February 15, 2005 5:16 PM PST
The man with the RFID arm
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Joseph Krull, an executive at Flanders, N.J.-based Virtual Corp., had a doctor stick an RFID tag from
"It felt like a bee sting," he said during a meeting at the
Under-the-skin RFID tags have emerged as one of the most controversial technologies of the past few years. Privacy advocates have asserted that private information from the radio tags could be intercepted by corporations and identity thieves. Fears that governments could exploit the chips for tagging a person's whereabouts have alarmed libertarians and
On the other hand, tagging prisoners in some institutions has cut down on
Krull, for his part, got the chip for medical purposes. He's allergic to two medicines and has a small metal plate below his left eye that had to be put in following a skiing accident. By sweeping a reader over the chip, a doctor in an emergency could get a 16-digit password, which in turn would let the doctor access a Web site that would give the hospital Krull's name, regular doctor, emergency contact and other information.
It's particularly important that doctors know about the existence of the metal plate. Krull's left eye is permanently dilated, and without that information, a doctor could misdiagnose the situation and, in some situations, start to drill holes in his skull, he said.
Like most, Krull, who has not received payment from VeriChip, admits he was uncomfortable with the concept behind the chips. Friends and fellow security experts also warned him of the potential dangers.
Still, the security risks can be controlled, he said. For one thing, the chip only contains one piece of information--the number that serves as a password on a Web site. The Web site contains only information that the user has agreed to place there, in this case key medical information.
If other information were to become mandatory, "I would be the first to opt out," Krull said.
Reading the chip also requires a reader that, at least by my own tests, works only when about 3 inches or closer to the tag. "I'm not concerned about someone sneaking up to me on the subway," Krull said.
Whether and how this market will develop remains an open question. One potential although ultimately mandatory application could lay in replacing military dog tags with RFID chips, Krull said. The tags fall off all the time. Web sites containing information about tagged military personnel could also be further protected by additional passwords and security precautions to prevent enemies from obtaining information.
Still, isn't he afraid of being tracked, or getting an infection, or getting kidnapped and having his arm hacked off so the police can't trace the kidnappers?
"We heard the same things about cutting off fingers and then using it to log in through biometric systems," he said.
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As Franklin D. Roosevelt said during his First Inaugural Address on Saturday, March 4, 1933, ?So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself?nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes?? To me, the fear of terrorism has created unfounded fears, fears that have no place in our world.
RFID alone will not destory our freedom, it is the use of fear and RFID that will.
Yes, the detection-reading range for current state-of-the-art subcutaneous passive RFID tags is around 3 - 4 inches (8 - 10 cm), a detection-reading range that represents a very low threat of anyone surreptitiously reading one that?s implanted in a person. This very short reading-deciphering range application lends itself to containing and controlling the RFID security and privacy risks to individual citizens.
Techno-Netizens like me want CNET journalist-contributors to rattle out more in depth and detailed technical and philosophical reporting on all representative applications of ?passive and active RFID,? both state-of-the-art and what?s coming down the techno-pike. For example, applications such as ?E-Pass? RFID, ?Wal-Mart? RFID, ?Driver?s License?ID? RFID, ?USDOS Passport? RFID?etc.
It is my understanding that the typical, state-of-the-art maximum reading-deciphering range for E-Pass, Wal-Mart, DMV, DOS type RFID applications is around 33-65 feet (10-20 meters). Specially equipped Three-Letter Agency folks likely can easily double this stand-off reading range to 65-130 feet (20-40 meters) using cutting-edge RFID reading-deciphering technologies.
Order up some donuts, bagels & cream cheese, carafes of coffee and maybe some lattes and schedule a conference room. Then hold a ?Brain-Storming? meeting on all aspects of RFID. Invite Alorie Gilbert, Declan McCullagh, Jo Best, Martin LaMonica?et al. You know best whom else to invite to that RFID confab. Brain Storm in front of a white-board or newsprint flip chart then outline and bang out the full 5X5 RFID story, tamp it down into article or special report size like the one done on e-Terrorism back in 2002, and e-launch it to us CNETizens out here in the vast e-wasteland.
Enquiring e-Minds Want To Techno-Know. JP