For the past 15 years or more, I have been speaking about the signs of change in our culture. Often, these changes are innocuous enough that they are merely examples of how all of history morphs and shifts over time. However, at other times, what is being proposed or extolled is evidence of deeper shifts. I have written about many of those, including the attack on private property, the concerns about money shifting to non-physical, and many concerns about education.
Just last year, reflecting back to 4 years before, I wrote a three-part series about my concerns related to technology. In one of those posts, I wrote this:
The real issue is that the likelihood is great that all money supply can be controlled by a few simple clicks of a computer. If it can be done, then it will be done. Now spin that even darker…imagine a world where you HAVE to have a certain smartphone or all purchases MUST be made through the NFC [Near Field Communication] that Fast Company loves.
Not a pretty picture from where I sit. Sure, I know that some of you can see the Christian “Anti-Christ” mark of the beast issue. That is possible–I have warned about that too related to technology, as far back as the late 1990s, long before the term “smartphone” was ever uttered. Yet, I am not raising the specter here (at least not yet). All I am saying that it is easily possible to see a near-future where the government could declare quite easily that all purchasing must be done via this one certain way, and that all other options (your actual credit card, cash, even bartering) were illegal.
But, there are more and more troubling signs, signs that that should no longer be ignored. Just last week came the troubling revelations that the government under President Obama have gone even deeper in their spying and tracking citizens. While I don’t think the tracking came only on phones, the link is there. We must wake up, yet so many still seem asleep to the danger.
So…..
I follow a wonderful blog written by two French tech gurus, who also have a long history with the media industry (print, newspapers).
So, this post was reporting on the recent tech event, D11, the Wall Street Journal’s big tech event.
In the post was this paragraph, about the Motorola presentation at D11:
Just as interesting, if a bit troubling, Regina Dugan gave us insights into individual identification research work at Motorola. She proudly displayed a tattoo on her forearm that incorporates an RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) antenna that lets you log onto services without the usual annoyances. Or you can swallow an “authentication” pill that’s powered by digestive acids. As Dugan puts it, “your entire body becomes your authentication token.” Hmmm… A tattoo on one’s forearm, a pill that emits an ID signal that you can’t turn off (for a while)…
Since I have been warning you and others about the possible implications of RFID and NFC (Near Field Communication), the end of paper money and other issues related to tech and privacy….this doesn’t surprise me. But, that people like this blogger note the issue and imply his own concern….well that is noteworthy. I wonder if he is more troubled by the religious implications he hints at with the tattoo, or the fact that the Senior VP was proud of her RFID tattoo (or maybe that she was clearly nonplussed with the idea that she now can be tracked easily for the rest of her life (or as long as she keeps the tattoo on her arm).
Not a pretty picture, I know. What can you do? Well, my advice from last year still holds true today:
There is a way, though, for you. Fight back. If you own a phone, don’t slide down the road to accept NFC type technology. If its just on your phone, don’t use it. Maintain an active control on your own cash. Don’t allow location aware apps to work, or not all the time. Don’t check in with something like Foursquare or Facebook (more on that nightmare in a later post).
For now, just remember you heard it here first. Thus, when your favorite politician starts talking about some sort of method to “keep us safe” through the new national smartphone (free of course, just to make you happy), realize they aren’t really trying to merely keep you safe, but safely keep you where they want you.