The Swedish are ahead of the game when it come to microchip ID technology, but the concept might get under other people's skin.
Those willing to set their fears aside are having rice grain-sized microchips that store one's personal identification injected into their hands. It's the way of the future.
According to Agence France-Presse, the procedure, first introduced to Sweden in 2015, is done with a syringe and causes a sensation similar to a "slight sting."
Today, there are over 3,000 Swedes who walk around with the embedded chip in their hands.
In Sweden, over 4,000 people now have tiny microchip ID’s the size of a grain of rice embedded in their hands to ea… https://t.co/ppcnNnHJJ0— The Guardian Nigeria (@The Guardian Nigeria)1540839414.0
Ulrika Celsing is a 28-year-old employee of media agency Mindshare and is chip-enabled.
She uses the identification technology to enter the work space simply by waving her hand over a small scanning box.
After entering a code, the doors open to allow access.
Biohacking is on the rise. An implanted microchip in the body is doing away with key cards and IDs to make lives ea… https://t.co/VAb4AJ1EVd— Robert Mandelberg (@Robert Mandelberg)1553030111.0
Biohacking is a term used to describe the modification of bodies through technology, according to Business Insider, who cited Apple Watches and Fitbits as examples.
The Swedes are all about trying the new technology. The country has a population of 10 million people with most of them willing to share personal information that is already shared with the country's social security system.
Celsing expressed her enthusiasm for the microchip tech.
"It was fun to try something new and to see what one could use it for to make life easier in the future."
You can watch AP's report on the new technology in the YouTube clip, below.
Swedish rail operator accepts microchip tickets www.youtube.com
Celsing's chip doubles as her gym card, and she also uses it to book railway tickets through Sweden's SJ national railway company's microchip-enabled reservation service.
Since 2017, SJ conductors have been scanning the hands of passengers with the biometric chips to collect fares.
Sweden national rail carrier ushers in #privacy nightmare #RFID #microchip human implants - @dwnews… https://t.co/EFfG6Prlg4— Liz McIntyre (@Liz McIntyre)1497285949.0
Despite the technological convenience and protection from hacking, Celsing still remains a little cautious.
"I don't think our current technology is enough to get chip hacked. But I may think about this again in the future. I could always take it out then."While the implantation procedure could threaten the immune system with infection, Ben Libberton — a microbiologist working for MAX IV Laboratory in the southern city of Lund — is more concerned about the possibility of one's data being compromised.
"At the moment, the data collected and shared by implants is small, but it's likely that this will increase."
"If a chip can one day detect a medical problem, who finds out and when?"The researcher told AFP that "the more data is stored in a single place as could happen with a chip, the more risk it could be used against us."
@SBSNews It is coming! Society's worst nightmare— Tor Frømyhr (@Tor Frømyhr)1422578132.0
And that is something the general public is shivering about.
Exactly.
Hannes Sjöblad, founder of the Swedish biohacking group Bionyfiken. noted Biohacking's increasing demand.
He said "The human body is the next big platform" and sees the future of wearables like the Apple Watch becoming a thing of the past.
"We are updating our bodies with technology on a large scale already with wearables. But all of the wearables we wear today will be implantable in five to 10 years."
"Who wants to carry a clumsy smartphone or smartwatch when you can have it in your fingernail? I think that is the direction where it is heading."
Great strides come with greater responsibilities. But not everyone outside of Scandinavia is on board.
@trtworld That does not tempt me.— Joanna M Meyer (@Joanna M Meyer)1526536266.0
@BBCBreakfast One day we will NOT have a choice. This is coming people ... New World Order. This will govern everything we do in the future— DazzaG (@DazzaG)1422605083.0
Libberton told AFP that the Swedes are more open to the invasive technology.
"In Sweden, people are very comfortable with technology and I would say there is less resistance to new technology here than in most other places."
America, are you ready for this?
Try not to follow the bad advice given here, because you don't want to get the results that these guys did.
U/Duckerton375 asked: What's the worst advice someone ever gave you, but you still followed?
The workplace can bring a cornucopia of terrible advice. Don’t follow these unless you want to get fired.
​Bad jobs are usually not worth it.
Stick with a job no matter how bad it is. I stayed with a terrible job working retail, dealing with horrible customers and sexual harassment. I was told I wouldn't find anything better.
"No, no, you misunderstand. I said you wouldn't find anything better at making you feel like complete garbage."
This gets really creepy really fast.
frustrated workplace GIFGiphy"After you put in a job application, you need to call them at least once a day every day until they hire you."
Note: this did not get me hired. It got me called out by the HR person I was calling and forbidden to ever contact their facility again.
I work for a law firm that employees over 1500 people in the home office alone. Once I received a call from the building security saying, "Insert Name is here to speak with the owner." Well we are run by a committee so that's odd. Found out they just applied for a job and wanted to talk directly to the person that would potentially hire them. Told him the firm will contact them to schedule an interview. They refused to leave without "talking to the owner." Had security escort them out of the building.
​This is absolutely not true.
"Sleep is for people who do not want success" great words from my uncle, it almost killed me.
Now I may be oversleeping.
​Interpersonal relationships are also a big breeding ground for terrible advice. Don’t listen to any of these.
Heartbreaking.
My father always tought me and my brother that "having friends is bad and in the end they will never be there for you" so everytime I told my father about my friends he would get kinda mad and give me the advice to stop talking to them.
Now I am afraid of people and have several trust issues, thanks dad.
​This won’t end well.
A Christmas Story GIF by filmeditorGiphyIn the fifth grade my teacher was talking about bullying, then she said "if anyone tries to bully you just agree with them." So the next time I got bullied I agreed with the bully and they bullied me more.
Dude one time I saw an anti bullying video that told the victims to just BE NICE TO THE BULLY. Like the bully was hurling insults and the victim was smiling and complimenting him. My first thought was about how much I hated the mere thought that this would work. My second thought was of how the people who came up with that method had clearly never been bullied.
​Oof.
When I met my now wife at the age of 19, one of my coworkers said that it's very important to start at the bottom with presents and work your way up, she still has the socks I gave her on our first anniversary on the wall over our bed as a reminder...
I'm still trying to teach my boyfriend about good presents and bad presents. Biscuits from the supermarket = bad present. Cheap unbranded laptop battery from China as my only present = bad present (and only lasted 2 months). Anything off my 7-page wishlist = good present. It's literally a list of things I want to receive as presents.
​Can tell you from experience that this is a bad idea.
Had a falling out with some friends. My husband recommended I reach out to an old friend who ghosted me suddenly in a manner that induced some pretty severe abandonment trauma. Went for it anyways because "it's been so long, surely they changed". Am now experiencing the same things as last time.
When you follow bad advice, it can lead to mistakes that you just can’t come back from.​
Buying a house is tricky.
for sale dancing GIF by Lisa VertudachesGiphy"Buy a home now before the prices go up!" -my FIL in 2006.
We bought in 2007 and paid $259,500 for our 1,300 sq ft house (we really couldn't afford it and had an 80/20 so we had 8% interest for one loan and 6% on the other) and in 2008 it was worth $97,000 so refinancing wasn't even an option. We watched all of our neighbors walk away or get foreclosed on but we kept paying our bills and as of this very moment our house is worth $462,000. I'm so happy we stuck it out, we both worked our @sses off and the house will be paid off in 2 years.
It worked out for us, it's a horrible idea. Especially since 1300 sq ft houses are $460+k
My heartbreaks for future generations, I honestly don't know how people are going to afford housing in the future.
It’s there for a reason.
"Never apply for any government assistance."
Cue years of suffering trying to work full-time with a painful disability. Quit a particularly terrible job, and wanted to apply for food aid until I could find another gig; a friend with lots of DHS experience recommended I apply for Social Security "just to get in the system." Turns out my disability was bad enough to get accepted the first time, which I wasn't expecting. Really could've used that support, oh, the 30+ previous years of my life.
Credit is important to have.
I was told to not get a credit card until after college. I was super fortunate to have my college paid for so I had no loans, car paid in cash, no credit card or anything to start building credit. Found myself out in the world at 22 years old with a credit score of 0.
So while a lot of this bad advice came from trusted people, oftentimes they were too misinformed to give that advice in the first place. Don't trust the word of one person--do your research, and make decisions for yourself.
It'll be way better in the long run