Swedish startup Epicenter introduced a new microchip technology allowing to store one’s COVID-19 vaccine passport under the skin, according to a video posted by South China Post last Friday.

The video shows that the Stockholm-based firm has showcased an implant capable of storing a COVID passport that can then be read by any device using the near-field communication (NFC) protocol. 

https://twitter.com/France24_en/status/1473360118066520065

The video features Hannes Sjöblad, CEO of DSruptive CEO and founder of the Swedish Association of Biohackers. Sjöblad demonstrated how Epicenter’s microchip was implanted under one’s skin (either in the arm or between the thumb and forefinger) in order to be used as a COVID-19 passport. 

The Wisconsin-based technology company Three Square Market was the first American company offering its employees similar microchip implants in the summer of 2017. The chip gives employees access to locked rooms and the ability to pay for food and drinks in the break room among others.

Three Square Market CEO Todd Westby stated back then that “Eventually, this technology will become standardised allowing you to use this as your passport, public transit, all purchasing opportunities, etc.”

The Guardian reports that the above-mentioned microchips were provided to Three Square Market by Biohax, a firm established by Swedish piercing specialist and tattooist Jowan Österlund.

Microchip technology uses electromagnetic fields in order to identify electronically stored information. The tiny chips also use so-called near-field communications, which is similar to the technology used in most contactless mobile payments and credit cards.

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen

Photo: @Twitter @worthynews