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Olympic Tickets Contain Microchip With Your Data
OMNIpotusCOM writes "Tickets to the Olympic opening and closing ceremonies will contain a microchip with information about the ticket holder, including a photograph, passport details, addresses, e-mail, and telephone numbers. The stated intent is to keep troublemakers out of the 91,000-seat National Stadium so that they cannot cause disruptions while China is on world-wide television, but it brings up serious concerns for privacy and identity theft."
Well, that's it then. I'm not going.
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
.. it brings up serious concerns for privacy and identity theft. Coming from a nation that brings up serious concerns for pretty much every other human right I can think of, this comes as no surprise.Do it yourself, because no one else will do it yourself. [beta blockade 10-17 Feb]
Do it yourself, because no one else will do it yourself. [beta blockade 10-17 Feb]
Actually the real scarry thing is that if it works there then we are sure to see it used in other venues where security is a consern such as the World Cup (Soccer).
Undetectable Steganography? Yep, there's an app fo
I don't see the problem with this. It's not like China has ever has taken advantage of technology to control people there. There aren't any stories of people being arrested just for disagreeing with the government. There aren't any human rights issues in China.
echo YOUR_OPINION >
>> so that they cannot cause disruptions while China is on world-wide television
So much for free Tibet... with every purchase.
i went on a cruise and having photos seems quite regular for regulating getting on and off the boat. i can understand China's point of view of trying to keep out bad people. though it raises moral concerns, don't forget that there's a big chance for terrorism--especially with the protests to china. i'm not saying that it's a good thing; i'm just playing the devil's advocate-- i don't want big brother either, unless it's in the hands that i voted for.
Those of us who think they know everything annoy those of us who do.
Ticketmaster China
What?
Call me a skeptic, but I don't see how having my email address embedded in a ticket would keep out troublemakers.
Maybe they feel there's a correlation between someone who doesn't want to share personal information and troublemaker.
So, while the natives are doing their sacrificial dance around the flame and we sit in the big cauldron, we should remain informed and alert, fully aware of what's happening as the hairy guy in the funny hat puts the flaming torch at the base and we start enjoying a terminal hot bath, knowing full well that Tarzan will come and save us?
Life's no Hollywood movie. People DO get boiled in cauldrons and we ARE screwed unless we act. Being alert and informed isn't enough.
Do it yourself, because no one else will do it yourself. [beta blockade 10-17 Feb]
Going on the premise that China is the worlds first mature fascist government, would these tickets be considered unreasonable if the Olympics were being sponsored by a corporation? What if ExxonMobil hosted the Olympics? Or Walmart? Or HSBC? Or General Electric? If any of these companies hosted a sporting event, would it be unreasonable for them, as a business, to track this data within the tickets? My thinking is that China is simply becoming more of a corporate entity than a nation (albeit, a corporation with a billion employees). It seems like these tickets reflect that concept. Agree? Disagree?
I'd say it also brings up pretty serious concerns about the various definitions and interpretations of the word "troublemaker". Perspective is a wonderful thing - until they take it from you.
Look guys, certain things are inevitable.
I don't buy this.
They will eventually clone a human - somewhere in the world - regardless of laws.
Arguably this has already taken place. If you mean clone a human and implant the clone in a human womb, or else have some sort of artificial womb technology to bring the cloned embryo to term...that may take a while.
We will eventually have computer chips embedded under our skin - it will start with a way to track children, then a way to expedite purchases, then a way to hold critical medical info and so on.
Do this in the US and you will have a million zillion Christians up in arms. Literally. The "Left Behind" book series was a huge-ass bestseller in a country where most people don't read if they don't have to. This might happen elsewhere, like the PRC, Vladimir Putin's Russian Federation, Japan...in fact, my prediction is that it will happen first in Japan and it will be promoted as a youth trend. It will never happen in the US. It will probably not happen in Alberta, Canada. It will probably not happen in certain Central and South American countries. It will probably not happen in South Korea, which is almost as Christian-centric as the US is.
Nothing is inevitable except death and taxes. Period.
Knowledge is power. Knowledge shared is power multiplied.
If it's for one event, it strikes me that they could have a unique ID number for each ticket, and then just cross-reference that number with an external database. Methinks that'd take care of a lot of problems.
We will eventually have computer chips embedded under our skin - it will start with a way to track children, then a way to expedite purchases, then a way to hold critical medical info and so on.
I think you've got some things out of order. We've already started by chipping pets and certain researchers. I think the next thing would be chipping soldiers as a replacement/supplement to dog tags. Once there, it will be a small step to chipping the elderly and ill, especially Alzheimer's and those who tend to wander off and forget things. Next will be children. Then, last of all, joe consumer. After all, Joe can carry a paypass RFID keyfob, or an RFID credit card. So why get it implanted?
Oh, and prisoners. They'll wind up getting chipped at some point as well.
When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
If they wanted to, they could have very easily tracked card number, and thereby person buying, with ticket info.
Engineering is the art of compromise.
Most of the visitors will already have an RFID passport on them.
So long as everyone wants to buy cheap stuff at WalMart, the foreigners will not care about the human rights record of China only that they saved 'all this money' buying stuff they do not need with money they do not have.
Undetectable Steganography? Yep, there's an app fo
Westerners all look the same, anyway.
What's that? Ohh, you round-eyes got no sense of humour!
Ahh - My eye!
The doctor said I'm not supposed to get Slashdot in it!
This should not be tolerated! Our president must take a stand! President Bush should be willing to have America boycott the opening ceremony, just as the French President is willing to do, if China does not stop this nonsense-ical human rights violations.
ROTFL
Yes, thats why we see the good ole US of A protecting its citizens rights so very very well these days.
Tell people that it will stop the terrorism, drug problems, and help them buy new Hummers, and people will be voting FOR it, not against.
After all, pretty quickly the majority will see that this would be a great way to accurately identify those 'troublemakers' you mentioned, and keep them out of their nice safe middle-class lives.
I estimate that if you chipped the soldiers overseas, at least 20% of the US population would get chips just to show their support!
I do not see why you would have a problem with this. As someone who entered the United States from a different country, when I paid to attend college, all my information is tracked by the government (through my college). Other privacy issues involve my phone calls being freely tapped into. In fact, something that inconveniences me (not a privacy issue) is people not being able to transfer money into my bank account online which marks me as a non-resident alien.
As an alien in this country, I am subjected to intrusion of privacy by a multitude of institutions that I do business with - The only way to avoid that is to "go under" and become an illegal immigrant.
I perfectly understand the need for this. I am an immigrant to the USA and if the society here (which has been nice enough to tolerate me) feels safer by having my life glimpsed at, I am OK with it. I strongly dislike it, but atleast they let me stay here eh?
What my college does with my privacy and what the Olympics committee of China does with a tourist's is not all that different.
I would however be mighty pissed if I were a Chinese citizen and subjected to this treatment. I truly feel sorry for them.
I am just pointing out that aliens in a country having their privacy violated is not unusual and as an alien I am not particularly bothered by China doing it to tourists.
Note: This is NOT an "I have nothing to hide" issue. It's more of "Thanks for letting me be in your house, you can watch me and I will be on my best behaviour"
Cheers!
Atheist: Buddhist in a Prius
with... flags! Those evil terrorists might unfurl a flag and kill... no one!
It's sad the tone of this article from CANADA so readily equates acts of terrorism with the possibility of someone simply unfurling a tibetan flag. Is it just the english speaking countries that have gone completely batshit insane, or is liberty actually enadangered EVERYWHERE in the world now?
I get finger printed, photographied, sometimes interrogated, paper-ed, belt & shoe stripped , and in future even technically stripped with some Tera-hertz waves. They can also snoop my laptop, require that I give my addresses where I live, and as far as I know, I have to have my passport ready at any time. The only difference I see, is that the chinese want to keep the same info on a stadium ticket and most probably in a database, whereas the US keep it in a database.Big. Effing. Deal. Sorry but you both suck for foreigner on privacy ground.
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