New bitcoin gift cards could take cryptocurrency mainstream
UPI reports: "Edmonton, Canada-based Bitcoin Solutions has developed what it hopes is a new solution -- by allowing people to buy bitcoin gift cards online, which can be loaded into digital wallets and spent anywhere bitcoin is accepted. Or investors can hold on to the bitcoin as an investment. [...] Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ethereum and others use a decentralized blockchain rather than a bank. The same blockchain can be used for micro payments, smart contracts and a host of other services that could disrupt traditional ways of doing business."

Comment: I should start with my usual disclaimer: I'm not saying this is the Mark of the Beast, I'm just noting trends. In this case, distributed ledger technology can be used for many different kinds of applications, including identity management, and I think it's a technology worth keeping a watchful eye on. 

Hertz, Clear partner to speed rentals with biometric scans
The AP reports: "Biometric screening is expanding to the rental car industry. Hertz said Tuesday it is teaming up with Clear, the maker of biometric screening kiosks found at many airports, in an effort to slash the time it takes to pick up a rental car. Clear hopes it will lead more travelers to its platform, which has 3 million members in the U.S. It’s the latest place consumers will find biometric technology, which has migrated over the last 50 years from secure government facilities and banks to airports, stadiums and even smartphones that unlock with the touch a fingerprint. Hertz is the first rental car company to use the technology."

Comment: I wonder if saving a small bit of time is worth giving up biometric data to a car rental company? Perhaps frequent flyers would say yet, but I'm betting the vast majority of travelers will balk at that. 

Biohacker Who Implanted Transit Chip in Hand Evades Fine – Futurism
Futurism.com reports: "In April 2017, Meow-Meow implanted a chip in his hand. The chip is from his Opal card, needed to ride public transportation in Sydney, and it essentially functions as a debit card — users add money to it, then whenever they use a bus, train, or other transportation service, they swipe their card to pay the fee. Thanks to his new implant, Meow-Meow no longer had to worry about losing his card. The biohacker could just place his hand near the Opal card reader and be on his way. All this was presumably working out OK for Meow-Meow until August 2017. That’s when the New South Wales transport authority, which issues the Opal cards, charged him with traveling without a ticket and failing to produce a ticket for transportation officials."

Comment: It doesn't surprise me that bureaucrats would be petty and not really grasp the concept. I think the real story here is the use of an implanted chip as a payment device and access device. As a proof of concept, that is very compelling. I think that early adopters like this guy have clearly demonstrated that an implanted chip is a practical means of combining identity verification, access control and mobile payments. It's possible. Whether the MOTB turns out to be a chip is still up for debate but for now, it's clear that this tech is here now.

Amazon considering opening up to 3,000 cashierless stores by 2021: Bbg
Reuters reports: "Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) is considering a plan to open as many as 3,000 new Amazon Go cashierless stores in the next few years, Bloomberg reported here on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. [...] The Amazon Go store, which has no cashiers and allows shoppers to buy things with the help of a smartphone app, is widely seen as a concept that can alter brick-and-mortar retail."

Comment: Ok, let's get this out of the way first: I'm not saying this is the MOTB and I don't claim to know what the MOTB will be. That said, I think it is worthwhile to note trends and technologies that may become the MOTB.

I think this is a noteworthy development because it suggests a level of technology that allows people to shop without cash or traditional payment methods. They do, however, need to scan an app before entering the store. In other words, if you don't have the app, you can't buy anything. Commentators have been anticipating the rise of a cashless society for many years now and although we are not there yet, this development is bringing that day closer.  Let's keep an eye on this.

AP - Tech leaders push for more White House focus on AI
AP reports: "Kratsios was hosting the Trump White House’s first summit on artificial intelligence, convening tech giants such as Google, Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft as well as major retailers, banks, drugmakers, carmakers, food companies and engineering schools. Some in the crowd had been pushing the administration to focus more on AI and related issues in science and technology. Academic leaders have pitched for more investment in basic research. [...] Kratsios said a new committee is being formed that will coordinate AI investments across federal agencies, including research related to autonomous systems, biometric identification, computer vision and robotics. He called for a 'free-market approach' that would harness the combined strength of government, industry and academia while limiting regulation that could “hamstring” companies, according to his prepared remarks."

Comment: Biometrics and computer vision will increasingly become important in our daily lives as transaction data (social and economic) increases in value.

Bitcoin near $10K -- now seven times more valuable than gold - UPI.com
UPI reports: "The virtual currency bitcoin hit a new high of $9,700 on Monday -- making it worth seven times more than an ounce of gold. After starting the year with a value of just $1,000, the currency's value has skyrocketed 860 percent this year. Its value was listed at $8,000 just last week. The latest gains could be fueled by expectations of big investors, such as hedge funds and asset managers, pouring money into the currency."

Comment: I'm starting to follow Bitcoin news after being a bit late to the party. I looked into this a bit and it does appear that the underlying technology may be a potential platform to host a universal currency. The usual caveat applies:  I'm just following trends and don't know what the MOTB will turn out to be.

Equifax breach exposes 143 million people to identity theft - AP
AP reports: "Credit monitoring company Equifax has been hit by a high-tech heist that exposed the Social Security numbers and other sensitive information about 143 million Americans. Now the unwitting victims have to worry about the threat of having their identities stolen. The Atlanta-based company, one of three major U.S. credit bureaus, said Thursday that “criminals” exploited a U.S. website application to access files between mid-May and July of this year. The theft obtained consumers’ names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some cases, driver’s license numbers. The purloined data can be enough for crooks to hijack the identities of people whose credentials were stolen through no fault of their own, potentially wreaking havoc on their lives. [...] The potential aftershocks of the Equifax breach should make it clear that Social Security numbers are becoming an unreliable way to verify a person’s identity, Nathaniel Gleicher, the former director of cybersecurity policy in the White House during the Obama administration, said in an email statement."

Comment: This incident could provide an opportunity for policymakers in the U.S. to start looking into alternative forms of personal identification, something a bit more secure than the antiquated Social Security Number.

India's Supreme Court rules privacy is a fundamental right - AP
AP reports: "India’s top court ruled Thursday that privacy is a fundamental right of every citizen, in a landmark judgment that could affect the country’s mammoth identity card system. The verdict was in response to many petitions filed in courts questioning the validity of assigning a biometric identity card to every individual. The government has made the identity card mandatory for all citizens to receive welfare benefits, but human rights groups raised concerns about the risk of personal data being misused. [...] Rights activists hailed the verdict as a win for individual freedom."

Comment: This is a win for the people of India but also something of a disappointment. As a test-case for mark-tech India was making remarkable strides in combining biometric identity verification with a broad range of government services. I saw it as a laboratory for seeing what could be done in this area with off-the-shelf technology combined with sheer government coercion and the outcome was looking rather impressive. The currency system of an entire country was being changed almost overnight and millions of undocumented people were being brought into an online system and given digital identities to secure services and payments. It was an impressive accomplishment. All of that is in doubt now. It will be interesting to see how this turns out.

Apple removes foreign VPN apps from Chinese app store - UPI.com
UPI reports: "Virtual-private network, or VPN, applications have been removed from Apple's Chinese app store. Foreign companies had developed the apps to get around China's Internet filters. [...] Residents in China utilize VPNs to get around the 'Great Firewall' that censors Chinese Internet and limits access. [...] China, Apple's largest market outside the United States, pledged to crack down on unapproved VPNs and restricted other online content as part of a 14-month campaign to 'clean up' the Internet."

Comment: Score a point for the "Great Firewall" of China. This news report casts this as a human rights issue and there's no doubt it is. Human rights workers, political activists and international visitors all use VPNs to access the global internet but there is another group impacted that this article does not mention. There is a large underground Christian church in China that exists alongside the official state-approved churches and those believers also use this technology to access Christian resources and contacts. As all internet traffic comes under the control of the state, these groups will become increasingly vulnerable to state intimidation and control.

Wisconsin company hopes to offer microchip implants to employees - UPI.com
UPI reports: "A Wisconsin company wants to offer surgically implanted microchips for employees to make it easier to buy snacks in the break room. [...] the implanted microchip makes it easier for people to pay for items at work. Instead of looking for coins, cash or a credit card, they would only need to place their hand in front of a scanner and electronically pay for their item. The microchip would have other uses, as well, like serving as an electronic key to open doors and identify the user to login at a computer. [...] Approximately 50 Three Square Market employees have volunteered to have the microchip inserted. Westby said it is not mandatory."

Comment: This seems like a clever way to entice people with the novelty of it while desensitizing them to the extreme privacy threat posed by implanted chip tech. I love that line where the CEO says it's not mandatory and he left off the "yet" part, lol. I would like to think that Americans still retain enough of the independent spirit to ever go along with this kind of monitoring and control.

Visa offers $500K for eateries to stop accepting cash - UPI.com
UPI reports: "Visa is challenging small restaurants, cafes and food trucks to stop accepting cash. The credit card company announced in a news release this week it is offering $500,000 to 50 eligible U.S.-based eateries to go 100 percent cashless. Restaurants signing up can get a $10,000 gift from Visa to help pay for technology upgrades, the San Francisco-based company said.

Comment: Visa is trying to get merchants in the U.S. to stop accepting cash, good luck with that. Meanwhile, in Britain, they are investing in trendy new banknotes with extra security features. I guess they didn't get the Visa offer.

AP - Face scans for US citizens flying abroad stir privacy issues
The AP reports: "If the Trump administration gets its way, U.S. citizens boarding international flights will have to submit to a face scan, a plan privacy advocates call a step toward a surveillance state. The Department of Homeland Security says it’s the only way to successfully expand a program that tracks nonimmigrant foreigners. They have been required by law since 2004 to submit to biometric identity scans — but to date have only had their fingerprints and photos collected prior to entry. Now, DHS says it’s finally ready to implement face scans on departure — aimed mainly at better tracking visa overstays but also at tightening security. But, the agency says, U.S. citizens must also be scanned for the program to work. Privacy advocates say that oversteps Congress’ mandate."

Comment: It's been a while since we had a MOTB update. I'm not sure this really rises to the level of a good update. As you can see from the report, it's very tentative, part of me thinks "ok, let me know if they actually do require face scans" but the reality is that they probably will. Consumers have already demonstrated a willingness to surrender their privacy and their dignity in the name of travel safety, this is simply one more step. I suppose we should not be too alarmed, no doubt the biometric ID database will be well secured from hackers, right?  Finally, the usual caveat, I'm not saying that this or any other biometric tech is the MOTB, this is simply a tech trend worth keeping an eye on. 

India is building a biometric database for 1.3 billion people — and enrollment is mandatory - LA Times
The LA Times reports: "Nearly 9 out of 10 Indians have registered, each assigned a unique 12-digit number that serves as a digital identity that can be verified with the scan of a thumb or an eye. [...] Designed as a showcase of India’s technological prowess — offering identity proof to the poor and reducing waste in welfare programs — Aadhaar’s grand promises have been muddied by controversy as the government makes enrollment mandatory for a growing number of essential services. [...] Soon, as more private companies use the database, it could become difficult to open a bank account, get a new cellphone number or buy plane or train tickets without being enrolled."

Comment: This sounds like a privacy nightmare but it's certainly an interesting experiment in government mandated identity verification.  If India can make it work it will become an attractive option for many other countries.

Japan convenience stores to cut out workers, scan entire baskets - UPI.com
UPI reports: "By 2025 the country's major retailers, including Seven-Eleven Japan and other chain operators, will allow customers to use self-checkout computer kiosks to scan an entire basket of items without requiring individual scans, The Nikkei reported Tuesday, local time. [...] Chips, or radio frequency identification tags, that can compute all items simultaneously are to be used at Seven-Eleven, FamilyMart and Ministop stores, where they will be in active use in major cities by 2018, according to the report."

Comment: I think the cost of upgrading hardware would be prohibitive in a large country like the U.S., still, it's an interesting development, it shows how advanced RFID tech has become. 

Swedish company Epicenter implants microchips in employees - UPI.com
UPI reports: "About 150 employees the Swedish technology firm Epicenter agreed to have a microchip inserted in their hands, the company said. The RFID, or radio frequency identification chip, is about the size of a grain of rice and will allow workers at the company to open doors automatically and use electronic devices more efficiently. The chip is implanted in an employee's hand."

Comment: The Mark of the Beast prophecy found in Rev 13:16-18 is one of the most specific prophecies in the Bible and also one of the most enigmatic.  I'm not dogmatic on the subject and enjoy speculating on what it could be, alternating between a high-tech solution like an implanted chip to something as basic as a tattoo. Lately it seems like the high-tech answer is gaining ground, with remarkable innovations coming in the fields of mobile commerce, identity verification and biometrics. I don't claim to have the answer, but I am dedicated to watching the trends. In this latest news, some Swedish workers are having chips implanted into their hands. It sounds like this is a small-scale experiment with a technology that has wider commercial applications. It will be interesting to see how it goes. If your company offered this service, would you get chipped? 

IBM, Visa Want Smart Devices, IoT Gadgets to Replace Themselves | Digital Trends
Digital Trends reports: "As technology grows, so do the options for making purchases. Already millions of people are able to buy things using PayPal or Apple Pay, but IBM and Visa want to expand that even further. Together, they want all connected devices to act as mobile payment systems. By collaborating with Visa, IBM will use its own Watson Internet of Things (IoT) platform to allow businesses to quickly add secure payment options to any device connected to the internet. These days, that means anything from a car, to a ring, or even a shoe."

Comment: That sounds great, but I would be concerned about privacy and security. They will really need to reassure consumers that these payment systems are safe before mass adoption.

MIT created a temporary tattoo that can control your connected devices - TNW
The Next Web reports: "In the future, your tattoos could be as functional as they are expressive. MIT, in partnership with Microsoft, created a new touch interface, DuoSkin, that allows temporary tattoos to interact with smartphones or computers, display output based on body temperature changes and even transmit data using NFC."

Comment: It's been a while since I've come across an interesting Mark-related news report. This high tech tattoo looks like a way of combining the cool factor of tattoos (so popular these days) with the functionality of a tech interface. A word of caution, I'm not saying this is the MOTB, it's just some interesting tech to keep an eye on.  I always like to emphasize that because I'm aware that past generations went a bit nuts in tagging emerging tech as the MOTB. I think all we can really do is watch tech trends and see where things are going.

People are using chip implants to open doors, control phones - CNET
CNET reports: "Minnesota software engineer Tim Shank uses a chip implanted in his finger to unlock the smart lock to his home. He also has an NFC chip with contact information stored in it, which lets him easily tap and send the info to an Android phone. [...] Shank is just one of a growing movement of biohackers who are implanting devices and chips in their bodies to perform different technological tasks."

Comment: It's been a while since we had a good MOTB update and this is an interesting if unsurprising story about how the biohacking community is taking to chip implants.  I mean, you would kind of expect that, right? At any rate, I no longer envision implanted chips to be the MOTB (our technology has moved so far beyond mere hardware) it's fun to check in once in a while and see if there have been any new developments. I should also note that this news site will attempt to start playing a video, so very annoying when you don't even have you earbuds in.  

CNN - Fake in China: 488 million social media posts a year
CNN reports: "The Chinese government cranks out 488 million fake social media posts a year in an effort to divert attention away from sensitive issues, a new study estimates. The researchers describe a 'massive secretive operation' carried out by government employees, highlighting just how far China is willing to go to control news and information."

Comment: Social media seems to take on a life of its own  with the narrative sometimes diverging wildly from the original topic. Celebrities, governments and corporations have all have their social media fails as well-intended  tweets are either misinterpreted or mocked online. But, what if you could guide the flow of the narrative? If social media is a storm would it be possible to manufacture countervailing winds to steer the storm in the desired direction? It seems that China is currently conducting just such an experiment using millions of fake social media posts. It's a fascinating and yet scary development.

U.S. high court approves rule change to expand FBI hacking power | Reuters
Reuters reports: "The Supreme Court on Thursday approved a rule change that would let U.S. judges issue search warrants for access to computers located in any jurisdiction despite opposition from civil liberties groups who say it will greatly expand the FBI's hacking authority. U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts transmitted the rules to Congress, which will have until Dec. 1 to reject or modify the changes to the federal rules of criminal procedure. If Congress does not act, the rules would take effect automatically. Magistrate judges normally can order searches only within the jurisdiction of their court, which is typically limited to a few counties."

U.S. spy court rejected zero surveillance orders in 2015: memo | Reuters
Reuters reports: "The secretive U.S. Foreign Surveillance Intelligence Court did not deny a single government request in 2015 for electronic surveillance orders granted for foreign intelligence purposes, continuing a longstanding trend, a Justice Department document showed. The court received 1,457 requests last year on behalf of the National Security Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for authority to intercept communications, including email and phone calls, according to a Justice Department memo sent to leaders of relevant congressional committees on Friday and seen by Reuters. The court did not reject any of the applications in whole or in part, the memo showed. "