In the near-future, a war fought by proxies.

The NYT reports that the US military machine is building up its capabilities to use all sorts of drones big and small, tasked from spying to killing by remote control. Upon first view, you won't know whether or not that animal or insect was real or a drone, and you might not even get a chance to a second view.  We've got flying humming bird drones and micro drones that resemble moths.

This isn't exactly brand new news, really.  Back in 2007, WaPo noted that the CIA and DARPA were developing robo bugs.  What the NYT article notes however, is that the US military is quickly moving to a remote-controlled workforce that does the dirty and dangerous jobs.

It won't be long that these drones will be outfitted with the capability to drop a payload of RFIDs or toxins, allowing the US to either track or kill someone (anyone) at will.  Create a network of wireless, solar-powered RFID reader stations, and you can locate and track people as they move from town to town, or block by block.

Some might suggest that we're moving towards Terminator.  I think we're moving closer to Runaway.  I fear rogue operations utilizing these mini- and micro-drones for nefarious deeds.

I can, for instance imagine these micro bots being utilized to steal login credentials and passwords.  Watch out what you let into the house or office, eh?

vis NYT