other dominant document type-that of popular religious literature linking implantable microchips in humans to end-time prophecy in the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament. The findings indicate that despite the successful application of RFID implants for club patrons, the complexity of the technology during trialability led to its stilted diffusion. The paper draws on Roger's (1995) diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory to describe the poor uptake of the technology for access control worldwide but points to the possibility that this is only a short-term trend. The paper also ponders on whether the slow rate of adoption of humancentric implantables will continue and what factors might need to be overcome before widespread diffusion can occur. 242 978-1-4244-7776-0/$26.00 c 2010 IEEE
Journal of technology management & innovation, 2008
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) has generated a lot of attention in recent years as a method of replacing the barcode. This paper will begin by examining some of the origins of RFID technology. From there it will look at several applications of RFID technology within the health care industry. Next, privacy and legal issues will be examined. Lastly the result of a survey of local students