Around 3,000 cyber-Swedes have small, rice-sized chip implants. They’re part of a study to monitor microchips embedded under the skin on the back of a person’s hand.
In a gesture that’s as simple as a handshake, participants can swipe or wave a hand to pay for shopping, book train tickets and access buildings. The tiny implant can effectively replace credit cards, physical keys and tickets.
“The biggest benefit I think is convenience,” said Patrick Mesterton in an interview with the AP. Mesterton is the co-founder and CEO of Epicenter, Sweden’s startup hub for technological innovation. “It basically replaces a lot of things you have, other communication devices, whether it be credit cards or keys.”
Signing up for cyborg tech
Microchipping has been around for years. British scientist Kevin Warwick received an RFID implant in 1998. He used it to activate lights and open doors. Companies such as Biohax and Dangerous Things make near-field communication (NFC) chips which can be used to store Bitcoin wallet addresses and other sensitive data; unlock their cars and start their engines; or log onto their computers easily and conveniently.
It may be difficult to justify having an implant surgically wedged into the flesh of your hand, between your thumb and forefinger, when the sole purpose is for easy access to the gym – when you can just keep carrying your access keycard – but cryptocurrency wallet addresses are not as easy to remember.
Meet Martijn Wismeijer, the marketing manager at Bitcoin ATM manufacturer General Bytes who calls himself the first man to become a “human Bitcoin wallet.” In 2014, he decided to store his private Bitcoin keys in chips that he had implanted under his skin. He explains how he made his body a walking Bitcoin ATM in this mind-bending TEDx Talk.
And there’s Patric Lanhed, a software developer at DigitasLBi who embedded a small NFC chip under his skin so he could transfer Bitcoin between two crypto wallets – all with his hand, no keys required.
Today, bio-implantable Bitcoin wallets are still considered cyborg-creepy, despite social norms that have made lip implants, cheek implants, butt implants, breast implants and many different cosmetic injectables everyday procedures.
With 3,000+ Swedes turning the tide toward embedded chips, it may not be too long before crypto enthusiasts, mired in wallets, passwords and strings of digits, decide that the best way to keep track of their digital assets is with the flick of a wrist.
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https://dailyhodl.com/2018/05/22/cyborg-technology-can-put-bitcoin-in-every-body/This is a very interesting and awesome innovation. I just don't know if how secure will this be, given the fact that the chip is in the back of our hand and we all know that there are some hacking devices that can just scan chips that are near to it. Will this put an end to some hardware wallets? What do you think of this invention? Will you risk your life bringing huge amount of bitcoin at the back of your hand?
