Microchip implant in a cat.
A microchip implant is an identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of an animal. The chip, about the size of a large grain of rice, uses passive radio-frequency identification
(RFID) technology, and is also known as a PIT (passive integrated
transponder) tag. Standard pet microchips are typically 11-13 mm long
(approximately 1⁄2 inch) and 2 mm in diameter.
Externally attached microchips such as RFID ear tags
are commonly used to identify farm and ranch animals, with the
exception of horses. Some external microchips can be read with the same
scanner used with implanted chips.
Uses and benefits
Animal shelters,
animal control officers and veterinarians routinely look for microchips
to return lost pets quickly to their owners, avoiding expenses for
housing, food, medical care, outplacing and euthanasia. Many shelters
place chips in all outplaced animals.
Microchips are also used by kennels, breeders, brokers, trainers, registries, rescue groups, humane societies, clinics, farms, stables, animal clubs and associations, researchers, and pet stores.
Some pet doors can be programmed to be activated by the microchips of specific animals, allowing only certain animals to use the door.
Some countries require microchips in imported animals to match vaccination records. Microchip tagging may also be required for CITES-regulated international trade in certain endangered animals: for example, Asian Arowana are tagged to limit import to captive-bred fish. Also, birds not banded who cross international borders as pets or for trade must be microchipped so that each bird is uniquely identifiable.
Usage
Information about the implant is often imprinted on a collar tag worn by a pet
Microchips can be implanted by a veterinarian or at a shelter. After
checking that the animal does not already have a chip, the vet or
technician injects the chip with a syringe and records the chip's unique
ID. No anesthetic is required it is a simple procedure and causes
little discomfort: the pain is minimal and short-lived. Studies on horses show swelling and increased sensitivity take approximately three days to resolve.
Humans report swelling and bruising at the time of implant, two to four
weeks for scar tissue to form and itching and pinching sensations for
up to two years. A test scan ensures correct operation.
Some shelters and vets designate themselves as the primary
contact to remain informed about possible problems with the animals they
place. The form is sent to a registry, who may be the chip
manufacturer, distributor or an independent entity such as a pet recovery service.
Some countries have a single official national database. For a fee, the
registry typically provides 24-hour, toll-free telephone service for
the life of the pet. Some veterinarians leave registration to the owner,
usually done online, but a chip without current contact information is
essentially useless.
The owner receives a registration certificate with the chip ID
and recovery service contact information. The information can also be
imprinted on a collar tag worn by the animal. Like an automobile title,
the certificate serves as proof of ownership and is transferred with
the animal when it is sold or traded; an animal without a certificate
could be stolen. Nevertheless, there are some privacy concerns regarding the use of microchips.
Authorities and shelters examine strays for chips, providing the
recovery service with the ID number, description and location so they
may notify the owner or contact. If the pet is wearing the collar tag,
the finder does not need a chip reader to contact the registry. An owner
can also report a missing pet to the recovery service, as vets look for
chips in new animals and check with the recovery service to see if it
has been reported lost or stolen.
Many veterinarians scan an animal's chip on every visit to verify
correct operation. Some use the chip ID as their database index and
print it on receipts, test results, vaccination certifications and other
records.
Some veterinary tests and procedures require positive
identification of the animal, and a microchip may be acceptable for this
purpose as an alternative to a tattoo.
Components of a microchip
A microchip implant is a passive RFID
device. Lacking an internal power source, it remains inert until it is
powered by the scanner or another power source. While the chip itself
only interacts with limited frequencies, the device also has an antenna
that is optimized for a specific frequency, but is not selective. It may
receive, generate current with, and reradiate stray electromagnetic
waves.
Most implants contain three elements: a 'chip' or integrated circuit; a coil inductor, possibly with a ferrite core; and a capacitor.
The chip contains unique identification data and electronic circuits to
encode that information. The coil acts as the secondary winding of a transformer, receiving power inductively coupled to it from the scanner. The coil and capacitor together form a resonant LC circuit
tuned to the frequency of the scanner's oscillating magnetic field to
produce power for the chip. The chip then transmits its data back
through the coil to the scanner. The way the chip communicates with the
scanner is a method called backscatter. It becomes part of the
electromagnetic field and modulates it in a manner that communicates the
ID number to the scanner.
Example of an RFID scanner used with animal microchip implants.
These components are encased in biocompatible
soda lime or borosilicate glass and hermetically sealed. Leaded glass
should not be used for pet microchips and consumers should only accept
microchips from reliable sources. The glass is also sometimes coated
with polymers. Parylene C
(chlorinated poly-dimethylbenzene) has become a common coating. Plastic
pet microchips have been registered in the international registry since
2012 under Datamars manufacturer code 981 and are being implanted in pets. The patent suggests it is a silicon filled polyester sheath, but the manufacturer does not disclose the exact composition.
Implant location
In dogs and cats,
chips are usually inserted below the skin at the back of the neck
between the shoulder blades on the dorsal midline. According to one
reference, continental European pets get the implant in the left side of
the neck. The chip can often be felt under the skin. Thin layers of connective tissue form around the implant and hold it in place.
Horses
are microchipped on the left side of the neck, halfway between the poll
and withers and approximately one inch below the midline of the mane,
into the nuchal ligament.
Birds are implanted in their breast muscles. Proper restraint is necessary so the operation requires either two people (an avian veterinarian and a veterinary technician) or general anesthesia.
Animal species
Horse microchipping
Many animal species have been microchipped, including cockatiels and other parrots, horses, llamas, alpacas, goats, sheep, miniature pigs, rabbits, deer, ferrets, penguins, sharks, snakes, lizards, alligators, turtles, toads, frogs, rare fish, chimpanzees, mice, and prairie dogs—even whales and elephants. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service uses microchipping in its research of wild bison, black-footed ferrets, grizzly bears, elk, white-tailed deer, giant land tortoises and armadillos.
Worldwide use
Microchips are not yet universal, but they are legally required in some jurisdictions such as the state of New South Wales, Australia
and the United Kingdom (for dogs, since 6 April 2016).
Some countries, such as Japan, require ISO-compliant microchips or a compatible reader on imported dogs and cats.
In New Zealand, all dogs first registered after 1 July 2006 must be microchipped. Farmers protested that farm dogs should be exempt, drawing a parallel to the Dog Tax War of 1898. Farm dogs were exempted from microchipping in an amendment to the legislation passed in June 2006. A National Animal Identification and Tracing scheme in New Zealand is currently being developed for tracking livestock.
In April 2012 Northern Ireland became the first part of the United Kingdom to require microchipping of individually licensed dogs. Dog microchipping became mandatory in England on 6 April 2016.
In Israel, microchips in dogs are mandatory.
Australia has a National Livestock Identification System.
The United States uses the National Animal Identification System
for farm and ranch animals other than dogs and cats. In most species
except horses, an external eartag is typically used in lieu of an
implant microchip. Eartags with microchips or simply stamped with a
visible number can be used. Both use ISO fifteen-digit microchip numbers
with the U.S. country code of 840.
Cross-compatibility and standards issues
In
most countries, pet ID chips adhere to an international standard to
promote compatibility between chips and scanners. In the United States,
however, three proprietary types of chips compete along with the
international standard. Scanners distributed to United States shelters
and veterinarians well into 2006 could each read at most three of the
four types. Scanners with quad-read capability are now available and are
increasingly considered required equipment. Older scanner models will
be in use for some time, so United States pet owners must still choose
between a chip with good coverage by existing scanners and one
compatible with the international standard. The four types include:
- The ISO conformant full-duplex type has the greatest international acceptance. It is common in many countries including Canada and large parts of Europe (since the late 1990s). It is one of two chip protocol types (along with the "half-duplex" type sometimes used in farm and ranch animals) that conform to International Organization for Standardization standards ISO 11784 and ISO 11785. To support international/multivendor application, the three-digit country code can contain an assigned ISO country code or a manufacturer code from 900 to 998 plus its identifying serial number. In the United States, distribution of this type has been controversial. When 24PetWatch.com began distributing them in 2003 (and more famously Banfield Pet Hospitals in 2004) many shelter scanners couldn't read them. At least one Banfield-chipped pet was inadvertently euthanized.
- The Trovan Unique type is another pet chip protocol type in use since 1990 in pets in the United States. Patent problems forced the withdrawal of Trovan's implanter device from United States distribution and they became uncommon in pets in the United States, although Trovan's original registry database "infopet.biz" remained in operation. In early 2007, the American Kennel Club's chip registration service, AKC Companion Animal Recovery Corp, which had been the authorized registry for HomeAgain brand chips made by Destron/Digital Angel, began distributing Trovan chips with a different implanter. These chips are read by the Trovan, HomeAgain (Destron Fearing), and Bayer (Black Label) readers. Despite multiple offers from Trovan to AVID to license the technology to read the Trovan chips, AVID continues to distribute readers that do not read Trovan or the ISO compliant chips.
- A third type, sometimes known as FECAVA or Destron, is available under various brand names. These include, in the United States, "Avid Eurochip", the common current 24PetWatch chips, and the original (and still popular) style of HomeAgain chips. (HomeAgain and 24Petwatch can now supply the true ISO chip instead on request.) Chips of this type have ten-digit hexadecimal chip numbers. This "FECAVA" type is readable on a wide variety of scanners in the United States and has been less controversial, although its level of adherence to the ISO standards is sometimes exaggerated in some descriptions. The ISO standard has an annex (appendix) recommending that three older chip types be supported by scanners, including a 35-bit "FECAVA"/"Destron" type. The common Eurochip/HomeAgain chips don't agree perfectly with the annex description, although the differences are sometimes considered minor. But the ISO standard also makes it clear that only its 64-bit "full-duplex" and "half-duplex" types are "conformant"; even chips (e.g., the Trovan Unique) that match one of the Annex descriptions are not. More visibly, FECAVA cannot support the ISO standard's required country/manufacturer codes. They may be accepted by authorities in many countries where ISO-standard chips are the norm, but not by those requiring literal ISO conformance.
- Finally, there's the AVID brand Friendchip type, which is peculiar due to its encryption characteristics. Cryptographic features are not necessarily unwelcome; few pet rescuers or humane societies would object to a design that outputs an ID number "in the clear" for anyone to read, along with authentication features for detection of counterfeit chips, but the authentication in "Friendchips" has been found lacking and rather easy to spoof to the AVID scanner. Although no authentication encryption is involved, obfuscation requires proprietary information to convert transmitted chip data to its original label ID code. Well into 2006, scanners containing the proprietary decryption were provided to the United States market only by AVID and Destron/Digital Angel; Destron/Digital Angel put the decryption feature in some, but not all, of its scanners, possibly as early as 1996. (For years, its scanners distributed to shelters through HomeAgain usually had full decryption, while many sold to veterinarians would only state that an AVID chip had been found.) Well into 2006, both were resisting calls from consumers and welfare group officials to bring scanners to the United States shelter community combining AVID decryption capability with the ability to read ISO-compliant chips. Some complained that AVID itself had long marketed combination pet scanners compatible with all common pet chips except possibly Trovan outside the United States. By keeping them out of the United States, it could be considered partly culpable in the missed-ISO chips problem others blamed on Banfield. In 2006, the European manufacturer Datamars, a supplier of ISO chips used by Banfield and others, gained access to the decryption secrets and began supplying scanners with them to United States customers. This "Black Label" scanner was the first four-standard full-multi pet scanner in the United States market. Later in 2006, Digital Angel announced that it would supply a full-multi scanner in the United States. In 2008 AVID announced a "breakthrough" scanner, although as of October 2010 AVID's is still so uncommon that it's unclear whether it supports the Trovan chip. Trovan also acquired the decryption technology in 2006 or earlier, and now provides it in scanners distributed in the United States by AKC-CAR. (Some are quad-read, but others lack full ISO support.)
Numerous references in print state that the incompatibilities between
different chip types are a matter of "frequency". One may find claims
that early ISO adopters in the United States endangered their customers'
pets by giving them ISO chips that work at a "different frequency" from
the local shelter's scanner, or that the United States government
considered forcing an incompatible frequency change. These claims were
little challenged by manufacturers and distributors of ISO chips,
although later evidence suggests the claims were disinformation. In
fact, all chips operate at the scanner's frequency. Although ISO chips
are optimized for 134.2 kHz,
in practice they are readable at 125 kHz and the "125 kHz" chips are
readable at 134.2 kHz. Confirmation comes from government filings that
indicate the supposed "multi-frequency" scanners now commonly available
are really single-frequency scanners operating at 125, 134.2 or 128 kHz.
In particular, the United States HomeAgain scanner didn't change
excitation frequency when ISO-read capability was added; it's still a
single frequency, 125 kHz scanner.
Microchip implant (human)
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A surgeon implants British scientist Dr Mark Gasson in his left hand with an RFID microchip (March 16, 2009)
A human microchip implant is typically an identifying integrated circuit device or RFID transponder encased in silicate glass and implanted in the body of a human being. This type of subdermal implant usually contains a unique ID number that can be linked to information contained in an external database, such as personal identification, law enforcement, medical history, medications, allergies, and contact information.
History
The first experiments with a radio-frequency identification (RFID) implant were carried out in 1998 by the British scientist Kevin Warwick.
His implant was used to open doors, switch on lights, and cause verbal
output within a building. After nine days the implant was removed and
has since been held in the Science Museum in London.
In early March 2005 hobbyist Amal Graafstra implanted a 125khz EM4102 bioglass-encased RFID transponder into his left hand. It was used with an access control system to gain entry to his office. Soon after in June 2005 he implanted a more advanced HITAG S 2048 low frequency transponder. In 2007 he authored the book RFID Toys,
Graafstra uses his implants to access his home, open car doors, and to
log on to his computer. With public interest growing, in 2013 he
launched biohacking company Dangerous Things and crowdfunded the world's first implantable NFC transponder in 2014. He has also spoken at various events and promotional gigs including TEDx, and built a smartgun that only fires after reading his implant.
On 16 March 2009 British scientist Mark Gasson
had a glass capsule RFID device surgically implanted into his left
hand. In April 2010 Gasson's team demonstrated how a computer virus
could wirelessly infect his implant and then be transmitted on to other
systems.
Gasson reasoned that with implanted technology the separation between
man and machine can become theoretical because the technology can be
perceived by the human as being a part of their body. Because of this
development in our understanding of what constitutes our body and its
boundaries he became credited as being the first human infected by a computer virus. He has no plans to remove his implant.
Hobbyists
An RFID tag visible under the skin soon after being implanted.
Several hobbyists have placed RFID microchip implants into their hands or had them inserted by others.
Alejandro Hernandez CEO of Futura is known to be the first in
Central America to have a Dangerous Things transponder installed in his
left hand by Federico Cortes in November 2017.
Mikey Sklar had a chip implanted into his left hand and filmed the procedure.
Jonathan Oxer self-implanted an RFID chip in his arm using a veterinary implantation tool.
Martijn Wismeijer, Dutch marketing manager for Bitcoin ATM manufacturer General Bytes, placed RFID chips in both of his hands to store his Bitcoin private keys and business card.
Patric Lanhed sent a “bio-payment” of one euro worth of Bitcoin using a chip embedded in his hand.
Marcel Varallo had an NXP chip coated in Bioglass
8625 inserted into his hand between his forefinger and thumb allowing
him to open secure elevators and doors at work, print from secure
printers, unlock his mobile phone and home, and store his digital
business card for transfer to mobile phones enabled for NFC.
Biohacker Hannes Sjöblad has been experimenting with near field communication
(NFC) chip implants since 2015. During his talk at Echappée Voléé 2016
in Paris, Sjöblad disclosed that he has also implanted himself between
his forefinger and thumb and uses it to unlock doors, make payments, and
unlock his phone (essentially replacing anything you can put in your
pockets). Additionally, Sjöblad has hosted several "implant parties," where interested individuals can also be implanted with the chip.
Commercial implants
Digital identity
VivoKey Technologies developed the first cryptographically-secure human implantable NFC transponders in 2018. The Spark is an AES128 bit capable ISO/IEC 15693
2mm by 12mm bioglass encased injectable device. The Flex One is an
implantable contactless secure element, capable of running Java Card
applets (software programs) including Bitcoin wallets, PGP, OATH OTP,
U2F, WebAuthn, etc. It is encapsulated in a flat, flexible 7mm x 34mm x
0.4mm flat biopolymer shell. Applets can be deployed to the Flex One
before or after implantation.
Medical records
Researchers
have examined microchip implants in humans in the medical field and
they indicate that there are potential benefits and risks to
incorporating the device in the medical field. For example, it could be
beneficial for noncompliant patients but still poses great risks for
potential misuse of the device.
Destron Fearing, a subsidiary of Digital Angel, initially developed the technology for the VeriChip.
In 2004, the VeriChip implanted device and reader were classified as Class II: General controls with special controls by the FDA; that year the FDA also published a draft guidance describing the special controls required to market such devices.
About the size of a grain of rice, the device was typically
implanted between the shoulder and elbow area of an individual’s right
arm. Once scanned at the proper frequency, the chip responded with a
unique 16-digit number which could be then linked with information about
the user held on a database for identity verification, medical records
access and other uses. The insertion procedure was performed under local
anesthetic in a physician's office.
Privacy advocates raised concerns regarding potential abuse of
the chip, with some warning that adoption by governments as a compulsory
identification program could lead to erosion of civil liberties, as
well as identity theft if the device should be hacked.
Another ethical dilemma posed by the technology, is that people with
dementia could possibly benefit the most from an implanted device that
contained their medical records, but issues of informed consent are the most difficult in precisely such people.
In June 2007, the American Medical Association
declared that "implantable radio frequency identification (RFID)
devices may help to identify patients, thereby improving the safety and
efficiency of patient care, and may be used to enable secure access to
patient clinical information",
but in the same year, news reports linking similar devices to cancer
caused in laboratory animals had a devastating impact on the company's
stock price and sales.
In 2010, the company, by then called PositiveID, withdrew the product from the market due to poor sales.
In January 2012, PositiveID sold the chip assets to a company
called VeriTeQ that was owned by Scott Silverman, the former CEO of
Positive ID.
In 2016, JAMM Technologies acquired the chip assets from VeriTeQ; JAMM's business plan was to partner with companies selling implanted medical devices and use the RfID tags to monitor and identify the devices. JAMM Technologies is co-located in the same Plymouth, Minnesota building as Geissler Corporation with Randolph K. Geissler and Donald R. Brattain
listed as its principals.
The website also claims that Geissler was CEO of PositiveID Corporation,
Destron Fearing Corporation, and Digital Angel Corporation.
In 2018, A Danish firm called BiChip released a new generation of
microchip implant that is intended to be readable from distance and
connected to Internet. The company released an update for its microchip
implant to associate it with the Ripple cryptocurrency to allow payments to be made using the implanted microchip.
Building access and security
In
February 2006, CityWatcher, Inc. of Cincinnati, OH became the first
company in the world to implant microchips into their employees as part
of their building access control and security system. The workers needed
the implants to access the company's secure video tape room, as
documented in USA Today.
The project was initiated and implemented by Six Sigma Security, Inc.
The VeriChip Corporation had originally marketed the implant as a way
to restrict access to secure facilities such as power plants.
A major drawback for such systems is the relative ease with which
the 16-digit ID number contained in a chip implant can be obtained and
cloned using a hand-held device, a problem that has been demonstrated
publicly by security researcher Jonathan Westhues and documented in the May 2006 issue of Wired magazine, among other places.
- The Baja Beach Club, a nightclub in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, once used VeriChip implants for identifying VIP guests.
- The Epicenter in Stockholm, Sweden is using RFID implants for employees to operate security doors, copiers, and pay for lunch.
Possible future applications
In 2017 Mike Miller, chief executive of the World Olympians Association,
was widely reported as suggesting the use of such implants in athletes
in an attempt to reduce problems in sport due to drug taking.
Theoretically, a GPS-enabled chip could one day make it possible
for individuals to be physically located by latitude, longitude,
altitude, and velocity. Such implantable GPS devices are not technically
feasible at this time. However, if widely deployed at some future
point, implantable GPS devices could conceivably allow authorities to
locate missing persons and/or fugitives and those who fled from a crime scene. Critics contend, however, that the technology could lead to political repression
as governments could use implants to track and persecute human rights
activists, labor activists, civil dissidents, and political opponents;
criminals and domestic abusers could use them to stalk and harass their
victims; and child abusers could use them to locate and abduct children.
Another suggested application for a tracking implant, discussed in 2008 by the legislature of Indonesia's Irian Jaya would be to monitor the activities of persons infected with HIV, aimed at reducing their chances of infecting other people. The microchipping section was not, however, included into the final version of the provincial HIV/AIDS Handling bylaw passed by the legislature in December 2008. With current technology, this would not be workable anyway, since there is no implantable device on the market with GPS tracking capability.
Since modern payment methods rely upon RFID/NFC, it is thought
that implantable microchips, if they were to ever become popular in use,
would form a part of the cashless society.
Verichip implants have already been used in nightclubs such as the Baja
club for such a purpose, allowing patrons to purchase drinks with their
implantable microchip.
Anti-Rhetoric Claims
Cancer
In a self-published report anti-RFID advocate Katherine Albrecht, who refers to RFID devices as "spy chips", cites veterinary and toxicological
studies carried out from 1996 to 2006 which found lab rodents injected
with microchips as an incidental part of unrelated experiments and dogs
implanted with identification microchips sometimes developed cancerous
tumors at the injection site (subcutaneous sarcomas) as evidence of a human implantation risk.
However, the link between foreign-body tumorigenesis in lab animals and
implantation in humans has been publicly refuted as erroneous and
misleading and the report's author has been criticized over the use of "provocative" language "not based in scientific fact".
Notably, none of the studies cited specifically set out to investigate
the cancer risk of implanted microchips and so none of the studies had a
control group of animals that did not get implanted. While the issue is
considered worthy of further investigation, one of the studies cited
cautioned "Blind leaps from the detection of tumors to the prediction of
human health risk should be avoided".
Security risks
The Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (CEJA) of the American Medical Association published a report in 2007 alleging that RFID implanted chips may compromise privacy because there is no assurance that the information contained in the chip can be properly protected.
Legislation
United States
Following Wisconsin and North Dakota, California issued Senate Bill 362
in 2007, which makes it illegal to force a person to have a microchip
implanted, and provide for an assessment of civil penalties against
violators of the bill.
In 2008, Oklahoma passed 63 OK Stat § 63-1-1430 (2008 S.B. 47), that bans involuntary microchip implants in humans.
On April 5, 2010, the Georgia Senate
passed Senate Bill 235 that prohibits forced microchip implants in
humans and that would make it a misdemeanor for anyone to require them,
including employers.
The bill would allow voluntary microchip implants, as long as they are
performed by a physician and regulated by the Georgia Composite Medical
Board. The state's House of Representatives did not take up the measure.
On February 10, 2010, Virginia's House of Delegates also passed a bill that forbids companies from forcing their employees to be implanted with tracking devices.
Washington State
House Bill 1142-2009-10 orders a study using implanted radio frequency
identification or other similar technology to electronically monitor sex
offenders and other felons.
In popular culture
The
general public are most familiar with microchips in the context of
tracking their pets. In the U.S., some Christian activists, including
conspiracy theorist Mark Dice, the author of a book titled The Resistance Manifesto, make a link between the PositiveID and the Biblical Mark of the Beast, prophesied to be a future requirement for buying and selling, and a key element of the Book of Revelation.
Gary Wohlscheid, president of These Last Days Ministries, has argued
that "Out of all the technologies with potential to be the mark of the
beast, VeriChip has got the best possibility right now". "Arkangel", an episode of the fictional drama series Black Mirror, considered the potential for helicopter parenting of an imagined more advanced microchip.
