Yahoo Finance Sydney biohacker fined after implanting travel card chip into hand
An Australian biohacker who implanted a travel card chip into his hand has been fined for not using a valid train ticket.
Meow-Ludo Disco Gamma Meow-Meow had the chip of his Opal card surgically implanted in his left hand last year so that he could "tap on" without using his card.
Despite the fact his chip showed that the 34-year-old had paid for the trip when checked by the inspector in August last year, he was charged for failing to produce the Opal card.
Appearing in a Sydney court on Friday, Mr Meow-Meow, a bodyhacking scientist, pleaded guilty to fare evasion and was fined $220 for trying to travel without a ticket. He was also ordered to pay costs of $1,000.
“New technology can be scary if you don’t understand it,” Mr Meow-Meow said. “People have been scared of lots of technologies when they come along.
“This is the next evolution from going from paper tickets to Opal cards to something which means we don’t have to actually carry anything at all.”
Magistrate Michael Quinn said the legislation may be changed in the future as technology evolved, but at the moment he was in breach of the law, ABC News reported.
Meow-Meow, his legal name, had the chip implanted last year by a piercing expert in a procedure that lasted about an hour.
He said the chip was cut down and encased in bio-compatible plastic, measuring 10 millimetres by 6 millimetres. However, he warned others not to try it themselves at home.
"Most certainly don't try this at home unless you know what you're doing," he told ABC News last year.
"It gives me an ability that not everyone else has, so if someone stole my wallet I could still get home."
