Secret Code in Color Printers Lets Government Track You - GoFuckYourself.com

webair · 10-18-2005, 09:49 AM

http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2005_10.php#004063

What is this world coming to...

Posted at 07:48 AM
Secret Code in Color Printers Lets Government Track You

Tiny Dots Show Where and When You Made Your Print

San Francisco - A research team led by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) recently broke the code behind tiny tracking dots that some color laser printers secretly hide in every document.

The U.S. Secret Service admitted that the tracking information is part of a deal struck with selected color laser printer manufacturers, ostensibly to identify counterfeiters. However, the nature of the private information encoded in each document was not previously known.

"We've found that the dots from at least one line of printers encode the date and time your document was printed, as well as the serial number of the printer," said EFF Staff Technologist Seth David Schoen.

You can see the dots on color prints from machines made by Xerox, Canon, and other manufacturers (for a list of the printers we investigated so far, see: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/list.php). The dots are yellow, less than one millimeter in diameter, and are typically repeated over each page of a document. In order to see the pattern, you need a blue light, a magnifying glass, or a microscope (for instructions on how to see the dots, see: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/docucolor/).

EFF and its partners began its project to break the printer code with the Xerox DocuColor line. Researchers Schoen, EFF intern Robert Lee, and volunteers Patrick Murphy and Joel Alwen compared dots from test pages sent in by EFF supporters, noting similarities and differences in their arrangement, and then found a simple way to read the pattern.

"So far, we've only broken the code for Xerox DocuColor printers," said Schoen. "But we believe that other models from other manufacturers include the same personally identifiable information in their tracking dots."

You can decode your own Xerox DocuColor prints using EFF's automated program at http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/...ex.php#program.

Xerox previously admitted that it provided these tracking dots to the government, but indicated that only the Secret Service had the ability to read the code. The Secret Service maintains that it only uses the information for criminal counterfeit investigations. However, there are no laws to prevent the government from abusing this information.

"Underground democracy movements that produce political or religious pamphlets and flyers, like the Russian samizdat of the 1980s, will always need the anonymity of simple paper documents, but this technology makes it easier for governments to find dissenters," said EFF Senior Staff Attorney Lee Tien. "Even worse, it shows how the government and private industry make backroom deals to weaken our privacy by compromising everyday equipment like printers. The logical next question is: what other deals have been or are being made to ensure that our technology rats on us?"

EFF is still working on cracking the codes from other printers and we need the public's help. Find out how you can make your own test pages to be included in our research at http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/wp.php#testsheets.

AsianDivaGirlsWebDude · 10-18-2005, 10:14 AM

ADG Webmaster

8 Characters · 10-18-2005, 10:17 AM

So.. they know the date of the print and the serial number of the printer which printed it.

OH NO..........................

who the fuck cares about that..?

Veterans Day · 10-18-2005, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 8 Characters

So.. they know the date of the print and the serial number of the printer which printed it.

OH NO..........................

who the fuck cares about that..?

any chance to bash, is what GFY cares about

Screaming · 10-18-2005, 10:22 AM

big brother is watching you!

SetTheWorldonFire · 10-18-2005, 10:46 AM

useless

what waste of money

pornguy · 10-18-2005, 10:50 AM

OLD OLD news. Xerox has been doing this for years and years.

BV · 10-18-2005, 10:51 AM

on another note, i have heard some high dollar scanners will automatically lock up if you scan money, don't know if it's true

as far as the printer codes, probably a good idea to catch terrorists since typewriters are getting obsolete now

that's how they caught the unibomber, most typewriters have unique characteristics

smack · 10-18-2005, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 8 Characters

So.. they know the date of the print and the serial number of the printer which printed it.

OH NO..........................

who the fuck cares about that..?

it's too bad you people are so myopic that you can't see the writing on the wall.

u-Bob · 10-18-2005, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BV

on another note, i have heard some high dollar scanners will automatically lock up if you scan money, don't know if it's true

just try editing/opening an image of a dollar bill in photoshop.

BV · 10-18-2005, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by u-Bob

just try editing/opening an image of a dollar bill in photoshop.

What happens?
My scanner is not hooked up any more.

LauraLee · 10-18-2005, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smack

it's too bad you people are so myopic that you can't see the writing on the wall.

My thoughts exactly. To me, reading this sent chills down my spine.

emthree · 10-18-2005, 11:14 AM

We're being watched man. We're all drones to the goverment.
They say they're doing it for the people, but I doubt it.

8 Characters · 10-18-2005, 11:16 AM

But this is just NOTHING compared to what you don't know about ...

WiredGuy · 10-18-2005, 12:11 PM

This doesn't surprise me in the least bit. I wonder though what was the benefit for these printer companies, why would Xerox do this for the government agencies? I can't see any government agency forcing them to do such a thing, so what was their motive?

WG

BlingDaddy · 10-18-2005, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WiredGuy

This doesn't surprise me in the least bit. I wonder though what was the benefit for these printer companies, why would Xerox do this for the government agencies? I can't see any government agency forcing them to do such a thing, so what was their motive?

WG

Two words.... "federal funding".....

Big Red Machine · 10-18-2005, 12:18 PM

I just got a Canon 3 in 1 and try to copy a Twenty. Just for a goof, it wouldn't copy it ,it just came out all black

smack · 10-18-2005, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Red Machine

I just got a Canon 3 in 1 and try to copy a Twenty. Just for a goof, it wouldn't copy it ,it just came out all black

even some programs like photoshop contain code to fuck up images of money.

i was using some pictures of money for an affiliate site i was designing, and half of them wouldn't open.

10-18-2005, 09:49 AM	#1
webair Confirmed User Industry Role: Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: NYC, NY Posts: 8,531	Secret Code in Color Printers Lets Government Track You http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2005_10.php#004063 What is this world coming to... Posted at 07:48 AM Secret Code in Color Printers Lets Government Track You Tiny Dots Show Where and When You Made Your Print San Francisco - A research team led by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) recently broke the code behind tiny tracking dots that some color laser printers secretly hide in every document. The U.S. Secret Service admitted that the tracking information is part of a deal struck with selected color laser printer manufacturers, ostensibly to identify counterfeiters. However, the nature of the private information encoded in each document was not previously known. "We've found that the dots from at least one line of printers encode the date and time your document was printed, as well as the serial number of the printer," said EFF Staff Technologist Seth David Schoen. You can see the dots on color prints from machines made by Xerox, Canon, and other manufacturers (for a list of the printers we investigated so far, see: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/list.php). The dots are yellow, less than one millimeter in diameter, and are typically repeated over each page of a document. In order to see the pattern, you need a blue light, a magnifying glass, or a microscope (for instructions on how to see the dots, see: http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/docucolor/). EFF and its partners began its project to break the printer code with the Xerox DocuColor line. Researchers Schoen, EFF intern Robert Lee, and volunteers Patrick Murphy and Joel Alwen compared dots from test pages sent in by EFF supporters, noting similarities and differences in their arrangement, and then found a simple way to read the pattern. "So far, we've only broken the code for Xerox DocuColor printers," said Schoen. "But we believe that other models from other manufacturers include the same personally identifiable information in their tracking dots." You can decode your own Xerox DocuColor prints using EFF's automated program at http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/...ex.php#program. Xerox previously admitted that it provided these tracking dots to the government, but indicated that only the Secret Service had the ability to read the code. The Secret Service maintains that it only uses the information for criminal counterfeit investigations. However, there are no laws to prevent the government from abusing this information. "Underground democracy movements that produce political or religious pamphlets and flyers, like the Russian samizdat of the 1980s, will always need the anonymity of simple paper documents, but this technology makes it easier for governments to find dissenters," said EFF Senior Staff Attorney Lee Tien. "Even worse, it shows how the government and private industry make backroom deals to weaken our privacy by compromising everyday equipment like printers. The logical next question is: what other deals have been or are being made to ensure that our technology rats on us?" EFF is still working on cracking the codes from other printers and we need the public's help. Find out how you can make your own test pages to be included in our research at http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/wp.php#testsheets. __________________ ~ Webair Dedicated Cloud Servers™ ~ WEBAIR VSYS™ Virtual Hosting Platform ~ Superior CDN Network ~ ~ Managed Dedicated hosting Specialists ~ DISCOUNT DOMAIN NAMES! ~ WEBAIR FUSION IO MANAGED CLOUD SERVERS! ~ *ICQ:* 243116321 - *TWITTER* - @WEBAIRINC - E-Mail: [email protected]

10-18-2005, 10:14 AM	#2
AsianDivaGirlsWebDude Purveyor, Fine Asian Porn Industry Role: Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: San Francisco Bay Area Posts: 38,323	ADG Webmaster __________________ Asian Diva Girls - Exclusive Photos and Videos Asian Diva Girls Affiliate Program (50% ccBill Revshare)

10-18-2005, 10:22 AM	#5
Screaming I can change this!!!!! Join Date: Feb 2004 Posts: 18,972	big brother is watching you! __________________

10-18-2005, 10:46 AM	#6
SetTheWorldonFire Confirmed User Industry Role: Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: California Posts: 7,444	useless what waste of money __________________ www.STWOFDesign.com hit me up on icq 154206276 or Skype: JaimeGizzle

10-18-2005, 10:50 AM	#7
pornguy Too lazy to set a custom title Industry Role: Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Homeless Posts: 62,911	OLD OLD news. Xerox has been doing this for years and years. __________________ PornGuy skype me pornguy_epic AmateurDough The Hottes Shemales online! TChicks.com \| Angeles Cid \| Mariana Cordoba \| MAILERS WELCOME!

10-18-2005, 10:17 AM	#3
8 Characters So Fucking Banned Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: This month's character: Dirty Franck Posts: 2,336	So.. they know the date of the print and the serial number of the printer which printed it. OH NO.......................... who the fuck cares about that..?

10-18-2005, 10:51 AM	#8
BV wtf Industry Role: Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Bikini State, FL USA Posts: 10,914	on another note, i have heard some high dollar scanners will automatically lock up if you scan money, don't know if it's true as far as the printer codes, probably a good idea to catch terrorists since typewriters are getting obsolete now that's how they caught the unibomber, most typewriters have unique characteristics

10-18-2005, 11:14 AM	#13
emthree Dialer Kingpin Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: New York Posts: 10,816	We're being watched man. We're all drones to the goverment. They say they're doing it for the people, but I doubt it. __________________ • Sell Patches & Pills •

10-18-2005, 11:16 AM	#14
8 Characters So Fucking Banned Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: This month's character: Dirty Franck Posts: 2,336	But this is just NOTHING compared to what you don't know about ...

10-18-2005, 12:11 PM	#15
WiredGuy Pounding Googlebot Industry Role: Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 34,488	This doesn't surprise me in the least bit. I wonder though what was the benefit for these printer companies, why would Xerox do this for the government agencies? I can't see any government agency forcing them to do such a thing, so what was their motive? WG __________________ I play with Google.

10-18-2005, 12:18 PM	#17
Big Red Machine Confirmed User Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: XXXBigRed@Twitter Posts: 9,586	I just got a Canon 3 in 1 and try to copy a Twenty. Just for a goof, it wouldn't copy it ,it just came out all black __________________ ICQ:475437214