Xega, a company selling implants and performing implantation surgeries, increased its revenue by 40% in two years. Her "VIP package" is an RFID chip (actually a mini-antenna) about 1.2 cm long in a glass tube that is placed under the skin of the forearm
The chips went on sale 3 years ago and the demand for them is increasing. This is one of the manifestations of gangsterism that has swept Mexico - an increase in the incidence of kidnapping (by 317% over the past five years, according to a report recently presented to the country's Congress). In more than 20% of cases, military personnel and police officers were involved in abductions. Therefore, Mexicans rely on various gadgets to help relatives determine their exact location if something happens.
To work properly, the chip needs a GPS module the size of a mobile phone, which the potential victim must carry with him. If the kidnappers throw away the module, then, according to the head of Xega, Diego Curi, the firm can still find the client by sending signals to the implant. Over the past ten years, Xega has allegedly helped 178 unfortunate people who paid $ 2,000 for the operation and lay out the same amount in annual subscription fees.
Photo: AP / Jose Luis Magana
Implantable chips are a favorite topic in the Mexican media; among VIPs it is considered good form to wear gadgets under the skin. The implant, however, did not save ex-presidential candidate Diego Fernandez de Sevallos, who was kidnapped in May 2010: the bandits immediately … cut the chip out of his hand using scissors. Sevallos (by the way, an adviser to the current president Felipe Calderon) was released seven months later under very vague circumstances (most likely for a ransom).
However, the gangsters tried in vain: American experts interviewed by the Washington Post say that even chips equipped with batteries could transmit a signal at best 200 meters; in addition, the predominantly water-based tissue of the human body dampens transmission. Mr. Kuri, to whom the newspaper reported all this, at first refused to explain the principle of the Xega miracle antenna, and then admitted that an implant without a GPS module is almost useless and serves mainly "to create psychological comfort for the client."
A low-cost alternative to Xega products are cellular beacons, usually attached to key chains. The production of such devices is carried out by Max4Systems, whose director Guillermo Medina claims that sales are growing by 20-25% per month. The device costs $ 200, with a monthly subscription fee of $ 20. Naturally, lighthouses have drawbacks: they work only in coverage areas, the signal is drowned out by wooden and concrete walls, and most importantly, after pressing the alarm button, the device transmits a signal constantly and quickly depletes the battery. Naturally, the bandits can ransack the kidnapped and destroy the lighthouse.
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