I don’t know if people know about this, but it is quite alarming.
I’ll just quote VeriChip’s own corporate site because it’s clear enough :
“Security at the subcatenous level is now possible with world’s first implantable microchip for humans”.
“Each chip has a unique identification number (VeriChipID) . Once implanted, they lie dormant, but can be read by any VeriChip scanner, wich then links to an online database containing data such as identity / personal and financial information”.
It works with RFID technology, meaning it emits a radio signal wich can be read by VeriChip’s proprietary scanners (and probably hacked one day or the other).
The company is clearly trying to stress the (positive) medical applications.
But it also states it’s goals (security, defense, homeland security and secure-access applications) :
* Controlling access to Intellectual Property
* Managing and tracking physical and intellectual assets
* Personal identification for use in credit card and ATM access, airport security, etc
* Enabling innovative time and attendance systems
* Providing automated data collection and monitoring platforms