Device implant

A human device implant, or microchip, is a small technological device embedded under the skin. Often these are types of integrated circuit devices or RFID transponders (radio frequency identifications). Each microchip contains a unique individual identification (ID) number. Device implants are often used in health tracking, law enforcement, security systems, and to hold identification and contact information.

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X-ray showing implanted RFID.

Usually cylindrical, current devices are approximately the size of a grain of rice, and the most common implant location is between the thumb and forefinger. Human implants are contained in a glass case, which is not indestructible, but is hygienic for sub-dermal implanting. Most implants rely on RFID technology, and some, more recently, also qualify as near-field communication (NFC) chips, a type of high-frequency radio waves. They do not require charging or battery power, and so only function through their small antenna over radio wave sensing.

History & current uses:

The first known case of a human receiving and having been implanted with a microchip was British scientist Kevin Warwick, in 1998. He became the first human to receive and test RFID surgery, and demonstrate the uses of a human microchip. The technology has proliferated over the years, and has become a way to store ticket codes, passwords, access information, and more, reducing the need to carry keys, IDs, or remember login information. It can be used to unlock cars, offices, or homes, or log on to technology devices such as phones or laptops. Implants that are NFC compatible can also store Bitcoin or other virtual wallet addresses, and in Sweden, to carry regional train tickets. Another use has been in healthcare. Firms such as Three Square Market have begun seeking markets for GPS tracking chips for patients with mental health disabilities, such as Alzheimer’s or Dementia, and some chips have been developed to monitor vital health signs, or hold medical records or medication lists. This was similarly cited by HealthCareITNews.

Jowan Osterlund started the firm Biohax International, after a career as a professional body piercer. He says, "Having different cards and tokens verifying your identity to a bunch of different systems just doesn't make sense… Using a chip means that the hyper-connected surroundings that you live in every day can be streamlined." In recent years, the company Dangerous Things has become a leading producer and proponent. They suggest anywhere from 50,000 to 100,000 people worldwide have implants now. In 2017, the Wisconsin company Three Square Market offered free microchipping to their employees, which made national headlines. In August 2018, it was announced that they are seeking to upgrade the initially simplistic devices to more powerful ones, which would include GPS tracking and voice activation.

Security:

Amal Graafstra has begun developing an implant-activated ‘smart gun’ which can only be fired by the person with the matching implant ID, with the idea that this would make firearms more secure, and limit them to a single user.

Upgrade

In the movie Upgrade which was released in 2018, the main focus is device implants. Not only do the characters have guns implanted in their arms, some even have a device that connects to their brain stem and can take over their bodily functions. However, the movie brings up a pressing ethical question that will need to be addressed before something like this makes it way into the modern day world. In the movie, one of the devices becomes so smart that it instructs its user on how to hack itself, giving the device full control over their operator without a need for consent. With these implanted devices, future engineers will need to find a way to build trust with their device's operators in order to ensure that a worst case scenario, like the one in Upgrade, does not happen.

Ethical considerations:

While there is some concern for infection after implantation, and typically swelling or slight discomfort are expected after insertion, most companies work with experienced body piercers. So the debate has largely been around the ethical complexity of the devices.

The Agence France-Presse reported in May 2018: “Swedes have gone on to be very active in microchipping, with scant debate about issues surrounding its use, in a country keen on new technology and where the sharing of personal information is held up as a sign of a transparent society… Sweden has a track record on the sharing of personal information, which may have helped ease the microchip’s acceptance among the Nordic country’s 10 million-strong population.” A local pioneer in human implants, Jowan Osterlund has stated that he believes “that if we carried all our personal data on us, we would have better control of their use.”

However, this localized collection of data is what concerns some. Ben Libberton is a microbiologist at MAX IV Laboratory. He has summarized the greatest risk as having to do with the data collected on and by the chip. “At the moment, the data collected and shared by implants is small, but it’s likely that this will increase.” He points to the looming question of collecting the data and decide how to stare, handle ,and destroy it. “The more data is stored in a single place as could happen with a chip, the more risk it could be used against us.”

Some, including John Halamka, MD, also point out that patients would need to give consent for implantation before one could be implemented, and that the progression of mental disease such as Alzheimer’s can make the timeline for this difficult to manage. In time, the sharing and storage of medical health records, location history, or access codes presents opportunities for companies to exploit customer data. The American Medical Association has for about 10 years regulated the ethics of RFID implants, and has sought to protect consumer health data. Many fear that the data collected from these devices could be collected and aggregated, and then lost or shared without the owner’s consent. Similarly, there is a fear that the devices might be forced upon a certain group for surveillance, compromising their freedom and privacy.

The chips can also be compromised, as explained by Tarah Wheeler, an information security researcher. Some of the technology can be cloned, allowing access to those who are not the owners of a chip and the ID data stored on it.

In the future, ethical issues such as tracking employees, or preferential hiring to those who agree to a chip, might arise. Others argue that while right now models of microchips sees less risky, the issue will quickly become a slippery slope.