By using Bluetooth it could scan for other devices, such as mobile phones or laptops.

WSJ: Super Malware Targets Middle East Computers

That is much easier at stadiums and enclosed venues, where security officials can check bags and scan spectators for dangerous devices.

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The malware can steal data and social-network conversations, take snapshots of computer screens, penetrate across networks, turn on a computer's microphone to record audio and scan for Bluetooth-active devices.

WSJ: Cyberattack Hits Iranian PCs

Iraq's law enforcement agencies bought 6, 000 of the devices to scan for explosives at checkpoints, many of them still in use today, potentially endangering lives.

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Using a Hointer mobile phone app for iPhones and Android devices, customers scan tags on the pants and select their size.

WSJ: Clothing Shop Is Tailored to Digital Age

Ahold says dedicated self-checkout stations for Scan It users are becoming more common as the devices become more popular.

WSJ: Mobile Checkout Devices Let People Scan and They Shop

Equipped with a bar-code reader to scan New York registration stickers and synchronized with an atomic clock in Colorado, the devices make it almost impossible for an agent to make the kinds of errors Bolofsky depends on for appeals.

FORBES: The Ticket Fixer