Unfortunately, this is already the case. For instance, your mac address is a pretty good identifier probing AP's periodically wherever you go, 99% of smartphone owners aren't even aware, let alone know to turn off WiFi if they don't want to be tracked.. If my phone fell into the wrong hands today, my whole life IS at their disposal.

With education and advancement of proper security measures I believe these concerns can be mitigated and benefits would outweigh the risks. Transferring information is still too cumbersome, in order for us to progress, this is going to have to become a reality at some point.