The Christian Digest
Presents
RACING TOWARD THE MARK OF THE BEAST
Your Money, Computers, and the End of the World
By Peter Lalonde and Paul Lalonde
(Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1994)
Reality Is Stranger than Fiction
Democrat Bob Wise of West Virginia, who heads the House Subcommittee on the government's use of databases, has reached the conclusion that "in the not too distant future, consumers face the prospect that a computer somewhere will compile records about every place they go and everything they purchase."
David Linowes, the former chairman of the U.S. Privacy Protection Commission, also is worried: "The danger is that employers, banks and government agencies will use databases to make decisions about our lives without our knowing about it."
A De Facto National Data Bank
Recently, a study for Congress by the Office of Technology Assessment pointed out that advances in supercomputer databases have actually created a de facto national database "containing substantial personal information about most Americans."
But rather than being an Orwellian central data bank that maintains records in one place--something like the National Data Center that was rejected by Congress more than a decade ago--this "de facto national database" is created from hundreds of separate computerized record systems that can be reached over telephone lines by computers from virtually anywhere in the country. By searching out information on an individual through a variety of these computerized data banks, the study noted, it is possible today for government officials to compile electronic dossiers on millions of private citizens, to electronically mingle, merge, and compare three billion records containing personal information held by various federal agencies alone.
Jerry Bergman, director of the American Civil Liberty Union's privacy and technology project, said: "If Congress tried to introduce a bill to establish a central file on every citizen, it would go down to defeat, but this report shows that what couldn't be done frontally has happened incrementally."
President Clinton's Smart Idea
If you are going to have a system that contains comprehensive information, then you must be certain that the right files are cross-referenced with the right files. The only way to do this logically is to make sure every single person in the system has a unique and personal number. Names are too common and confusing. Only numbers are truly unique.
So how close are we to the day when we become the numbered and tracked society foreseen by George Orwell and Aldous Huxley? The Clinton administration provides one clue. Clinton is advocating the use of "smart cards" tied to Social Security account numbers to provide every citizen of the country with a universal identity card. In order to be covered by the national health care system, participation in the national identity program will be mandatory. Under the Clinton proposal, every child would be numbered at birth, put into a national database, and tracked for life. Children would be required by law to participate in vaccination and public health programs. Failure by parents to fulfill state-mandated medical decisions would be evidence of child abuse and the children could be placed in foster care.
The current U.S. administration is putting huge effort into a de facto national ID card. President Clinton has gone so far as to say that regardless of any other disagreements, all members of Congress should unite behind this single goal!
National Card Sets National Agenda
When you consider that Social Security numbers are being given to toddlers, presumably too young to go out and get a full-time job, the idea that a system of national identification is being born is not so outlandish--and the potential for its misuse is great. Here's what The Communicator, a publication of the Smart Card Industry Association, says:
"The average American already carries a Social Security card by age one, a driver's license by age 18, a passport if you want to leave the country, a voter's registration card, a membership card of some type, some kind of emergency medical treatment card, an ATM (automatic teller machine) card, a phone card, and a car insurance card. Almost all of this information is filed with the government or can be accessed by some government agency now.... In theory, if all of these groups got together to develop one universal system, with varying levels of security, you could put all of this information on one smart card.... A cradle to the grave medical smart card is an excellent idea!"
Don't Let It Get Under Your Skin
Martin Anderson, writing in the Washington Times, points out a problem that is central to this brave new world. He says that this national ID card will become so necessary in order "to comply with government regulations" that people will be forced to carry it with them "at all times." But the question is, what happens if we lose our card or it is stolen? Could someone else use it and pretend to be us?
Anderson, a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and a syndicated columnist, points out that much thought is going into this very problem: "You see, there is an identification system made by the Hughes Aircraft Company that you can't lose. It's a syringe-implantable transponder. According to promotional literature, it is an ingenious, safe, inexpensive, foolproof and permanent method of ... identification using radio waves. A tiny microchip, the size of a grain of rice, is simply placed under the skin. It is so designed as to be injected simultaneously with a vaccination or alone...."
There is no difference in principle between being forced to carry a microchip in a plastic card in your wallet or in a little pellet in your arm. The principle that Big Brother has the right to track you is inherent in both. The only thing that differentiates the two techniques is a layer of skin.
Excuse Me, Sir, I've Heard That Somewhere Before!
As incredible as all of these technological advances are, and as thought-provoking as they may be to those who have read about "Big Brother," there is something much more stunning to be noticed here. You see, the Bible predicted just such a system more than 2,000 years ago! And it wasn't in some strange symbolism or allegoric language that you'd need three Ph.Ds and half a dozen computers to figure out, either:
"And he [the false prophet, working under the Antichrist] causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast ... for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore and six." (Revelation 13:16-18.)
Think about what this text is saying. The Bible is telling us that under this "666 system" no one on earth will be allowed to buy or sell anything unless he or she receives a mark in the forehead or right hand. This simplicity, combined with the powerful technological developments which are doubtless necessary to fulfill these words--words penned in the age of wood, stones, and the toga--make this prophecy one of the most powerful proofs of the accuracy of God's Word. Indeed, the prophecy itself contains only 63 words, yet it will take the entirety of this book to document how precisely those words have foreshadowed the modern-day, computerized, global economic structure.
No one can say precisely what technology will ultimately be used to fulfill the prophecy of the mark of the beast, but this book is designed to explore the possibilities and the advances in technology that make such a universal system possible.
Kiss Your Cash Goodbye
Imagine walking into a grocery store and buying all of your weekly groceries without ever needing money, your credit cards, or a check. Imagine having the funds you need for your purchases transferred directly from your checking account into the store's bank account.
This is the heart of the cashless world that planners have been predicting for years. Through the use of debit cards, they say, we can enter a brave new world where every transaction, every purchase, and every sale can be conducted electronically.
A recent Gallup poll in the United States showed that 64 percent of people polled would approve a system that is more convenient than the current cash-and-check world in which we live. Sixty-six percent said that cash is too easy to lose or have stolen. Forty-eight percent called checks too slow and inconvenient. And 23 percent within the last 12 months have had the unpleasant experience of getting to the checkout counter without enough money.
This is extremely good news to the cashless world's leading architects. Why? Because their brainchild has been moving at a snail's pace in the last 15 or so years, especially in Canada and the United States. Public resistance to cashlessness, rather than delays in technology, explains the slow trend. The public has read George Orwell's 1984 and Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, with their nightmarish visions of the future, and has resisted the technology and has been leery of the possibilities implicit in such a system. Still, recent polls suggest that the consumer's slow acceptance is a thing of the past. Meanwhile, technological advances have continued at a staggering rate.
A Cashless Society at the Heart of the Beast System
It seems that a cashless society is crucial to the prophesied mark-of-the-beast system. The Scripture says: "That no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." (Revelation 13:17).
If the Antichrist is to have control of every sale or purchase, it appears that cash must be eliminated so that there will be a record of every transaction. If cash were permitted in the coming new world order, some commercial activities could be accomplished outside the system. The Antichrist could not control the buying power of every citizen if even a few deals were closed with cash.
Printed documentation is too bulky and slow, so an elaborate and sophisticated electronic system that controls and documents every transaction must almost certainly be in place. It must be a universal system since it will control every transaction of every person everywhere. Thus, the worldwide use of plastic cards today is only a natural and necessary step to a cashless society.
Big Brother Who?
Unlike a few years ago, our more recent research has found that the fear of Big Brother no longer plays a significant role in the resistance to a cashless society. Basically, no one is afraid of Big Brother anymore.
We surveyed people to find out whether they were concerned that governments, the banking industry, and other entities have vast amounts of information about them, and that they can be tracked almost constantly by some agency or other. The younger folks (under 45 years of age) in particular were very clear in declaring their unconcern. "I have nothing to hide," they say. "The government only does this to make things more convenient and secure for us."
Since every government in history which has had this kind of information has used it in a very Big-Brother-like way, it seems to us we should be concerned!
Like It or Not--Your Future Has Been Planned
While resistance is lessening, bankers and the card companies would still like to see the cashless society progressing much more quickly. In that light, we should realize that the cashless society is not unfolding randomly or merely because the consumer wants to take advantage of available technology. The technology is being developed at the urging of financiers because they have something to gain from a cashless system. As one banker put it, "Electronic funds transfer will come because the banks are pushing this concept forward, not because some stores just happen to be putting ATMs in their checkout lines."
Earlier we talked about walking into your grocery store and paying for your cheese and baloney by having the funds transferred directly from your checking account to the store's bank account. This is already being done in thousands of test locations with the use of a debit card.
What is a debit card? It looks just like a credit card but has far different capabilities. When you get to the checkout counter, you place your debit card into a point of sale (POS) terminal. The POS is linked to your bank and the store's bank. Immediately, the machine activates central computers that instantly transfer the necessary money from your account to the store's. It's all done electronically and it's about as convenient as you can get. But convenience is not the only drawing card for this new system.
Store Owners Don't Want Your Cash!
Retailers are anxious for the advent of the cashless society for a variety of profit-oriented reasons. The use of plastic debit cards translates into higher profits because of reduced employee theft (there is no cash to steal), reduced charges on noncash transactions, and the elimination of check fraud.
Moreover, preliminary studies on the use of debit cards indicate that consumers tend to spend up to three times more with a debit card than they would with a credit card. It seems that consumers spend more freely when they're not concerned about future payments and high interest rates.
Another plus for the retailer is the lower transaction fees charged by banks. Under the existing credit card system, retailers pay between three and seven percent of the purchase price to the credit card company. These fees, in addition to the interest charged the consumer, are how the credit card companies make their money.
The rates charged by the companies have been determined by several factors. One includes unlawful and fraudulent use of the card. Another concerns cardholders who will not or cannot pay their bills. To cover these huge losses, the companies must charge higher rates. With debit cards or prepaid cards, however, the amount of the purchase is deducted immediately from the consumer's account or card, and there is no chance that the bill will go unpaid.
Another consideration for the retailer is improved cash flow and more immediate access to funds. The consumer's debit card is scanned by the store clerk. Within seconds, the money is transferred directly from the consumer's account to the store's account. Or, in the case of prepaid cards, the amount of the purchase is debited from the card on the spot. No waiting. No paperwork. No risk of bad checks. It's done.
Another very important advantage for the retailer is the reduction of robbery. As fewer transactions are conducted with cash, rarely will there be large amounts of cash around the store to attract armed robbers. These reduced risks create even more advantages: reducing insurance premiums, reducing the threat of physical violence to employees and resultant medical costs.
On every continent, all of these advantages already have been borne out by thousands of small-scale experiments. Cashless "mini societies" have been established and have met with great success. Retailers and consumers alike said they have benefited from the cashless system.
The Cash Cards Are Coming, the Cash Cards Are Coming!
One of the big challenges cashless-society planners face is the millions of small transactions that take place every day. These can range from calls on a pay phone to bus fare to paying a parking meter. An ingenious solution has been found by combining the features of a debit card with those of something known as a prepaid card. These prepaid cards are not yet widely known in North America, but they are about to be.
A prepaid card is simply a card that has encoded within it a stored value--say, 50 local telephone calls or 20 bus trips. You buy this card at the store and each time you use it one use is deducted from the total available. When the card has been completely used, you throw it away and buy a new one.
The power of this type of card is that it does not need to access a central computer or your bank account every time you make a small purchase. As industry standards are established and the prepaid card is merged with the debit card, cash will become obsolete.
Smarten Up!
Robert J. Merkert, Sr., senior vice president of Danyl Corporation of Moorestown, New Jersey, says: "One day in the near future, we'll be able to pay for almost everything with just one `prepaid stored value' or `smart' card."
Merkert, a respected proponent of cashless technology, told a gathering of business and government leaders from around the world that prepaid cards "will be used as pocket change. As prices for buses, vending machines and laundry go up, it becomes unwieldy to carry around five or ten dollars' worth of coins."
Merkert also told the gathering that the transition to prepaid cards would be relatively simple. He explained that financial institutions have used credit cards for decades and ATM or debit cards for several years. As applications increase for prepaid cards, Merkert said, more banks will issue them. With universal bank-sponsored prepaid cards on the way in and coins on the way out--with no change to make and little cash around--store checkout lines will be shorter; more pay phones will be in working order; vending machine prices can increase in one-cent rather than five-cent increments; and security will be improved at laundromats, convenience stores, and gas stations.
Merkert also told the conference that each year there are more than 270 billion payment transactions in the U.S. alone that involve two dollars or less. He said: "When these transactions are made electronically by smart card, there will be tremendous improvement in efficiency, reduced vandalism and fewer safety problems."
Consumers also are beginning to see advantages to using debit/prepaid cards. Credit cards are convenient and for that reason often are overused. Inevitably, however, D day comes--the due date. Many people are surprised by how large the debt grows each month and how rapidly the minimum amount due increases. With some credit card rates exceeding 20 percent, the minimum payment just barely covers the monthly interest.
When consumers can use one card for a variety of purchases, it will be more convenient for them and they will want to use the cards even more.
Banking on the Future
Those who will benefit most from the cashless society are the institutions most pushing for it--the banking industry and card companies. The reasons all relate to increased profits. No matter how altruistic the rhetoric may sound, the bottom line is the bottom line--profit.
For one thing, electronic banking is much cheaper for the bank. The costs are lower for processing electronic fund transfers than for processing checks and their related paper handling. In addition, money is moved much more quickly.
But far and away the greatest benefit to the banks is the elimination of the bank branch. Banks are expanding the number of ATM locations to provide easier access for their customers. With the increase of ATMs and their 24-hour accessibility, the necessity for bank branches is all but eliminated.
It is extremely costly for banks to staff multiple facilities and to pay for building upkeep. ATMs, which can perform almost all the functions of a branch bank, are vastly less expensive. A USA Today reporter, writing about the cost efficiency of ATMs in a story about their increased numbers and capabilities, wryly noted that ATMs don't ask for raises and don't need medical insurance.
When a bank opens a branch, it has to hire architects, builders, contractors, electricians, pay building fees, and buy other permits. It has to furnish the bank, hire staff, train these employees, continually hire and retrain personnel, and pay continuous overhead. With an ATM, it has only to scout out a location like a mall, grocery store, or subway stop and send someone out once a day to service it--obviously, a lot cheaper.
The Prime Movers
While consumers are beginning to be lured by the cashless convenience and retailers are discovering the cost effectiveness of the debit card system, and while banks continue their never-ending search for greater profits, society itself is finding reasons to embrace this new paper-free world.
Much of this support has come from law enforcement agencies. One of the most persuasive arguments for a cashless society is the effect it will have in deterring crime. At the street level, mugging will become unprofitable as fewer and fewer citizens carry cash. As more and more retailers deal in card sales only, profitable targets for armed robbers will cease to exist.
On a much larger scale, law enforcement experts boldly proclaim that drug trafficking can be all but eliminated in a cashless society. Drug dealers carry out their business one suitcase full of cash at a time. No credit cards, no cashier's checks--just cash. As cash is eliminated from everyday use, the medium of exchange for dealers vanishes. Large-scale transactions cannot be done through electronic banking without attracting the attention of bank officials and, in turn, law enforcement and other arms of government.
Black-market activities also will be severely curtailed in a cashless society. Extortion, kidnapping, blackmail, and prostitution will be all but eradicated as currency is retired. We are told that with the disappearance of cash will come also the disappearance of much crime. No wonder mankind will press for such a utopian economic system!
No Paper Trail
A letter to the editor in Time magazine represents the prevailing attitude:
"Your report on drug smugglers converting drug-tinged money into clean assets shows that our government's oversupply of U.S. currency is a prime cause of the growth of the cocaine trade. You explain that 80 percent of all the bills printed by the Treasury can't be located because so many of them are concealed by the dealers. As an assistant prosecutor at the county level, I am disheartened by the inaction on denying the drug kings their medium of exchange, currency. One way to catch them would be a surprise big-cash recall. Let's demonetize the drug trade."
Capitalizing on Fear
As crime in our society continues to increase, so does the draw to the plastic world. The number of stores accepting plastic money is increasing. Visa has signed up more than 3,000 supermarkets to take its cards. That's about half of the top 50 grocery chains in the United States.
Even post offices in most U.S. cities are accepting credit cards as payment for postage. Other governmental agencies are getting into the act by using electronic payment systems for Social Security and welfare to help cut costs. One area of cost savings is found in the area of welfare fraud. Attempts are also being made to curb food stamp fraud by replacing the coupon system with plastic cards.
When paying for groceries, food stamp customers would run their cards through an electronic reader and would enter their personal identification number (PIN). Their account or card would then be debited for the purchase. Each month the food stamp recipient gets additional money stored on the card. This plan results in significant savings by stopping fraud. Recipients can't sell coupons to raise cash for the purchase of alcohol, drugs, or tobacco. The card can be used only by the person to whom it is issued. The cardholder is identified through some kind of link to the card such as a PIN.
Governments have become one of the biggest advocates for the elimination of cash and checks, especially in the Western world. Millions of dollars could be saved each month if government payments to individuals could be handled electronically rather than by issuing and processing expensive paper checks. Too, electronic deposits would put an end to the theft of Social Security and other government checks from the mail.
Tax evasion also would become a thing of the past. Cash payments for work performed or for items sold and other cash loopholes would be eliminated. This is a major priority among Western governments, particularly in the United States, which is facing staggering deficits. The estimated increase in tax revenue resulting from closing the floodgates of tax evasion would make a major dent in the deficit. In fact, a recent report estimates that if tax evaders alone could be thwarted, it would put at least an additional 100 billion dollars a year into U.S. government coffers.
What's in the Cards?
The technological advances of the past ten years in the card industry are almost incomprehensible. Credit cards, debit cards, and the like can, when used in an ATM or similar machine, provide us with immediate access to almost any service, product, or bit of information we might want. And the "new, improved, and smarter" cards can do even more.
To begin, let's briefly consider the type of cards now on the market--not types as in credit or debit cards, but types as in the technical construction of the cards.
Magnetic Stripe Cards. These are the most commonly used cards in North America. They are a simple plastic credit or debit card with a black stripe on the back which contains certain information: perhaps your name, an account number, and a personal identification number called a PIN. When you go to an automated teller machine, you insert your card into the machine and punch in your PIN on the keypad. Once the machine verifies that the PIN you have punched matches the PIN recorded on the magnetic stripe card, you are then able to conduct a financial transaction such as withdrawing from or depositing funds to your account.
Smart Cards. These too are plastic credit or debit cards that contain a small microchip, usually in the top left corner. There are two types of smart cards. One is a memory-only card from which information can be obtained by a reading device. The information cannot be changed or updated. The other type has a microprocessor which allows for information to be updated, changed, or processed. According to Stephen Seidman, editor of Smart Card Monthly, the only real difference between this type of smart card and a personal computer is the packaging. Smart cards, like the magnetic stripe cards, must have some type of identification device (like a PIN) to match the cardholder with the card.
Optical Cards. These plastic cards contain data stored on the entire surface of the card, which can be read by laser. They store great amounts of data and are frequently used to store medical information.
While each of these cards could be capable of being the card in a cashless society, they all share one common drawback. To this date, no system has been developed to make certain that the person using the card is the person who should be using the card. The system of PINs simply has not worked, and the banks underwriting the system are losing a small fortune because of it.
Banks Are the Big Losers
Automated teller machines and the entire plastic card industry are being ripped off at a staggering rate. Thieves use their victims' ATM cards to withdraw large amounts of cash (usually up to the daily limit) from the accounts. Cards are being counterfeited. And in both cases banks, not customers, are responsible for these losses and are losing millions of dollars each year.
Magnetic stripe cards, the current industry standard, are easily counterfeited and the losses are stacking up. In fact, counterfeiting credit cards is considered the fastest-growing type of credit card crime in Canada, according to the Canadian Bankers' Association. One industry source said recently that counterfeiting accounts for about 14 percent of all credit card crime.
Bankers say they aren't charging their legitimate customers for the counterfeit claims but are absorbing the losses themselves. This is highly unlikely. Either way, this counterfeiting has greatly increased an already massive security problem for North American banks.
Smart Cards to the Rescue
Sid Price, senior vice-president of the National Processing Company, the largest credit card processing company in the United States, says the next logical step is to convert the U.S. card structure to a smart card system.
It has long been argued that the cost of making this major change would be too great. But with the losses increasing each year, many people are saying the United States cannot afford not to make the change. The demand for change has reached a level that prompts Price to predict that the crossover is "only months away, not years."
The primary impetus for this change is, of course, to eliminate the losses incurred by credit card fraud. The consensus among industry leaders is that smart cards are virtually impossible to counterfeit or duplicate. And they have built-in mechanisms that make them "hacker proof."
More than Just Money
So far we have talked primarily about the smart cards and how they will ultimately replace cash. But there are many other applications for the card. Stephen Seidman, publisher of Smart Card Monthly, gives us additional perspectives on the capabilities of the smart cards.
"From a business point of view, Smart Cards are now being used to identify employees and guests, automate time and attendance records, control access to parking lots, buildings ... copiers, fax machines, corporate records.... As money, they are used to collect and balance travel expenses via company-installed ATMs, to make purchases in company stores and in neighboring shops, and shopping malls."
Seidman continues: "Nationally--in degrees varying from country to country--cards are being used, and/or planned for imminent use, in national public telephone systems, health care, and financial transaction processing networks."
An American National ID Card?
Recently, the Clinton administration announced interest in the implementation of a health card as part of the reform of the health care system in the United States. In the September 1992 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, Bill Clinton was quoted as saying, "Everyone will carry smart cards coded with his or her personal medical information."
What a Powerful Little Item
Just how powerful are these microprocessors? The U.S. government is exploring the use of smart card technology for its proposed universal health card because the microchip in a smart card can retain incredible amounts of information. A 4 meg chip, quite common today, would be more than ample to carry a person's entire health history, not to mention insurance information, all on a chip 1/6th the size of a postage stamp.
As amazing as this is, hold onto your hat. Here's the rest of the story. The big news is the latest chip that was announced for the first time at the Global Frontier conference. Toshiba has developed a microprocessor chip, no larger than the 4 meg chip, that can retain up to one gigabyte of information for up to 100 years!
What in the world is a gigabyte? A gigabyte is a billion bytes. To give you some sense of perspective, one million seconds is 12 days. One billion seconds is 32 years. A gigabyte of memory is equal to 10,000 times an average personal computer's capacity.
Today these uncounterfeitable cards hold the potential to serve as the world's first fully functional "electronic wallet." The largest single stumbling block to the system is still the problem of making sure that the person using the card is the person to whom it belongs.
The real source of these problems, as we've said, is the present security system used by the banks. The system relies on personal identification numbers as its only security procedure.
A PIN is assigned to the cardholder when he or she receives the card. This four-digit number is encoded in the card and given to the cardholder. When making an ATM transaction, the cardholder inserts the card into the ATM and then types in his secret number. If that number matches the one stored on the card, the machine assumes that the person using the card is the rightful owner. It sounds pretty good in theory, but in practice it simply isn't working.
PINs Aren't Real Secure
Often cardholders select a PIN that is easy for them to remember--like a birthday (5-3-45), the last four digits of their Social Security number (4832), the last four digits of their phone number (8037), or some other familiar number. The problem with this is that these numbers are probably located on other documents in the victim's purse or wallet. Thieves will look for these familiar numbers and try them on the keypad, often with success. U.S. News & World Report sums up the problem:
"In an era when virtually all Americans are asked to show I.D. ranging from driver's licenses to credit cards, the process of insuring that a person is who he or she claims to be is big business and a matter of growing concern. No longer is the simple password, the I.D. badge or the magnetic encoded card sufficient, say security experts. Those traditional devices can be falsified, stolen or discovered accidentally."
Many elderly card users don't trust their memories, so they write the PIN down and carry it with them. Unfortunately, they often carry the number in their wallet or purse near the card itself and clearly identify the number as their ATM PIN. Many card users--and not just the elderly or the mentally impaired--actually write their PIN on the card! They make it so easy for the thief.
Another problem with the current PIN security system involves armed robberies. Any reasonable person held at gunpoint will gladly cough up a PIN rather than be shot.
It is clear that if we are to move to a cashless society, a better, more secure card system has to be developed. There is simply no other choice.
Your Body: The Only ID You'll Ever Need
His name is Bond. James Bond. And to gain access to his secret headquarters he might place his finger in an electronic machine that verifies that he is indeed 007. Or to get into a NATO compound he might look into a pair of goggles that resemble binoculars. As he does so, a light beam focuses on the vein patterns in his eyes, patterns which are even more unique than his fingerprints.
While James Bond is pure fiction, these space-age technologies are now very much a part of the real world. Known collectively as biometrics, these systems identify a person by unique physical or behavioral characteristics.
Today, leading-edge biometric technologies include fingerprint readers, hand geometry machines, retinal readers, voice recognition systems, signature dynamics, and a myriad of others. In a world where cash is eliminated and every financial transaction is done electronically, security is the critical factor in both running the system and in getting people to put their trust in it. Biometrics may still sound futuristic, but in today's fast-moving world the future is now.
Bud Goes Shopping
For the sake of clarity allow us to introduce a fictional character, Bud. Let's pretend he is participating in a fingerprint verification program with his new debit smart card. Bud has decided to take this path because he can never quite remember his personal identification number. To get things rolling, Bud heads down to the local grocery store where the card company has an "enrollment counter" set up.
At the counter Bud is issued his own smart card with its tiny microchip. The card is programmed as a debit card so that when Bud later arrives at the checkout counter with his groceries, the money can be electronically transferred from Bud's bank account to the store's. But now, back at the enrollment counter, something else has to take place before Bud can begin his shopping.
Bud is asked by the young lady doing the enrollment to put his finger in a tiny machine hooked up to a personal computer. This machine scans his fingerprint and makes a computer picture of it called a template. In just a few seconds that template is digitally transferred and stored in the memory of the computer chip in Bud's smart card. That's it. The job is done. It all took under five minutes.
May I Have Your Card and Your Finger, Please?
Now Bud is ready to do his shopping. He fills his cart and he's off to the checkout counter. When it's time to pay, Bud hands his smart card to the salesclerk who places it in the point of sale (POS) terminal which is electronically linked to Bud's bank and the store's bank. But, wait--what if it is not Bud who is presenting this card? After all, the clerk doesn't know him. He might be using someone else's card.
To verify that Bud is indeed the owner of the card, the clerk asks him to put his finger in the reader attached to the POS terminal. This reader scans Bud's fingerprint, just as the reader at the enrollment counter did. But now, it compares that fingerprint to the one stored on the card. If the two match, Bud can make his purchase. If not, the police will quickly be on their way.
What an ingenious system! No number to memorize. No hassle--all you need is your card and your finger. It's just that simple and secure. Instantly, the money is transferred from Bud's bank account and placed in the store's.
Today, costs for card-based biometric POS systems have shrunk to between $3,500 and $7,000 each. And while they are more expensive than PIN systems, the realities of an electronic world are making them more competitive.
"Now that we are cost competitive, we feel that comparisons will be performance, not price, driven," said one industry official. "The person with all their billing records at stake doesn't really care if it costs $6,000 or $4,000. It's not really relevant."
While these systems are expensive, in a world where cash is eliminated and every person's security is directly related to the security of the electronic system, it is a small price to pay. A 1992 report estimated that biometric industry sales will double by 1995.
You Are as Unique as the Computer Says You Are
Let's now take a closer look at the various biometric identifiers.
The most familiar biometric identifier is the fingerprint. Fingerprint identification has been a standard, especially in the legal system, for many years. This unique method of identification has progressed considerably in the past few years, thanks to technological advancements.
Law enforcement agencies have used fingerprint identification for a very long time. Old movies show the tired detective, a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth, flipping through fingerprint books trying to find a match. But the old methods have been updated and simplified using new technology. Identification can therefore be much quicker, with instant access to computerized fingerprint files. No longer do people have to flip through stacks of fingerprint pictures; now the computer can do the comparisons for them at lightning speed. And it's still an almost foolproof method of identification.
But such systems are valuable not only for detectives and grocery shoppers; the uses are as diverse as one could imagine. Maryland's state police, for example, are using Identix fingerprint machines to ensure that the wrong prisoner is not released, which could be quite a problem under the old system. They are also interlinking their machines so that prisoners can be properly identified at certain checkpoints, like a courtroom, the infirmary, the pharmacy, and so forth. At many high-security prisons, even the visitors have to submit to electronic fingerprint verification.
Alive or Dead? The Machine Can Tell
Someone might argue that this is OK for a prisoner who is under surveillance by an armed guard, but what about fingerprint identification for banking cards? What's to stop a criminal from killing his victim, cutting off the victim's finger, and then using it to access his financial accounts?
The new technology has an answer. When fingerprint devices are verifying a person's fingerprint, they can also tell if the finger is alive or dead. That might sound a little weird, but bear with us for a moment.
Most people would willingly place their finger in a fingerprint reader at the behest of an armed robber, but suppose a victim resisted and was murdered or otherwise incapacitated. In bizarre cases where the stakes are high, it is not implausible that a criminal might cut off a person's finger and use it in the security device.
It wouldn't work. At the 1993 Card Technology conference, a demonstrator of one of these fingerprint security systems explained that the system can tell if a finger is dead by a hemoglobin reading built into the system.
Darling, Your Hands Are So Geometrical
While fingerprinting is still the most popular biometric method, many new developments are threatening its dominance. One of these is hand geometry.
Hand geometry has existed since 1971. In recent years it has become more popular as an identification tool. Westinghouse Hanford's Company Security Application Center (SAC) has recently developed a template using hand geometry instead of the fingerprint. Just as in the case of the fingerprint, the template is stored in the smart card and can be accessed for comparison at any time.
You've no doubt seen such devices in science fiction or spy thriller movies. To gain entry to a secured area, the employee seeking access must insert his hand in a reading device. Just like in the movies, today's hand scan machines verify the shape of the hand and the length and height of the fingers--minus, of course, the whirring sound and the pulsating lights necessary for the movies.
Hand geometry verification is a reality and is already in operation in many high-security facilities. In fact, just such a system has been installed in airports around the world. In two airports in the eastern United States, the system has been installed to speed up the immigration process.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service is planning to install such systems, depending on the results of these field tests, in all international airports in the United States. These hand scanners are expected to reduce the traveler's reentry process to about 30 seconds--a considerable time savings when you consider that delays for passport checks can now take up to 90 minutes at the busiest airports. As the world becomes more globally interdependent, quick access across borders will be essential.
Hey Lady, How About a Little Less Hand Cream?
Hand geometry creates a template based on certain measurements and relationships unique to each person's hand. A geometric analysis might show the length of all the fingers as well as the normal space between the fingers at varying points while the hand is relaxed. The reading might also give the width of fingers, the width of the hand span, the width of the hand at the "heel" and a variety of other notations. These geometric readings are just as individualized as fingerprints.
Hand geometry also works where fingerprinting might not. For example, fingerprinting is very unreliable for certain people, such as manual workers, pipe smokers, and women who wear hand cream. In all of these instances, impressions left by the swirls and circles in normal fingerprints can be impossible to record because they are filled with a foreign substance (hand cream), have been burnt smooth (by constantly holding a hot pipe), or have been worn away by constant friction (caused by manual labor). Moreover, many biometric experts believe fingerprint technology may meet some resistance due to its long-standing association with criminal activities.
The one technical drawback to hand geometry is that it requires an individual to place his or her hand in a very precise location on the reading area. But this seems to be a temporary setback.
The Mark VI Personal Identity Verifier
Biometric Technology Today newsletter tells us that one company, PIDEAC, has recently gone into large-scale production of its Mark VI Personal Identity Verifier. The article says,
"This hand geometry verification device is unusual in that it does not require users to place their hands within posts or grooves located on the reading area. Instead, the company has developed a technique which allows the hand to be placed anywhere within the reading area. Both hands can be enrolled in the system in case of injury to one in the future."
The student of Bible prophecy will not only be interested in the name of this device, but in the fact that its developers have decided to record both hands in case of injury. The Bible may well have been foretelling just such a precaution when it referred to "marking" the right hand or forehead.
Is It Live or Is It Recorded?
As is generally the case in developing industries, these technologies are not the only ones evolving. Recent Hollywood movies have introduced to the public all the latest designs. Voice verification systems, for example, are being fine-tuned.
Those who have seen the movie "Sneakers" will recall that it was through the use of recorded voice patterns that the heroes defeated the voice verification system. As an indication of how far this technology has advanced, researchers at universities and in the private sector are developing personal computers that operate by voice recognition--not for the purposes of identification, but to translate spoken words into written words. Already, we have entered the Star Trek age where accessing your computer can be as simple as saying, "Computer."
Facial recognition is a fairly new biometric industry. At the "Solutions for the Global Frontier" conference in Washington, D.C., conference organizer Ben Miller pointed out that several companies are working on facial recognition devices.
Your Personal Bar Code
Other identity verification systems are being studied by a myriad of researchers. One of the most interesting is called vein checking. When your fist is clenched, the veins on the subcutaneous part of the hand are more visible to the naked eye and even more so to vein-detection devices. This technique already has been dubbed "the personal bar code."
At the same time, the Pentagon is experimenting with a new genetic identification system. Military officials say that, once in place, the system will guarantee there will be no more "unknown soldier" casualties in future wars.
Say Hello to Tomorrow
These elaborate systems certainly seem logical and are certain to have some positive long-term effects. Costs are coming down. Just think back to the days when calculators first came on the market. They were both complex and expensive. Now, of course, you can purchase calculators at a discount store's checkout display for a couple of dollars. Likewise XTs (IBM's original personal computers) are now considered the world's youngest antique.
So while researchers continue to develop the hardware and software for these verification systems, others in science, industry, and government are fervently seeking a better, more cost-effective, and even more secure system--one that will have universal feasibility, accessibility, and capability. With the world's financial future hanging in the balance, it's no longer a question of "if," only of "when."
Will That Be Hand or Forehead?
Here's a simple trick: Wave your hand over the computer scanner at the grocery store checkout counter, and your bill is deducted from your checking account. The technology to accomplish [this] feat already is here ... said Tim Willard, executive director of the World Future Society, a Washington organization that claims 27,000 members worldwide. But the willpower may not be.
"Just suggest something like an implant in humans and the social outcry is tremendous," Willard said. "While people over the years may have grown accustomed to artificial body parts, there is definitely a strong aversion to things being implanted. It's the `Big Brother is watching' concept: People would be afraid that all their thoughts and movements were being monitored."
The above quotation did not come from a Christian magazine or a prophetic newsletter. Instead it was a news release of the respected Gannett News Service. Moreover, reports like this one are not isolated or farfetched.
To the student of Bible prophecy, however, this is where a discussion of the cashless society, smart cards, and biometrics comes full circle. Suddenly, the leading-edge ideas of twentieth-century security planners line up with prophecies recorded by the apostle John some 2,000 years ago.
And make no mistake about it--this technology is coming whether we like it or not. Listen to the words of Terry Galanoy, the former director of communications for (what is today) Visa International.
"Protesting too loudly about it isn't going to help either, because the disturbance you kick up is going to end up in one of your files. And on that come-and-get-it day when we're all totally and completely dependent upon our card--or whatever security device might replace it--you might be left all alone without one!"
Now, compare that warning and the Gannett release quoted previously to a passage from the Book of Revelation:
"And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." (Revelation 13:16,17).
Think about it for a moment. The greatest problem facing cashless planners is making sure the person with the smart card in his pocket is the person to whom it rightfully belongs. But the smart card is not really a card at all. All that is smart about it is the tiny microchip glued to it. The rest of the plastic card is just a handy carrying case and a Madison-Avenue-like attempt to make us all comfortable by giving us this new technology packaged in the same plastic cards we've become used to.
But what if you simply took the microchip from the card and implanted it under the skin? Presto, you no longer need all these sophisticated biometric devices. You don't need to verify that the person with the card is the rightful owner. The person is the card!
Let's open our minds to the realities of implementing such a system. The great problem, as we have seen, is in getting people to accept such an ominous-sounding system. As is so often the case, however, hundreds of reasons seem to be cropping up to convince planners and ordinary citizens that implants may be one of the finest ideas in human history.
Do You Know Where Your Kids Are?
In the 1980s, we became alarmingly aware that thousands of our children were missing. Our sensibilities were assaulted with gruesome reports of youngsters being stolen for use in pagan rituals and in the child pornography industry, as well as becoming targets of sexual molestation and misuse. Add to this kidnappings for ransoms and abductions by estranged parents, and the problem took on monumental proportions.
Milk cartons and heart-wrenching television advertisements were a constant reminder that every day children were being abducted, abused, and often murdered. This drastic problem led to equally desperate proposals to halt the increase in such criminal activity. Many methods of tracking abducted children or runaways were suggested.
Among many ingenious ideas, one solution is viewed by most technocrats as the ultimate--the use of implants. It is the most secure of all the plans suggested to date. One of the first to propose such a scheme was a plastic surgeon in Florida:
"A tiny homing device implanted behind the ear will help parents locate their missing children, says a plastic surgeon who developed the gadget using the same technology that led to cellular phones. The device, which emits electronic signals, could also help law enforcement officials find parolees and aid in the search for victims of Alzheimer's disease who have wandered off, said the developer, Dr. Daniel Mann. Private industry and government agencies have expressed interest in the mini-beeper, which measures less than an inch in size. Mann was awarded a patent ... for the device, which would work on an electronic energy system. The gadget emits a signal that could be monitored through a cellular system or possibly by satellite. Reaction has been generally positive."
While it could possibly serve as the solution to one of our most pressing societal problems, developers acknowledge that "without a doubt, this device would be the ultimate invasion of privacy because they [the authorities] would be able to find you anytime they want."
They argue, however, that this disadvantage must be weighed against the greater good--the welfare of our children. This is such a powerful argument that it's opening the door to increased and widespread use of this ominous technology.
It would be one thing if at-risk children were the only group being considered for such implants, but today many voices in a variety of fields are calling for implants in large portions of the population.
An implant strategy, for example, could keep better tabs on victims of Alzheimer's disease who often lose track of their surroundings and wander off. Tragically, many die from exposure before they are found. It is estimated that there are more than 75,000 chronic wanderers in the United States alone.
Prison Security Improved
Severely overcrowded prisons plague our society. One innovative solution to this problem is a program that keeps nonviolent prisoners in a prison within their own home. These electronic leash programs are run under the same principle as the system used to keep children safe at home.
The prisoner is fitted with a nonremovable electronic bracelet while a base unit is placed in the house. If the prisoner (and the electronic bracelet) wanders beyond set limits, the base unit calls the police. Under such programs, described as "electronic prison bars" or "electronic leashes," many nonviolent prisoners are now serving their sentences at home! The prisoners' movements are monitored electronically by impulses given off by a transmitter in the bracelet that alerts police if the criminal wanders beyond the present limits. The number of prisoners being monitored by such devices increased from only 95 in 1986 to approximately 65,650 in 1993.
Uses for these devices are being hailed as near-perfect solutions to nearly impossible situations. Extending such a system to read implanted microprocessors would also be a great asset for police officers on patrol. Vital information about the suspect they have arrested would immediately be available so necessary precautions could be taken.
Gun Control and Chips
Louder calls for gun control are coming on the heels of increased crime. According to a report in USA Today, "A personal smart card that every citizen would carry is just one controversial idea the Justice Department has to keep guns out of felons' hands." The Justice Department also has suggested that gun shops install high-tech fingerprint scanners.
Implants, which could carry every conceivable bit of information about the carrier, might provide a solution for police agencies in controlling who is permitted to buy a gun.
With the person's complete history, including criminal records, always on (in?) the person, gun dealers could immediately verify police-required security checks.
Better Access to Medical Records
What would happen if your child were rushed to the hospital and you weren't there to approve treatment?
When accidents or sudden illnesses strike and the victim cannot communicate, it is not always easy or even possible to locate a medical card. An easily located card could contain vital information needed by emergency medical personnel. The card would most likely include vital information about allergic reactions to certain medicines and existing conditions that might preclude certain types of treatment.
In situations where every second counts, a good case can be made for implants. Emergency technicians wouldn't have to search a victim's wallet or purse or car for the medical card. The problems wouldn't be compounded because someone left the card at home.
Testing Implants in the Lab--Your Black Labrador, That Is
Successful experiments with animals have propelled the microchip implant to the top of the list of electronic identity verifiers. Let's look at how the procedure has been successfully used in animals.
The European Community's Executive Commission has passed legislation requiring that all livestock owned by EC farmers be implanted with microchips. Home pets also are being electronically identified by implants, and laboratory animals are not overlooked. Bio Medic Data Systems is a provider of this type of service:
"Nobody knows lab animal identification better than we do. Our unique Electronic Laboratory Animal Monitoring System (ELAMS) uses a miniature transponder implant and advanced microprocessor technology. It can link any animal to any computer database, allowing you to individualize your animal using your study number. Simply put, it replaces the complexities and inaccuracies of toe clipping, ear tagging and tattooing with a foolproof, fast and economical method of positive identification."
In Colorado Springs and dozens of other cities across North America, microchips have replaced dog tags. For $45 the Humane Society will implant the chip under the skin of the dog's neck. If picked up by the dogcatcher, a wand-like scanner will be used to read the chip and identify the owner.
This pet-tracking technology is not optional in some parts of the world. In Spain, Big Brother is watching the pets.
"Dogs and cats in Spain's largest cities must now undergo microchip implants to make it easier for authorities to reunite lost pets with their owners and track down those who'd rather abandon their animals than pay a sitter.
"Four of Spain's 17 regions now require dog and cat owners to identify their pets with the chips or tattoos--apparently the only such laws in western Europe or North America.
"`The whole object is not only to make it nationwide, but also Europe-wide and then universal,' said Dr. William Hutchinson, a Scottish veterinarian working in Madrid."
We are witnessing the development of an international, microchip-based system capable of tracking every animal on the face of the earth. By its very nature, a system built to monitor all of the world's animals is a de facto test for a system capable of doing the same thing with people!
In the Right Hand or Forehead
This is a tremendous proof of the accuracy of God's Word. Almost 2,000 years since the prophecy was uttered, we are witnessing the birth of a cashless society and the ever-expanding use of microchip implants to track animals all over the world--a likely precursor to the Antichrist's worldwide monitoring system of people.
One thing is for sure. For the first time in history, the technology to easily fulfill this incredible prophecy exists.
If You're Not Paranoid, It's Because You're Not Paying Close Attention!
We know that if we use a plastic card such as a credit card, we will get a statement at the end of the month telling us how much we owe the card company. But there is more to it than that. To verify our charges, the statement lists every purchase we've made and where we made it. More than one husband's secret purchase of new golf clubs has been discovered because of this technology.
Even today, if we used our card for every purchase we made during a month, the card company could recreate just about everywhere we went and when we were there. In a cashless society where you had no choice but to conduct your business electronically, such tracking capabilities would be dramatically increased.
Now add to that some of the items discussed in other portions of this book and consider what it might mean to something like international travel. As the global community has opened up, business travel between countries has increased greatly. Nowhere is this more true than within the European Community. To speed the process, automatic customs turnstiles are being developed. The busy traveler need only insert his or her smart card into the terminal and let the electronic device take a quick fingerprint reading to verify personal identity. In a flash he has cleared customs and filled in another blank on his activities log for the keepers of the database.
In an electronic society, every bit of information is captured and stored in giant databases. While a cash purchase is nearly untraceable, an electronic one is recorded forever. The potential for abuse is staggering.
Every credit card purchase casts a shadow. So does each entry into a security-minded workplace or store, application for health insurance, call to a phone sex service, selection of a pay-per-view movie or movement of a cellular telephone.
It's called a data shadow, and it grows longer as computer databases record more and more of our daily activities. The image reveals who we are, where we go, whom we know, what we do and when--sort of an electronic alter ego that is required for us to obtain credit, receive welfare benefits, vote, get a job or cross a border without a hassle.
The global village is fast growing into surveillance city.
Despite these incredible dangers, society is caught in a "technological trance," according to Canadian Privacy Commissioner Bruce Phillips. He declared in his latest report that information--any information--is for sale to the highest bidder! At a recent "This Week in Bible Prophecy" conference, a notary gave us a copy of her profession's national magazine, The National Notary. The magazine stated that there is no longer any fear of where we are heading: "Arguments raising the cry of `invasion of privacy' are antiquated and almost date the loudest proponents as stuck in the last century."
Despite this lack of concern, the Bible's warning is very clear. We mustn't forget that the prophecy concerning the mark of the beast begins with the words, "And he causeth all ..." If you are going to cause anyone to do anything, there has to be some teeth in your bite.
This is what the Bible is trying to tell us about the Antichrist system. While it will be desirable to most of the world, those who do not submit will be systematically excluded from almost every activity. There will be virtually no way to function outside of the system.
So how far have we come? Let us answer that by describing some of the leading-edge technologies of our day. Then judge for yourself. As we sketch out some of these systems, take note of the good and desirable reasons given for their introduction. It almost makes you forget that the price of these tremendous breakthroughs is your very freedom.
Electronic Tracking Promoted by Crimebusters
Automobile theft has been increasing about 15 percent a year for the past ten years and is now an eight-billion-dollar-a-year business. Police say that 80 percent of the cars are stolen by professional car thieves, not by joyriders or first-timers.
Tracking systems already available are being touted by police departments as a real deterrent in the battle against car thieves. At least two companies, Teletrak and LoJack, are now making these antitheft devices. They cost between $500 and $900 installed, but police, insurers, and car owners say they are worth it. Both companies say they recover about 95 percent of the stolen cars that are equipped with the systems.
Here's how these locator systems work: A transmitter about the size of a videocassette tape or a chalkboard eraser is hidden in the vehicle. In the Teletrak system, when a thief starts the car without disarming the system, the unit begins to send out a signal that is tracked on an electronic map. The LoJack system, on the other hand, must be activated by the owner once he realizes his car has been stolen. Either way, the police can now electronically follow the stolen car.
Arno Froese of Midnight Call Ministries points out the clear connection of these tests to endtime events.
"During 1991, over 270,000 cars were stolen in France alone. Any device that will discourage theft can only be welcomed. Of course, the effect will be good only until the thief finds the computer chip and removes it. However, inventors will not cease to create the undetectable device that cannot be removed. Thus, our thoughts are guided to the time when man too will come under the control of the electronic beast that will lead to the fulfillment of Revelation 13:17: `... that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.'"
Chips at Work
What are some other uses being promoted for these tracking devices? In England, a company has developed a clip-on microcomputer identification badge which makes it easy to locate employees who have to move from location to location in a large office complex. It is also being tried in hospitals in order to keep in constant touch with patients and doctors.
New York Times writer Leonard Sloane provides this ominous lead to his story on the intelligent badge:
"Another tool that lets `them' check up on `us'--where we are and with whom we are--is on the way. It is the active badge, a small clip-on microcomputer about the size of an employee ID card, that transmits signals to a central system. As long as you wear the badge, the system can track your movements around an office building or even a larger area."
Of course, today's technologies make tracking people within a hospital seem insignificant. For example, the world was introduced to the Global Positioning System during round-the-clock television coverage of the Gulf War in 1991. Soldiers carried small hand-held computerized units whose exact location was monitored by satellites high above the desert. The satellites in this high-tech network enabled U.S. forces to find the right way through and around unmapped sand dunes to arrive at their prescribed destination. The Economist magazine discussed the success of this system:
"Having seen its success, the American forces [busily equipped] everything, from battleships to cruise missiles, with GPS systems. The technology may have as many applications in peace as in war--or even more."
Sometimes I Think the Car Knows Its Own Way to the Golf Course
Much of what we have so far described does not immediately affect the average man or woman. So why should anyone be concerned?
Here's why: It is inevitable that a major portion of the population will soon be involved with one of these systems. Perhaps the most fascinating--and most likely to realize widespread implementation soon--are "smart" travel systems.
Travelers won't have to try to remember directions or scribble them on scraps of paper. Family feuds that spoil many vacations (because dad won't ask directions when he gets lost) will be a thing of the past when cars are equipped with the new Trav-Tek navigational system.
This is still an experimental system, but it may be universally available in just a few years. "Smart" cars are equipped with a microcomputer and a dash-mounted color video screen that displays navigation maps and information on area attractions, hotels, restaurants, and special events. One reporter described her experience with a car like this:
"It could have been a scene from a Jetsons cartoon. As the passengers climbed in the Oldsmobile Toronado the destination was keyed into the vehicle's computer.
"The driver pulled away from the curb. A short way down the road, the car computer announced, `Take a left onto Landerson Street.' As long as the driver followed the directions of the car, there was no way to get lost. The car's computer had the route plotted."
As interesting as this is, it's only the beginning. Systems are being developed to improve traffic flows in metropolitan areas and collect tolls from commuters without slowing them down (much less stopping them) at a traffic-jamming toll booth.
Scanner systems already exist that can read data on a microchip as it passes through a reader beam at a hundred miles an hour. As a chip-equipped vehicle passes the collection point, the scanner reads the chip and automatically deducts the toll from the account of the owner. Such a system would not only speed up toll collection, but would reduce costs and pollution, increase safety (by eliminating a lot of stopping on the high-speed toll roads and by reducing risks as drivers fumble for change), and improve efficiency at collection points.
Honey, I Told You that You Were Driving Too Fast Last Week
As a side benefit, the systems may increase revenue in another way. Scanners can record a vehicle's speed, activate a citation-issuing process, and collect traffic fines. Already there are many test sites across North America where you might just receive a traffic ticket in the mail. Many European countries already have this in place.
There are also countless tests being run where the microchip on your smart card can be read by the system as you pass through, without requiring you to take the card out of your wallet. The system simply accesses your card by a radio frequency, confirms that you are indeed supposed to pass through security, records your entrance, and moves on to the next person. You never even know that it has taken place.
In the implant world of the future, you wouldn't need a microchip on your windshield. Your personal microchip could just as easily be activated as you pass through a toll. No additional equipment would have to be added to the vehicle for the system to work.
The plain fact is that as good as these systems will be at speeding up traffic and streamlining toll collections, they also have a very real side effect. The government will have the ability to know exactly where you are at any point in time. There is little doubt that in the hands of a totalitarian government, such a system presents a huge potential for control. From a prophetic point of view, we are undoubtedly watching the guts of the Antichrist system coming into place.
Even the Cattle on Your Field Are Numbered
Here's another interesting tidbit. While parcels of land don't move around, the European Community nevertheless is keeping close tabs on farm plots. The European details the EC spy in the sky:
"Brussels has launched spy satellite surveillance of Europe's nine million farmers in the intensifying war against fraud. In all but two of the 12 member states, the fields of thousands of farmers who make bogus claims for hefty EC subsidies are being detected with pinpoint accuracy.
"For the first time, satellite surveillance makes it possible to carry out checks on virtually every farm, largely superseding the cumbersome procedure of random on-the-spot checks by agriculture ministry officials.
"In Brussels, the Commission is collating the spy satellite data, then passing it on to national enforcement agencies in readiness for a blitz on fraudsters once the autumn harvest begins.
"The first task for EC experts is to give every field a serial number and identify the type of crop being grown. Detailed analysis can then reveal whether the actual plot tallies with a farmer's application for subsidy.
"The Commission's response has been ambitious. They have invested ECU 115 million in a scheme centralizing records on who farms what. A `Domesday Book' would be compiled listing every field and animal across Europe. It would be policed by satellite surveillance and a new electronic system of tagging livestock."
Tracking and tagging livestock seems almost bizarre, even to prevent fraud. But remember, if the Antichrist is going to control all commerce and all buying and selling, he would have to control bartering. A cow traded for vegetables might elude the electronic accounting system--but not the "sky spy" that counts and tracks livestock and brussels sprouts.
Big Brother May Not Be Watching, But He Could if He Wanted to!
Technology exists today that can easily track the movements and activities of every citizen. A government that can do this can control its people. Skeptics scoff at the idea we are in the last days and that this may be the generation spoken of in the Book of Revelation. They doubt that this is the first generation fully capable of being the last generation.
But it is sobering to think about what the government already is capable of. Resistance by watchdog groups is waning. So much information about every citizen is already in databases--it seems pointless, many say, to resist. Soon, those people who are not cooperating can expect to have their "electronic purse" turned off. They will be incapable of conducting even the most mundane business dealing. All assemblies can be detected, infiltrated, and identified. Hiding will be impossible. How can you hide when even the highways are watching you?
And remember what Terry Galanoy, the former director of communications for (what is now) Visa has said: "Protesting too loudly about it isn't going to help either, because the disturbance you kick up is going to end up in one of your files. And on that come-and-get-it day when we're totally and completely dependent upon our card--or whatever security device might replace it--you might be left all alone without one."
Going On-Line with the New World Order
As astonishing as these technologies are, the coming man of sin, or Antichrist, cannot fully control the buying and selling of the entire world until these technologies are pulled together into an integrated network with common, universal standards. He could not control even the conduct of business between two independent countries if they continued to use different card technologies, computer software, and tracking systems.
Today, however, international networking and the establishment of global industry standards are quickly putting this problem well into the rearview mirror. Governments and other institutions are expanding their electronic networking by sharing information, services, and technology. Proponents of these cooperative efforts always point out the positive aspects, such as lowered costs and improved efficiency in the delivery of goods or services. Little is ever said about the negative aspects of governmental or commercial intrusion into the previously private affairs of individuals.
Revelation 13 tells us that, in the coming new world order, there will be a global economic system where all business transactions can be traced. As we have demonstrated, computer technology probably will be central to this system.
Jeffrey Zygmont, writing in Omni magazine, says: "It looks as if the techno-marketeers may reach their elusive goal at last to put a computer in every American home. We might all succumb this time because the computer is cleverly disguised to look like a television."
Zygmont also wrote that when computers were still new, marketing experts were limited in the scope of their vision, envisioning these home terminals only for balancing checkbooks and storing recipes. In that light, he argues, it is "no wonder they fell miserably short of their wish to put a computer in every home. Nintendo has come much closer, selling nearly 30 million game systems since the early eighties. But then, Nintendo distills what people seem to want most from computers in their leisure: fun."
TVs are about to become two-way devices through what is known as interactive television, which planners say will "transform TV from a passive spectator-deadening device into a truly interactive tool, one that prods you to interact as well with the real world."
People are so accustomed to and comfortable with television that their fears of computers and Big Brother are assuaged by integrating computer technology with their very familiar television set. Even the government is aiding in this technological transformation.
The Federal Communications Commission has paved the way for the proliferation of a technology that permits TV owners to bank, pay bills and order everything from Chinese food to tennis shoes through the boob-tube. A remote control device accesses menu screens offering up the various services.
The product of Virginia-based TV Answer Inc., interactive television transmits data via radio waves to a base station linked by satellite to the firm's headquarters. The systems will be available in 25 major cities by the end of the year.
More than the Sum of Its Parts
Many countries throughout the world are availing themselves of the latest technologies to solve their peculiar social, economic, and military problems. As they become more adept at using the technology, they will expand its capabilities and its reaches. There is no doubt that the time is coming soon when these national and regional systems will join the global age. Although the level of technological development varies from nation to nation, the whole system could be "on line" in a short time.
Unfortunately, little thought is being given to the dire consequences that are possible. Nor is any thought being given to the biblical warnings about the one world government that will soon spring upon the scene. Under the banner of science and expanded human wisdom, the governments of the world rush to complete the kind of system the Bible so specifically warns about.
Building the Global Infrastructure
Of course, there would be no global electronic infrastructure if there were not a new international economic order to build it upon. With the birth of multinational corporations, the World Bank, the G7, the GATT, and the International Monetary Fund, there is no doubt that we have entered the global economic age. You have only to witness how a crash in the New York Stock Exchange is immediately felt in Tokyo, London, and Bonn to see how economically interconnected we have become.
The banking scandal involving the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) propelled to the forefront efforts to improve supervision of banking operations on a worldwide scale. Here's how the Reuters News Service covered this development:
"BCCI, indicted in New York last week on charges of fraud, theft and money laundering, escaped close scrutiny in the more than 70 countries where it operated, because no single country was responsible for overseeing all of its operations, banking regulators said.
"U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chairman William Seidman said that the BCCI scandal overscored the need for global cooperation on bank regulation. `We will need a supervisory system at the world level that will be capable of handling supervision of banks that operate in many countries around the world,' he said."
If such a supervisory structure comes into being, it not only will be able to closely regulate the activities of the banks themselves, but also will have instant access to information about individual accounts.
And did you notice that the alleged criminal activities of BCCI were the impetus for this talk of a new regulatory agency? Isn't it curious that improprieties by banks are the reason given for creating a global "superbank," run by these same bankers?
Crime-stopping is a prime motivator in much of this new technology and the resultant networking of various organizations and systems. Here's another example, as explained by Joseph Battaglia.
"As with so many things the government does, the process of attacking the free economy has been a gradual one. It began with the introduction of so-called anti-money-laundering rules. These rules required banks and businesses to report to the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) the name, address and social security number of individuals who engage in cash transactions of $10,000 or more. This rule was established under the guise of attacking drug dealers. With the tremendous publicity given to the drug problem and so-called `money-laundering,' the government was able to obtain this repressive, anti-freedom, money-laundering law."
Battaglia further says that a Money Laundering Enforcement Conference was sponsored by the American Bankers Association and the American Bar Association and was attended by representatives of several federal law enforcement agencies. "Together," Battaglia says, "they comprise the financial enforcement arm of the New World Order."
The McAlvany Intelligence Advisor also sees a soon-coming day when the electronic capabilities of this generation will be used to track every single transaction:
"The Financial Criminal Enforcement Network (FINCEN) said that `we currently have nearly all financial information available on every U.S. citizen.' In the future, tax violations will be treated as money laundering violations. This and other measures discussed at the meeting will wipe out virtually all vestiges of financial freedom and privacy for the American people."
And America is just the beginning, according to McAlvany. In the name of fighting crime, laws are being passed or proposed on a global level unthinkable in other generations:
"First there was the United Nations money laundering treaty, which attempts to outlaw bank secrecy. (The U.N. Treaty, to which America is a signatory, criminalizes international money laundering, allows seizure of assets, attempts to destroy all bank secrecy laws, and weakens protections involved in the production of evidence, the taking of testimony, and the extradition of offenders.) Then the 12-nation tax treaty of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development was ratified to ensure cooperation in harassing taxpayers.
"Most recently we have a report from the Research Institute for the Study of Conflict and Terrorism (which works closely with the CIA) which argues that global money laundering is not just the $500 billion it is normally estimated to be, but two to three times that large. The report blames the lack of regulations in most countries besides the U.S. and says that Swiss, Austrian, Hong Kong and Caribbean bank secrecy must be destroyed immediately."
At about the time that article appeared, USA Today reported that: "Switzerland is abolishing most of its anonymous bank accounts to crack down on criminal transactions. [The] country's Federal Banking Commission will demand that bank account holders identify themselves, thereby making it difficult for drug runners and dictators to launder money."
These few examples clearly point to the piecemeal, backdoor way a global system is being established that wipes out any secrecy in our private financial affairs. But the drive toward a global economic system is being pushed on a very public front as well. Recently, U.S. President Clinton has made clear the administration's view by his all-out push for NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement.
He said, "This new global economy is here to stay. We can't wish it away. We can't run from it. We can't build walls around our nation. So we must provide world leadership, we must compete, not retreat."
Abba Eban, former Israeli foreign minister, says the G7 partners (seven of the richest Western nations) could be a real force for action, but, "They have not learned to think together. They bring together extraordinary concentration of power, but their meetings don't seem to produce anything. They should recognize that collectively they have immense power to change the human condition, but individually they do not. They should set up a permanent institution, almost like a new state. Existing bodies cannot do the job. That would require both the wisdom and the leadership qualities of modern-day philosopher-kings. Though there may be some waiting in the wings, none seem to be stalking the stage now."
Marking Those Intolerant Fundamentalists
We should stop here to clearly point out something. The Bible emphasizes that in the last days such a system will not only be in place to make possible the global order, but to make sure that anyone outside of the system cannot function. We know that anyone who serves God will be hated by this new world order of man!
We found it very interesting that when our research team attended the 1993 "Solutions for the Global Frontier" card technology conference in Washington, the United States was in the midst of the disaster in Waco. Our researchers sat and watched with conference attendees as televisions all over the convention center showed the compound going up in flames.
The Waco debacle got the microchip experts talking about how their electronic identification systems could track religious cult members. One European leader told us flat out that Europe could keep these crazy American Christians out of Europe. To him, David Koresh was just another Christian! Not too long thereafter, the following appeared in The European newspaper:
"STRASBOURG--A `directory' of religious cults looks likely to be approved by the Council of Europe in the wake of the Waco disaster in the United States, in which at least 80 sect members burnt to death this week. A report before the 26-nation council's committee of ministers voices concern over the activities of new religious cults. Member governments are asked to set up independent bodies to monitor and collect information, which should then be `widely circulated to the general public.'"
At the same time in France, the National Union of Associations for the Defense of the Family and the Individual (ADFI) issued just such a directory. Among the list of cults were the Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship International and the Assemblies of God!
The enemy is succeeding in getting the world to believe that all Christians are like the cult followers in Waco or Guyana. Listen to what USA Today said about identifying a cult in the aftermath of the Waco torching:
"Today the groups tend to believe the Bible predicts the end of the world is near.... Such seemingly unrelated events as the Israelis' gaining control of Jerusalem in 1967, the threat of nuclear war and shifts in the global economy are among the signs cultists see that--as prophesied in the Bible--the end is near and Jesus Christ will return."
It is no coincidence that leaders in the field of electronic identification, microchips, and smart cards see how their technology can identify dangerous religious fanatics. They think they are protecting the world itself, and you can't help but note how accurately the scenario foretold in the Bible is coming to pass. No wonder the Scripture warns that "whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service" (John 16:2). Today, Europe--the heart of tomorrow's world--sees the connection the Bible speaks of and is putting it into place. How close must we be?
The new world order will be a complex and complicated system to administer, even for a man who can perform great "lying signs and wonders." To track the movements of people, equipment, goods, and finances, it will take a sophisticated system much like the one we have described. It is just this sort of system--and perhaps this exact one--that will enable the coming world ruler to control the global government, the universal monetary system, and the unified religion that together will comprise the new world order.
How Will the Antichrist Do It?
We've often wondered how the Antichrist could convince millions of people to receive his mark or his number when it has been so clearly and historically documented by Christians and unbelievers alike as an evil sign--a death knell. Anyone who has seen the movie "The Omen" knows that 666 is the number of the beast. Anyone who has read the Bible must know the number of the beast. Anyone with even a passing interest in rock music must have at least some knowledge of this prophecy.
How then will the Antichrist convince so many people, who are so aware in some way of the mark and the number of the prophesied man of perdition, to receive just such a mark? Surely he would be clever enough to use 665 or any other number besides 666.
One possible scenario: The Antichrist is openly speaking blasphemies against God, His Word, and His tabernacle. He is the pinnacle of arrogance in his supposed miraculous demonstrations and his contempt for holy things. He could try to use these "assets" to snare people into accepting the following line of thinking.
The Antichrist could tell them they have been deceived and in bondage for too long to religious mythology and negative, intolerant traditions. Listen to this hypothetical, but very possible argument:
"We can no longer tolerate such narrow-minded and superstitious thinking in our new world of peace and harmony. We must all come together and demonstrate the success of our new world. We must not be paralyzed by superstitions and kept from the next step in our spiritual evolution. To prove we are not frightened by these `old wives' tales,' we'll openly accept the challenge of failed Christianity and take for ourselves and our new world order the very symbol that these religious fanatics have erroneously associated with something sinister. We'll take 666 as our own!"
Unified Monetary System
Intrinsic to a global system is a global economy. Once again, this generation fits the bill. Harvard law professor Richard Cooper has suggested what he himself called a radical scheme: "... the creation of a common currency for all of the industrial democracies, with a common monetary policy and a joint bank of issue to determine that policy.... How can independent states accomplish that? They need to turn over the determination of monetary policy to a supranational body."
In 1988, The Economist magazine announced the coming of a worldwide economy. The lengthy article, while noting that the international currency may be years away, did note that it "will be more convenient than today's national currencies, which will seem a quaint cause of much disruption to economic life in the twentieth century."
The problem, according to the article, is that governments "are far from ready to subordinate their domestic objectives to the goal of international financial stability. Several more big exchange rate upsets, a few more stock market crashes and probably a slump or two will be needed before politicians are willing to face squarely up to that choice."
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan sees the future clearly, "I am very little concerned about the issue of foreign investment in the United States. On the contrary, integration of world economies is a desirable trend."
World leaders are predicting and clamoring for a united economy, a centralized government, a single individual to lead mankind into the next millennium. These prophetic fulfillments surely sound an alarm to those who will hear. As some doomsday prophets proclaim, "The end is near." To deny such a reality is to stick your head in the sand and hope reality will go away.
The New World Order
A broad spectrum of world leaders is calling for a coalition of nations to ensure the peace. Mikhail Gorbachev and George Bush brought the term "new world order" into our consciousness in their writings and speeches. Today, Bill Clinton, Boris Yeltsin, and Helmut Kohl promote the same vision. This new coalition is being formed to bring peace to the world--but men can never bring real peace. Man's efforts to play God will always fail. As admirable as the desire for peace and brotherhood is, it is also an impossibility when it is designed without the Prince of Peace at its foundation.
Today, like in the biblical times of the Tower of Babel (see Genesis 11:1-9), fallen man is trying to create a world in his image. He is trying to build a kingdom in which the wisdom of man is supreme and mankind itself is king. The ageless desire to control their own destiny is still with men today. But despite their boastful claims, their dream will never be fully realized. German Chancellor Helmut Kohl sees a day when: "The United States of Europe will form the core of a peaceful order, ... the age prophesied of old, when all shall dwell secure and none shall make them afraid."
The prophecy Kohl referred to describes the millennial reign of the King of kings and Lord of lords, but Kohl believes such a day can be created by man himself without the need of any Savior, And Kohl is not alone. It seems this is an idea whose time has come.
When asked by Time magazine what mankind should aim to accomplish in the coming decades, a political scientist said: "The central project of humanity has got to be something like restoration of a sense of community.... Giving up some individual rights to communities may be a necessary price. You cannot have the kind of culture that absolutizes human rights at the same time you strive for community. One has to come at the expense of the other."
No matter how admirable the objectives of such a society, the actualization of such a system will be a frightening fulfillment of a major Bible prophecy. Yet the cries grow louder each day--as does the cry for a leader to show the way.
The World Leader
Chapter 13 of Revelation has been the focal chapter in our discussion of the mark-of-the-beast technology. Here, the seeming man of peace whom the Bible calls "the beast" is described in detail.
"All the world wondered after the beast ... and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him? ... And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb" (Revelation 13:3-8).
Although men have sought such a messianic personality for centuries, it has only been in this generation that serious men began to speak of the desperate need for such a global leader.
Walter Cronkite, probably the most respected news anchor in the industry even after his retirement, sums up the problem. He claims, "We exist in a leaderless world." And historian Arnold Toynbee has written:
"By forcing on mankind more and more lethal weapons, and at the same time making the world more and more interdependent economically, technology has brought mankind to such a degree of distress that we are ripe for the deifying of any new Caesar who might succeed in giving the world unity and peace."
But perhaps the most revealing call for a man of peace and power came from Henry Spaack, former secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization: "What we want is a man of sufficient stature to hold the allegiance of all the people and to lift us out of the economic morass into which we are sinking. Send us such a man and be he god or devil, we will receive him."
(Editor: The rise of this man, the Antichrist, will be followed by the darkest night of Earth's history, a period commonly known as "The Great Tribulation." But the Bible also promises that "the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. And they that understand among the people shall instruct many. And they overcame him [the Antichrist] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death." [Daniel 11:32,33; Revelation 12:11.] It will be a time of witnessing and winning victories for committed Christians, who will eventually be rescued from these troublous times by the return of Jesus in the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory! Then we'll enjoy the dawn of a wonderful new world, where the lion shall lie down with the lamb, and the Earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. [Isaiah 11:6,9.])