State Rep. Ed Setzler says he's seen a glimpse into the future and he doesn't like all he sees.

The Acworth Republican introduced a bill Friday aimed at outlawing genetic profiling in Georgia by banning businesses, government agencies and schools from using genetic information in hiring and deciding whether to grant a life insurance policy.

"It's not a fear of the future," said Setzler, who led a yearlong study of bioprivacy issues. "It's an obligation of us as leaders to get ahead of the technology, so we can reap the benefits but be ahead of the risks."

With technology making Hollywood spy gadgetry a reality and DNA testing becoming more pervasive, a new phrase is entering the legal lexicon: bioprivacy.

Legislation that would ban such Orwellian-sounding tactics as the mandatory implantation of tracking microchips in people and the wholesale creation of DNA databases is being drafted, and it should be ready for a full debate at the Capitol soon.

BioPrivacy Best Practices is one of three components of IBG's BioPrivacy Initiative (www.bioprivacy.org), a comprehensive evaluative tool used to help institutions build biometric systems that maintain both security and privacy. IBG's BioPrivacy Initiative defines the privacy issues involved in different types of biometric deployments, and provides specific guidelines for assessing the potential privacy impact of biometric systems.