Yes, your printer is spying on you

[israelirealities]

<!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000663063763">www.engadget.com/entry/1234000663063763</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--><br><br> <br>Yes, your printer is spying on you — EFF cracks Xerox printer fingerprinting code<br>Posted Oct 17, 2005, 6:30 PM ET by Marc Perton<br>Related entries: Peripherals<br><br> <br><br>You probably already know that your printer may be secretly outputting hidden data to allow investigators to track you by magnifying and decrypting the info. Now, you can find out what info is being shared. The Electronic Frontier Foundation commissioned a study to decode a series of dots that appear on pages printed by the Xerox DocuColor laser printer. With the help of a microscope and a trusty blue LED (see, those things are useful for something other than mods), the EFF researchers were able to reveal a grid of yellow dots that provide information about the date the printout was made, as well as the printer’s serial number. Is your printer tracking you? If you’ve got a DocuColor and a microscope (or a powerful magnifying glass), you can decrypt your dots via the EFF’s web site. If you’ve got another printer, you can send in paper samples for them to add to their research database. In the meantime, don’t assume that anonymous letter blowing the whistle on your employer’s nefarious deeds or a politician’s leak of a CIA agent’s name can’t be traced back to you.<br><br>[Via hack a day]<br><br><br>Israeli news website reports today that the CIA finally admitted today that it signed an agreement with XEROX printers company to add a small chip to each printer that creates a "fingerprint" of this printer on each printout. REported Rami Yitzhar concludes that similar agreements have been made with other companies, and with "certain manufacturers of computer software - operation systems" (Bill Gates is about to land in ISrael this week for a crash visit).<br> <p></p><i></i>

[banned]

Is this just in Xerox printers? I don't have one right now and have been shopping for one. <p></p><i></i>

[michael meiring]

banned.<br><br>dont you just like the reasons they give, to help trace counterfeiters...hehe...<br><br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.edri.org/issues/technology">www.edri.org/issues/technology</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--><br><br>Home<br>New technology<br>EFF research into hidden codes colour prints<br>20 October, 2005» Privacy | New technology<br>The US based digital rights organisation EFF has started extensive research into the hidden codes some laser colour printers and photo copiers add to every page they print or copy. In 2004 printer-manufacturer Canon was awarded a Big Brother Award in Germany for secretly adding a unique code to every print-out. Soon after, it turned out the practice is very wide-spread. <br><br>The unique number on every print-out is invisible to the bare eye, measuring only 0,1 millimetre. After the Big Brother Award for Canon, the Dutch police immediately admitted they use the codes to detect the sources of print-outs, tracing individual printers through the vendor chain. Questioned by the Lower House, the Dutch minister of Economical Affairs said he agreed manufacturers should inform their customers, but did not create any obligation in that direction. <br><br>EFF suspects the US government of having persuaded most manufacturers of including the secret codes, "in a purported effort to identify counterfeiters." In addition to a call to the public to send in print-outs, to create an even more extensive list of printers, EFF has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to find out all about "the Secret Service’s efforts to promote the development and implementation of machine identification code (MIC) technology in colour laser printers and colour photocopiers." <br><br>EFF: Is Your Printer Spying On You? (13.10.2005)<br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/">www.eff.org/Privacy/printers/</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--> <br><br>EDRI-gram 'Secret code added to most colour prints' (03.11.2004)<br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.edri.org/edrigram/number2.21/printers">www.edri.org/edrigram/num...1/printers</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--> <br><br> <p></p><i></i>

[Homeless Halo]

I saw this before. On that TV show CSI. They used it to track some sort of letter, a death threat or something. Fascinating. <p></p><i></i>

[michael meiring]

One wonders why its taking them so long in finding out who the perpetrators are for the forged documents reg galloway, and the yellowcake hoaxers dosant it. Why not check the 0.1 millimetre code, and theyd know whi it was, <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START ;) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/wink.gif ALT=";)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> . <p></p><i></i>