{"id":134782,"date":"2023-10-14T20:42:14","date_gmt":"2023-10-14T20:42:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/?p=134782"},"modified":"2023-10-14T20:42:14","modified_gmt":"2023-10-14T20:42:14","slug":"u-s-spy-agencies-to-launch-smart-clothing-under-guise-of-better-health-monitoring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/u-s-spy-agencies-to-launch-smart-clothing-under-guise-of-better-health-monitoring\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Spy Agencies to Launch \u2018Smart Clothing\u2019 Under Guise of \u2018Better Health Monitoring\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

According to the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association, \u201cSMART ePANTS could revolutionize the Internet of Things by collecting data to help intelligence, medical and sports communities.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

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The U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) recently launched an effort to make computerized clothing a reality \u2014 a move critics say could result in massive biometric surveillance of citizens and an increase in people\u2019s exposure to radiofrequency radiation.<\/p>\n

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) on Aug. 22 announced that the IC\u2019s advanced research and development arm, Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), would develop its computerized clothing program \u2014 Smart Electrically Powered and Networked Textile Systems, or SMART ePANTS \u2014 over the next three-and-a-half years.<\/p>\n

The government\u2019s SMART ePANTS program works to create clothing with \u201cintegrated audio, video, and geolocation sensor systems that feature the same stretchability, bendability, washability, and comfort of regular textiles<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Items slated for production include shirts, pants, socks and underwear.<\/p>\n

IARPA, in partnership with the Naval Information Warfare Center, Pacific, awarded research contracts to develop and manufacture the computerized clothing totalling over $22 million to Nautilus Defense and Leidos, Inc., according to a Pentagon announcement.<\/p>\n

SRI International, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Aret\u00e9 received undisclosed amounts to develop the technology, according to an article in The Intercept.<\/em><\/p>\n

Investment giants Vanguard and Black Rock \u2014 which benefited from the sale of covid vaccines and have ownership stakes in technology companies developing vaccine passports and digital wallets \u2014 are listed among Nautilus Defense\u2019s and Leidos\u2019 top investors.<\/p>\n

SMART ePANTS Program Manager Dawson Cagle, Ph.D., who traced his inspiration for the program to a desire for better health-monitoring options for his diabetic father, said in the recent press release, \u201cIARPA is proud to lead this first-of-its-kind effort for both the IC and broader scientific community which will bring much-needed innovation to the field of ASTs [Active Smart Textiles]<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

An article published in January in PubMed <\/em>hyped the potential of electronic textiles as a \u201cnew age of wearable technology for healthcare and fitness solutions<\/em>,\u201d touting their uses in products as varied as diapers, masks and bedding, and for such applications as \u201cmonitoring health conditions, treating chronic diseases, rehabilitation, and improving health and social lifestyles<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSMART ePANTS could revolutionize the Internet of Things by collecting data to help intelligence, medical and sports commmunities<\/em>,\u201d wrote the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association.<\/p>\n

But critics \u2014 including Ted Claypoole, legal expert and cyberspace law committee chair for the American Bar Association \u2014 said IARPA\u2019s program raises major \u201cobvious<\/em>\u201d privacy concerns.<\/p>\n

Claypoole told The Defender<\/em> that fabrics being developed by the IC are likely \u201cnot just for keeping our people safe, but also for finding and following smart-fabric wearers who do not know they are being followed<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The development of smart fabrics and computer wearables is not a new effort, he said.<\/p>\n

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In their book Privacy in the Age of Big Data: Recognizing Threats, Defending Your Rights, and Protecting Your Family<\/em>, Claypoole and Theresa Payton traced commercial efforts to create smart clothing over the past decade, including a ski jacket with earphones in the hood and input devices on the sleeve that connect to the wearer\u2019s phone via bluetooth.<\/p>\n

However, the fact that these smart wearables are being designed by the IC is particularly worrisome to Claypoole:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe technology, when used by the government, opens a new level of intrusion that raises serious Constitutional concerns. Will the government need a warrant to anonymously track people using these fabrics? It should, but that determination will need to be made by courts over time<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018I question whether any of this is legal\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scott McCollough \u2014 Children\u2019s Health Defense (CHD)\u2019s chief litigator for the organization\u2019s electromagnetic radiation (EMR) cases \u2014 shared Claypoole\u2019s concerns.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the person choosing to wear the computerized clothing at least has given some kind of consent, all those around that person have no say at all<\/em>,\u201d McCullough said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI question whether any of this is legal<\/em>,\u201d McCollough added. \u201cThe technology will gather biometric data from those nearby, as well as capture all audio and visual data. There are states where all-party consent is required for this<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nicole de Haay, an IARPA spokesperson, told The Intercept<\/em> that IARPA programs are \u201cdesigned and executed in accordance with, and adhere to, strict civil liberties and privacy protection protocols<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIARPA performs civil liberties and privacy protection compliance reviews throughout our research efforts<\/em>,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

The IARPA did not elaborate further on how it would ensure that citizens\u2019 privacy is not breached.<\/p>\n

Computerized clothing likely to exacerbate harmful health impacts of EMR<\/strong><\/p>\n

Miriam Eckenfels-Garcia, director of the CHD\u2019s EMR work, pointed out that computerized clothing also raises potential health concerns.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs with all new technology that is being sold as exciting and new<\/em>,\u201d she said, \u201cthere are concerns and drawbacks. We know about the harmful health impacts of EMR. Having this technology so close to the body could pose additional health risks<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moreover, Eckenfels-Garcia added, \u201cSMART ePANTS is a step closer to the merger between humans and technology. This technology, with its many sensors, makes you part of the Internet of Things, which is part of the World Economic Forum\u2019s agenda<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Annie Jacobsen, author of The Pentagon\u2019s Brain<\/em>, about the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, pointed out that SMART ePANTS\u2019s developments could usher in troubling new forms of government biometric surveillance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re now in a position of serious authority over you<\/em>,\u201d Jacobsen told The Intercept<\/em>. \u201cIn TSA, they can swab your hands for explosives. Now suppose SMART ePANTS detects a chemical on your skin \u2014 imagine where that can lead<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

U.S. spy agencies spend billions \u2014 and want to spend more<\/strong><\/p>\n

IARPA noted the \u201csmart<\/em>\u201d clothing could \u201cassist personnel and first responders in dangerous, high-stress environments, such as crime scenes and arms control inspections without impeding their ability to swiftly and safely operate<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to running IARPA, the ODNI also oversees the National Intelligence Program which in 2022 was given $65.7 billion of taxpayer money by Congress. For its 2023 and 2024 budgets, the program asked Congress for $67.1 and $72.4 billion, respectively. These amounts are not yet approved.<\/p>\n

The ODNI director, appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the senate, serves as the head of the U.S. Intelligence Community by advising the president, vice president, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council on intelligence matters related to national security.<\/p>\n

\u2018We need an electronic privacy bill of rights\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to John Whitehead, a civil liberties attorney and author, we have already moved into a system of total surveillance. The government\u2019s funding of computerized clothing that spies on its citizens is yet another example of this, he told The Defender<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Whitehead said that the FBI already collects samples of citizens\u2019 DNA.<\/p>\n

\u201cSupposedly, the police say they are doing their job to collect this information and that it doesn\u2019t violate the Fourth Amendment. Well, that\u2019s a stupid argument<\/em>,\u201d he said, adding that the courts are always behind when it comes to technology.<\/p>\n

Whitehead said:<\/p>\n

\u201cMost judges do not understand it. Most are so either pro-government or pro-police that they\u2019re going to do anything to get around [saying that it is unconstitutional].<\/em><\/p>\n

What we need now in this government is an electronic privacy bill of rights<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whitehead is working with a number of law firms to develop the concept of a legal document that \u201creally clearly<\/em>\u201d protects citizens from electronic privacy violations of this kind.<\/p>\n

Realistically, there is no way to escape surveillance, according to Whitehead. \u201cThe only hope we have is if enough people will get vigilant for freedom and we can establish some kind of electronic privacy bill of rights that will limit what these people can do<\/em>,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cEducation precedes action, so I\u2019m telling people to get educated about what\u2019s going on and understand this<\/em>,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Watch IARPA\u2019s program manager discuss SMART ePants:<\/p>\n