A British scientist at the University of Reading in the UK is claiming to be the first human in the world to become infected with a computer virus.
It sounds like some sort of futuristic science fiction story doesn’t it, but it isn’t. Dr Mark Gasson implanted the RFID chip into his hand in order to explore “human enhancements” and the risks that they might present.
The device used by Dr Gasson is similar to the types of chips used to track animals, and was programmed to open security doors for him and to unlock his mobile phone automatically. His intention was to show how a contaminated chip could pass on the computer virus to other systems.
According to Dr Gasson, in the future, human implants will become more common and devices like pacemakers and other sorts of implants could potentially become contaminated by other human implants.
“This type of technology has been commercialised in the United States as a type of medical alert bracelet, so that if you’re found unconscious you can be scanned and your medical history brought up.”
“With the benefits of this type of technology come risks. We may improve ourselves in some way but much like the improvements with other technologies, mobile phones for example, they become vulnerable to risks, such as security problems and computer viruses” Dr Gasson told the BBC.
So will we really be keen to pay up for human implants in the way we pay for cosmetic surgery? Gasson thinks yes.
“If we can find a way of enhancing someone’s memory or their IQ then there’s a real possibility that people will choose to have this kind of invasive procedure” he said.
In a statement, Dr Gasson said that we should be wary of the kind of threats that this technology carries.
“By infecting my own implant with a computer virus we have demonstrated how advanced these technologies are becoming and also had a glimpse at the problems of tomorrow,” he said.
However, Sophos Senior Technology Consultant Graham Cluley reckons it’s all just scaremongering and a clever publicity stunt and said the chance of a human or indeed an animal becoming infected with a computer virus was extremely remote.
“Frankly, I’ve got more chance of being flattened by a falling grand piano than I have of getting my dog virus-infected next time I take him to the vets,” he added.
