Microscopic Chips

Be Afraid: Powder-Sized RFID Chips
Fri Feb 16, 2007 8:58AM EST
See Comments (195)
Everyone's so paranoid about the RFID chips that are already in place in so many parts of our lives, so here's an item (via Engadget and Pink Tentacle) about Hitachi's new powder-sized RFID chips to make us even more scared of Big Brother (or little-Brother-ID thief). RFID chips are tiny microchips that use radio waves to do everything from conduct credit card transactions (as on those little key-fob-Paypass MasterCard thingies) and pay for tolls (EZ Pass and its ilk) to keeping track of your devices and travel (U.S. passports).
Hitachi plans to start marketing these new chips?seriously no bigger than a speck of dust at 0.05 x 0.05 mm?in two to three years. The company says this super-tiny chip can be used in paper, currency, gift certificates, and the like, but as some sites have pointed out, today's chips are already small enough for those uses. So, as Engadget cracked, does this mean we should be watching what we eat in case of some James-Bond- style pepper-shaker swap?

Maybe, but is the terror around RFID over-hyped? According to most proponents of the technology, and my own experiences paying with PayPass at my local drug store, you really need to physically tap the RFID chip to something for the transaction to go through. And yet, when I go through a toll booth, my RFID-enabled EZ Pass box is only about ten feet away from the sensor. So maybe it is time to watch what you eat, lest Big Brother starts to track you wirelessly (or you spill some RFID powder from which evil ID thieves can extract your vital stats!)

What do you think? Is RFID worth the convenience or is it setting up some dangerous privacy-invasion precedents?

Related links:

Is RFID On Your Radar?
Step Right Up for Your Microchip Implant
Getting Swiped with a No-Swipe Credit Card

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There so good.

Well..it's about time things got scary. lol

Would anybody like to have their privacy invaded?

I guess it would be necessary to take security to an extreme with those sneaky terrorists..

But I don't want them to go too far into our private lives.

Well, I don't know. Maybe big brother isn't such a bad idea.

My dad said that the governement is slowly but surely becoming facist(totalitarian) like in George Orwell's 1984 novel.

What do you think? Should we welcome the chips?

Love the animated truth!

RC.. how have you been? Have not been on Aqua board much lately. No topics I can respond to really.. this one is kind of interesting.. had not heard of this RFID Chip.

Message posted by: kris on 2/22/2007 10:23:25 PM ip: xxx.xxx.xxx.123
"I would kill myself if i had to live in a world where the goverment watches you every second ."

Why not fight the government before that happens? The American public can give the government an insurgency. If a bunch of Army Rangers and Delta Force can get their asses kicked by a bunch of starving Somalians like in Mogadishu in 1993, imagine what we can do to them. Imagine what happened in Mogadishu happening in many of our major cities. Our military is also having a hard time against a bunch of unorganized, poorly trained, average Joes with old equipment and relatively little money in Iraq. There are 96 firearms per every 100 people in this country, and A LOT of money. Our citizens have the ability to give our government a VERY hard time if they get out of line.

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Well I read it back in the tenth grade. It still kinda spooks me out. lol
I think I like things that are scary. oh well. I guess if I'm this crazy, there's no doubt there's somebody else out there like me. Let's just hope it's not Hitler's twin. lol

RC.. how have you been? Have not been on Aqua board much lately. No topics I can respond to really.. this one is kind of interesting.. had not heard of this RFID Chip.

I've been doin swell. I just found out about the chips on yahoo. I'm always reading yahoo news. These chips are suppose to help the government go into our privacy. Businesses only get bad records. Who knows what the government will go into..I'm picturing myself taking a shower when I think about chips!! lol

My dad has been talking about it for a long time. He watches this technology cause he has master degrees in this science stuff. He says that it's only a matter of time and he's pretty consistant about this particular theory. And..what do you know..chips smaller than a speck of dust...my dad's prophecy is being fulfilled.

Well, I don't think I'll have any kids in the future. I don't want them to inherit a fucked up world.

just found out about the chips on yahoo. I'm always reading yahoo news. These chips are suppose to help the government go into our privacy. "

I read the article on yahoo. It didn't say anything about abusing its use for government tracking purpose. In fact it didn't say anything about tracking individuals at all. All I read was a writers speculation about its uses. And um, did you read about the special sensor part of the article?

The reason you are scared( understandably) is because you don't understand what it really is about.

And Primegen is right, you should be more afraid of the Companies than the government who btw already have your information ( SEVIS, SSN anyone?).

lol. Did you read the title. I am scared of the possibilities not what they're doing with it currently. I was in agreement with the author's tone of the article.

Everybody already knows about the companies and the internet. We just don't want it to get any worse with chips as small as a speck of dust! Do you have any idea what they could do with those things!!! No one can see them!! so there is no way! Duh!


Where do you live, Sunnyville? o_O Open up your mind.

Wow. You are close-minded. I don't want to call you retarded, but really, consider the fact that there have been cameras made that are smaller than a button.

No, haven't heard of cameras smaller than a speck of dust, but that doesn't mean they're not possible.

Really, paranoia-ville is right around the corner, missy!!

Technology becoming THAT small, can lead to a world of possibilities...

You are completely close-minded. Get an imagination!! In fact, better yet, you're not going to be Hitler, you're gonna be the close-minded fool getting blown up.

While everybody else with a brain knows what's going to happen.

lol Anyway. Really, read the article again, it's about what the author was trying to point out, not what you're trying to point out.

Get a brain.