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I read a story today that was on the Electronic Frontier Foundation Site (Here).
It shows that US Government agencies have worked in cahoots with printer manufactures to place a secret code on every sheet of paper printed on a colour printer.
Now I'm both amazed and upset about this.
What do you think?
Seems they've only gone for colour laser printers so they can track all those dodgy Excel graphs but nothing that is printed on an inkjet...!
Well considering the cost of ink, I'm glad. I mean just imagine how much yellow ink would be wasted 
I remember this being proposed by the bank note printers many yaers ago when photocopiers and printers started to get good enough to produce counterfit notes.
For a long time now law enforcement have been able to match documents to the typewriters they were produced on - whats the difference now they can match docs to the laserprinter they were produced on?
Hang on, let's look at this subjectively. There are tens of thousands of printers sold just in the UK. So, unless the printer had some way of finding out and encoding where it is currently situated, then the code will only tell you what printer was used not where it's based.
In the business centre where I work there are at least three companies with Epson printers - now imagine how many there are even in a town like Lewes with approximately 15,000 residents.
So if I send a blackmail letter to someone outside of the town (and I wouldn't post it from my home town anyway), then how would they track the printer just from a secret code and what's to stop me from using someone else's printer?
Ashley
Identifying the printer used does not prove who printed the document, it would be safer to buy a new printer then at least you know it hasn't been used for any ileagal printing. Photographers can use this technology to embed an invisible watermark (digimark)detectable using photoshop.
Alick
Ah the EFF, I prefer their 'spam by anyone seeking profit or in support of anything against us' equals 'invasion of privacy' but 'spam by someone who wants to shout about something we agree with' should be allowed else 'infringement of their right to free speech'
Like most anti-establishment propaganda, most of their arguments are flawed or skewed by warped logic.
"dentifying the printer used does not prove who printed the document".
It does if you are the only person who has access to the printer...
Quote: "dentifying the printer used does not prove who printed the document"... It does if you are the only person who has access to the printer...
But how difficult would that be to prove?
Are you the only one who lives in your house? If so do you ever leave a key with a neighbour while you are away? Do you pop out when workmen are in the house, etc.?
Ashley
But its all part of building a case: means, motive & opportunity. When I did jury service we tried a chap who was unfortunate enough to:
Look like the robber (but then you couldnt see all his face)
Own a baseball cap that the robber was seen wearing (but more than one of those was made)
leave his finger prints on the get-away car (along with many others)
...and few other things that I cant remeber now.
Perhaps one of these would not be evidence but the combination of all these factors made him look pretty damn guilty to me.
Paranoia.
It does no more (if it's for real) than mark a document as being printed by a laser printer. Great tool for identifying forgery but would be bloody miraculous if it could identify the owner of the printer.
Second thoughts, stop registering the software and sending in the guarantee slips!!!!!!!
Type is very identifiable and I don't recall any outcry about it being used as a detection tool.
If your are a criminal -
BIG BROTHER IS NOT ONLY WATCHING BUT IS GOING TO GET YOU
By the way, you are more likely to get caught by leaving traces of DNA on the envelope you use to post the ransom demand.
Get out more and take photographs.
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