The hunger for data knows no bounds. Your location history, browsing data, and communications aren\u2019t enough to satisfy the surveillance economy. Tech companies now seek data from your mind and body.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The hunger for data knows no bounds. Your location history, browsing data, and communications aren\u2019t enough to satisfy the surveillance economy. Tech companies now seek data from your mind and body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The parable of the Greek king Erysichthon comes to mind. Erysichthon was a greedy and powerful ruler focused on expanding his empire. In the search for lumber to build a grand feasting hall, he ventured into a grove of sacred trees belonging to the Goddess Demeter.<\/p> Ignoring the hesitation of his people who revered the sacred site, and defying warnings from the Gods, Erysichthon chopped down the sacred grove.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Demeter, outraged by his disrespect to the divine connection between nature and man, cursed him with the spirit of insatiable hunger. The more he ate \u2013 the stronger his hunger became.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Erysichthon tried to satisfy his appetite. He obsessively bought food from all over the world and spent all his time eating. Eventually he depleted his fortune, sold off his possessions, sold his daughter for crumbs, and ended his life with one final meal \u2013 his own withering body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Just as Erysichthon was consumed by hunger, today\u2019s tech companies are driven by an insatiable desire for data.\u00a0And our bodies are the next frontier.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Fortunes are being spent on building the devices and infrastructure that will track our biological signals. In the next few years bio-sensors will be small enough to be easily worn and gather a wide range of data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This article is your official invitation to join the \u201cInternet of Bodies\u201d or to reject it completely. We\u2019ll cover the history of IoB, the latest development in bio-sensors, how tech companies are driving the IoB agenda forward, and how it will make its way into your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Substack<\/a> The term \u201cInternet of Bodies\u201d (IoB) was coined by the RAND Corporation, a highly-influential U.S think tank founded in 1948.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After World War II, RAND redirected military minds towards defense research, shaping policies around nuclear weapons, defense strategy, satellites technology, and beyond. Today RAND research branches out to health, education, and societal research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n RAND Corporation always seemed to be ahead of the curve, releasing research reports that anticipated and informed the development of world-changing technology like satellites, distributed networks (the Internet), and artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the\u00a02020 report, titled \u201cThe Internet Of Bodies\u201d<\/a>, RAND researchers predicted the future will be full of internet-connected medical devices tracking our health data in real time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Is this prediction coming from out of nowhere, or is RAND telegraphing an upcoming shift within the technology industry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt is challenging to identify an important national policy issue during the past 50 years that RAND did not play a role in resolving,\u201d \u2013 David Jardini\u00a02013<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n RAND researchers classified IoB devices as devices that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every IoB device conducts biosurveillance: continuously collecting health data, broadcasting it remotely to analyze behaviors, and intervening as needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The illustrated examples in the IoB report are harebrained as they appear, like the bluetooth-connected diaper. The Internet of Bodies expects you to pay more attention to the diaper notifications on your phone rather than hearing your childs cries, or smelling the odor of their distress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some notable examples include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sound like sci-fi? The truth is, this tech may be a lot closer than you think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this report, RAND Corporation has a few sections dedicated to risk. They cover malfunctions and the potential of having IoB devices attacked by hackers. However, electromagnetic radiation and its risks are not addressed at all, despite thousands of studies showing their harmful impact on living things and growing public awareness of EMF harms. Not to mention the risks of devices leeching metals, plastics, and other toxins into your body. We have more than enough of these toxins in our bodies already.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All these risks far outweigh the trivial and laughable health or lifestyle \u201cbenefits\u201d these devices are supposed to bring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To be fair, there are cases where medical devices and technology can provide important functions for users. Pacemakers, for example, are one such technology. However, they don\u2019t fall under IoB since they don\u2019t connect directly to the internet; instead, they use medical-grade frequencies (like 400 MHz) to communicate with an in-house unit, which then connects to a hospital over the internet. Some pacemakers even adjust based on detected activity\u2014all of this happens on the device itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pacemakers essentially prove that we don\u2019t need IoB technology for critical health devices. Medical devices for at-risk individuals can work without needing a direct internet connection or remote data processing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s also telling that no pacemaker uses traditional wireless channels like Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Its almost as if it could\u2026 damage the heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In extreme cases, brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) could help those who are unable to use their body or communicate through speaking. For example, an prosthetic controlled by the mind could improve the lives of amputees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another area where bio-sensors could be useful is the bio-hacking movement. These individuals optimize for personal development and want to quantify things like sleep quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These don\u2019t necessarily have to be classified as \u2018IoB\u2019 and could be designed to store health data on the device, and calculate health \/ sleep scores locally. In past years, products like the Aura Ring (Smart Ring) were able to be used offline and without a subscription. Over time its become impossible to use these smart devices without uploading your health data into the cloud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are specific use cases for biosensors, however if we don\u2019t stay vigilant these solutions could outsource our regular bodily functions to the Internet of Bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oops, I got a poop alert, I better go to the bathroom.<\/strong>\u00a0Oh no, I\u2019m hitting my depression baseline \u2013 its time for another Soma.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n To pretend that an emotional sensor could give you more valuable feedback than listening to your own heart is anti-human.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Internet of Bodies; simultaneously a cheap gimmick and exorbitantly costly to develop \u2013 disconnects you from divine technology: your body and mind\u2014far more sensitive, powerful, and wise than any bio-sensor out there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The push for IoB is not meant to improve our health; it\u2019s a way to conduct massive data collection and \u201chack\u201d the human experience, as Yuval Noah Harari has said. Once IoB devices become widespread, they can be used as tools of control\u2014\u201csmart\u201d enough to capture your thoughts or feelings and influence how you act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJust imagine North Korea in 20 years where everybody has to wear a biometric bracelet, which constantly monitors your blood pressure, your heart rate, your brain activity 24 hours a day.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou listen to a speech on the radio by the \u2018Great Leader,\u2019 and they know what you actually feel \u2014 you can clap your hands and smile, but if you\u2019re angry, they know you\u2019ll be in the gulag tomorrow morning\u201d \u2014 Yuval Harari, WEF, 2020<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve explored how RAND Corporation created the framework for the Internet of Bodies, let\u2019s see how big tech companies drive it forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In early\u00a0February 2025 Apple announced its Apple Health Study<\/a>, which aims to study\u2026 pretty much everything about you. The research will be conducted through Apple\u2019s research app, which sends participants surveys and collect ongoing data through the bio-sensors in iPhones, Apple Watches\u2019 and AirPods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From Apple\u2019s blog:\u00a0The study spans a number of health and disease areas, including activity, aging, cardiovascular health, circulatory health, cognition, hearing, menstrual health, mental health, metabolic health, mobility, neurologic health, respiratory health, sleep, and more.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Rather than focusing on a single topic, Apple is taking a broad approach: gather as much data as possible, figure out the questions later. A screenshot from Health Data permissions show the wide range of health data that could potentially be gathered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because your Apple products are always with you, data can be collected regularly over a long period of time in longitudinal studies, that don\u2019t necessarily have an end date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In previous studies, such as the\u00a02019 Apple Heart Study with Stanford Medicine<\/a>, the Apple Watch measured the heartbeats of 400,000 people to detect irregular heart rhythms. Out of the participants, 0.5% received an irregular heartbeat warning and were offered a free telehealth consultation. Its unclear how many took Apple up on the offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Apple watch has multiple sensors<\/a>\u00a0that can measure your heartbeat: an optical sensor that works in the background, and an ECG sensor that can be activated for an on-demand heartbeat test.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a more personal 2024 study, Apple tracked womens\u2019 menstrual cycles to gather info on gynelogical conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These studies can be designed to automatically connect bio-sensor data, and request personal information through questionnaires. You need to explicitly consent to join these studies, and with 130M US Apple users, the amount of data could be staggering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How does Apple treat your health data?\u00a0The Apple Research App Privacy<\/a>\u00a0Policy &\u00a0Apple Health Study Apps Privacy Policy<\/a>\u00a0have some big red flags. Although the data is encrypted on your device and on Apple\u2019s servers, Apple has complete control over your health data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the Research App, Apple gather\u2019s basic contact and demographic info like your birthdate, name, phone number. This is required to enroll in a study. Apple emphasizes they don\u2019t have access to your contact information or full date of birth. Yet its trvial for Apple to get that information through your iCloud account or from usage of their products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![](\"https:\/\/www.activistpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Free-Masterclass-Ad-2-1.jpg\"\/)
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