Implantable-chip seminar in D.C. today  

Manufacturer of Digital Angel, VeriChip meets with FDA, policy analysts

Posted: November 15, 2002
4:46 p.m. Eastern
By Sherrie Gossett

(c) 2002 WorldNetDaily.com  

A seminar on implantable ID and tracking chips for humans has been 
convened at the National Academies today in Washington, D.C.  

Participating in the seminar are officials from Applied Digital Solutions 
(maker of Digital Angel and VeriChip), the Cato Institute, the Electronic 
Information Privacy Center and the FDA.  

The seminar, open to the public, was announced under the Policy and 
Global Affairs arm of the National Academy of Science, and was 
organized by Science and Technology Policy interns.  

The program is titled, "Human Microchip Implantation - It's More than 
Skin Deep."  

The following issues were slated for discussion:  

#  What are the possible applications of this technology?

#  Under what circumstances can a microchip device be used?

#  Which applications are beneficial and which may have negative 
   consequences to the general public?

#  What information can be collected and by whom?

#  Can this technology endanger the bearer?

The event follows the FDA's recent decision not to regulate the 
implantable VeriChip (a radio-frequency identification chip) when 
used for security, financial and personal identification or safety 
applications.  

The decision ended a five-month investigation into the company and 
its representations of the product.  

FDA officials had previously made strong statements to the press 
concerning the investigation.  

Wired magazine called the governmental green light "sudden," a 
"surprise," and "controversial."  

Wally Pellerite of the FDA's office of compliance told WND that securing 
approval to market the VeriChip also as a medical record device was not 
likely to be a difficult or involved process, although trials would probably 
be required for the upcoming GPS-trackable implant.  He also indicated 
that no fines or penalties had been levied against the company.   

Meanwhile, Marc Rotenberg of the Electronic Information Privacy Center 
has filed a Freedom of Information Act request to learn more details of 
the FDA's approval of VeriChip.  

Controversy over denials

Controversy is also growing over the company's previous denials that 
it was not planning on creating or developing implants. Some feel the 
denials short-circuited the opportunity for adequate public debate and 
media analysis.  

Denials similar to those given to WND were issued also to the Politech 
website, a politics and technology e-forum run by Declan McCullagh, 
former Washington bureau chief for Wired magazine, and currently chief 
political correspondent for CNET.  

Recently Nathan Cochrane, deputy IT editor for The Age and the 
Sydney Morning Herald addressed the controversy in a piece on 
McCullagh's site..  

"ADS' bald-faced lies to you and the members of your list about its 
plans in the past should send off warning flares about its intentions 
and the ethical foundation of its culture," he wrote.  

"With any decision as controversial and of such profound significance 
as this, it is beholden on a federal government department in a liberal, 
transparent and open democracy to release the full details of its 
deliberations, including any conversations of both a formal and informal 
nature," he wrote. "That includes intra-governmental and 
interdepartmental transactions. There can be no confidence in the 
decision until this is done and scrutinized."  

Cochrane added: "But it further begs the question I also asked back 
then of 'How much longer before implants are mandatory by law for all 
American citizens, and those in the rest of the world?'"  

Cochrane also praised WorldNetDaily's coverage of the company, 
noting that "WorldNetDaily broke the Digital Angel story" and 
"has done an excellent job of tracking this implant tracking 
company's machinations."  

Towards the ubiquitous data-grid

The capital seminar on implantable microchips also comes on the 
heels of news of the Defense Department's Total Information Awareness 
program, dubbed by critics a "super-snoop's dream," whereby the 
government would be authorized to collect every type of available 
public and private data in what the Pentagon describes as one 
"centralized grand database."  

In addition, as reported by the Washington Times, a congressional 
leadership memo outlining the legislation says the project will "help 
identify promising technologies and quickly get them into the hands of 
people who need them."  

The seminar also follows the initiation of biometric identification 
(iris scans) for employees at JFK International airport. ADS has previously 
suggested that government use its implants for employees at airports 
and nuclear power plants.  They have also suggested the possibility of 
using the implants in conjunction with biometric scans, for "foolproof" 
identification.  

Sherrie Gossett is a Florida-based researcher and writer, formerly 
with the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, and a contributing reporter to  
WorldNetDaily.

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Source: WorldNet Daily
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=29679

Cheers, Steve..

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