VeriChip

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VeriChip is the first Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved human-implantable radio-frequency identification (RFID) microchip. It is marketed by VeriChip Corporation, a subsidiary of Applied Digital Solutions, and it received United States FDA approval in 2004. About twice the length of a grain of rice, the device is typically implanted above the triceps area of an individual’s right arm. Once scanned at the proper frequency, the VeriChip responds with a unique sixteen-digit number which can correlate the user to information stored on a database for identity verification, medical records access and other uses. The insertion procedure is performed under local anesthetic in a physician's office and once inserted, is invisible to the naked eye. As an implanted device used for identification by a third party, it has generated controversy and debate.

Destron Fearing, a subsidiary of Applied Digital Solutions, initially developed the technology for the VeriChip.[1]

In the beginning of 2007, Verichip Corporation created Xmark, its corporate identity for healthcare products. Xmark incorporates the Hugs and the Halo system of infant protection; the RoamAlert system of wandering protection; the MyCall emergency response system; and the Assetrac asset tracking system.

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[edit] Controversy

[edit] Privacy

Privacy advocates have protested the VeriChip, warning of potential abuse and denouncing these types of RFID devices as "spychips," and that use by governments could allow the tracking of citizens, increasing any moves towards a police state. In addition, privacy advocates state that the information contained in this chip could easily be stolen, so that storing anything private in it would be to risk identity theft. As the human-implantable microchip only contains a unique 16-digit electronic identifier, the unique number is used only for such purposes as accessing personal medical information in a password-protected database or assessing whether somebody has authority to enter into a high-security area. Although the company that makes VeriChip claims that it does not contain any other information beyond this unique 16-digit number, it could be scanned and used to access the database.[2]

[edit] Security

Anyone possessing a VeriChip reader can read the human-implantable RFID microchip; the data is unencrypted, and VeriChip does not have the functionality to authorize only certain people to read it. Being a passive RFID microchip containing only a unique 16-digit identifier it can be read by a VeriChip reader held up closely to the location of the inserted chip. This concern can be partially mitigated by using such a chip without implanting it, as by inserting it into the wristband of a watch, which can then be removed at will.

The database associated with the device currently contains only health related information, with no financial information or social security number being stored. The information itself is controlled and directed by the subscriber.

Specifically because it is technically possible to extract the information on a VeriChip, the chip contains only a nondescript 16 digit number. To access the associated personal health record of a subscriber, one must possess a secure logon that is provided only to participating medical facilities, and a record is made every time anybody logs on and accesses a subscriber's record.

An implanted VeriChip was cloned in January 2006 as a demonstration; instructions for cloning VeriChips are available on the web.[3][4]

[edit] Health Risks

According to Wired News online[5], and the Associated Press[6], there have been research articles over the last ten years that found a connection between the chips and possible cancer. When mice and rats were injected with glass-encapsulated RFID transponders, like those made by VeriChip, they "developed malignant, fast-growing, lethal cancers in up to 1% to 10% of cases" at the site at which the microchip was injected or to which it had migrated. However, the 10% rate was obtained with hemizygous p53-deficient mice, the counterpart of humans with the Li-Fraumeni syndrome, and rates near 1% were more typical.[7] The Verichip corporation responded to this report, which caused a 40% drop in their stock value, by stating that rodent data had been provided to the FDA and did not reflect the effect of the chips in humans or pets.[8] Rather, rodent foreign body sarcomagenesis is a unique reaction, as evidenced by the publication of only two isolated cases from the large number of dogs subjected to chip implantation. Induction of sarcomas by foreign bodies has been reported in humans,[9][10][11][12][13][14] and has been described as analogous to rodent foreign body-associated sarcomas, but occurring rarely. Resolution of the question may be hindered by the long delay in onset of rare effects, as in the case of other medical controversies regarding foreign objects such as the breast implant controversy and the risk of non-occupational asbestos exposure.

[edit] Religious Concerns

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Please improve this article if you can (March 2008).

Revelation: Some Christians have come out against the device, there is a prophecy where all persons must receive the Mark of the Beast "on their right hand or on their foreheads", described in Book of Revelation 13:16-18, to participate in economic activity under the corrupt government of the Antichrist.[15] This concern is compounded by the fact that, according to a recent ABC News article, there have been reports of other chips being implanted in their right hand.[16]. However, the verichip is inserted into the right arm.

Bodily Sanctity: In addition, there are various religions and sects which abhor the penetration of the human body, as with surgery or the implantation of devices. An implanted VeriChip violates the mores of such groups, though not if worn in a piece of jewelery.

[edit] Proponents

  • Tommy Thompson, the former Secretary of Health and Human Services, along with other experts support the VeriChip as a "useful tool in sharing medical information with health care providers in emergency situations". Thompson also sits on the board of directors of VeriChip's parent company Applied Digital Solutions. In June of 2007, the American Medical Association declared that "implantable radio frequency identification (RFID) devices may help to identify patients, thereby improving the safety and efficiency of patient care, and may be used to enable secure access to patient clinical information". [17]

[edit] Opponents

  • Privacy advocates Katherine Albrecht and Liz McIntyre are the most prominent opponents of implanted microchips. They are coauthors of a position paper on the use of spychips, "RFID: The Big Brother code, the books "Spychips: How Major Corporations and Government Plan to Track Your Every Move with RFID" (2006) and "The Spychips Threat: Why Christians Should Resist RFID and Electronic Surveillance" and the Antichips.org website. Their work broadly overlaps that of CASPIAN, a grassroots privacy group founded by Albrecht in 1999 to oppose the use of "loyalty cards" to track consumer purchases in supermarkets. Associated sites include Spychips.org, a site opposing RFID chips hidden in consumer goods, and Nocards.org, with more general discussion of privacy issues. Notable quotes include McIntyre (on the VeriChip liability waiver for product failure) "I wouldn't buy toilet paper that required that kind of a disclaimer, never mind a product that's supposed to serve as a lifeline in an emergency.", and Albrecht: "A man with a chip in his arm may soon find himself wondering whether that cute gal on the next bar stool likes his smile or wants to clone his VeriChip. It gives new meaning to the burning question, 'Does she want my number'?"

[edit] Competitors

Competitors for VeriChip RFIDs in implantable medical identification devices are Smart Tokens by Datakey Inc.[18] or micoID(TM) by MicroChip Inc.[19][20] The use of any external marking, such as a tattoo, to indicate the presence or original location of a Verichip under the skin is subject to US patent 2003/195523 A1

[edit] References

  • Katherine Albrecht, Liz McIntyre, Spychips : How Major Corporations and Government Plan to Track Your Every Move with RFID, Nelson Current, 2005 (ISBN 1-59555-020-8).
  1. ^ Smith, Richard M. “Tough Sell Ahead for the VeriChip Implant ID System.” Computer Bytes Man. 27 Dec. 2001. 16 Oct. 2007 <http://www.computerbytesman.com/biometrics/verichip.htm>.
  2. ^ Demo : Cloning a Verichip.
  3. ^ Demo: Cloning a Verichip. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
  4. ^ VeriChips Implanted at CityWatcher.com. Compliance and Privacy. Retrieved on 2007-02-03. “No one I spoke with at Six Sigma Security or at CityWatcher knew that the VeriChip had been hacked. They were also surprised to hear of VeriChip's downsides as a medical device. It was clear they weren't aware of some of the controversy surrounding the implant. (Liz McIntyre)”
  5. ^ Bruce Sterling (2007-09-08). Arphid Watch: Arphid Cancer.. Wired News.
  6. ^ Todd Lewan (2007-09-08). Though FDA approved, microchip implants linked to animal cancer. Associated Press.
  7. ^ Summaries and fair use copies of all 11 scientific publications are available at the CASPIAN site Antichips.com..
  8. ^ Rodent Sarcomagenesis.
  9. ^ PMID 17006674
  10. ^ PMID 16279594
  11. ^ PMID 15154584
  12. ^ PMID 12425161
  13. ^ 11048977
  14. ^ 10555012
  15. ^ Verichips Implanted at Citywatcher.com.
  16. ^ Couple Implants Microchips Into Hands. ABC News - Good Morning America. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
  17. ^ American Medical Association CEJA Report 5-A-07.
  18. ^ Portable memory Keys and Tokens from Datakey Electronics home page
  19. ^ ReDirect
  20. ^ 6699237 patent 0

[edit] See also

[edit] External links