Find Out If Your Printer Is Spying on You

Wed Jul 18, 2007 4:20PM EDT

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Did you know that many (in fact, most) color laser printers are spying on you whenever you print a document? Though you may not have heard the news, the discovery was announced in late 2005. Manufacturers embed a pattern of tiny yellow dots on printed pages. The dots are too small to be seen with the naked eye (especially since they're yellow, see the above photo to see what they actually look like), but under a microscope and blue light they're revealed. The dots are placed in a pattern unique to each printer, and since most color laser printers are purchased through well-documented service providers or direct from the manufacturer, it's simple to track any printed page back to the owner of the printer.

The original idea was obviously to help the government track down currency counterfeiters, since any phony money would be tagged with the yellow dots and would be easily trackable back to the source. But there are also signs of abuse, with the FBI reportedly using the technology to keep tabs on who's printing material for groups like the ACLU and Greenpeace. That's a little scary... and important to remember if you've considering printing a whistleblowing tip or any missive you'd prefer to leave anonymous on a color laser.

If the privacy ramifications of this news bother you, there's some good news. Not all printers have the tracking dots, and the EFF has compiled and updated its list of which ones do and which ones don't. Simply check out this page and look up your printer. (Remember, black and white lasers and inkjet printers don't include the dots.) As the document notes, remember that even if a printer doesn't include the dots, that doesn't mean it isn't using some other method to track your printed pages. If your printer isn't listed here, that means that no information is available about whether that printer includes the dots or not.

Comments on Find Out If Your Printer Is Spying on You

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  • 66 Posted by harlanlovestone on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:16PM EDT Report Abuse

    most times if your not doing anything wrong don't worry...some times to catch the bad guys you have to trust it will be used correctly - seekercsa And just who are the bad guys these days? It seems that there is more and more spy crap, yet no one seems to be catching any darn criminals or terrorists with them. I'm beginning to think the people creating this spyware are in fact the bad guys. It just has the awful stench of a "1984" society.

  • 68 Posted by xmanalyzer on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:53PM EDT Report Abuse

    This is rather interesting... Despite many privacy concerns we must all have, we certainly do prefer to live in a safer place, with effective mechanisms to catch criminals. We must also make sure such mechanisms cannot be abused, in order to avoid possibly creating worst problems than the ones we are trying to cure. If a criminal knows of such printer tracking capability, then most likely a criminal will use a printer untraceable to him. This could cause innocent owners of such "borrowed" printers to be falsely accused. In addition, if a criminal wants to frame someone else, he can use such person's printer without the person's knowledge, and possibly cause him severe damage. Some criminals may be even more sophisticated where they may learn to reproduce the "yellow dot signature" of the printers of others, by simply being in possession of a printed page, and not needing the printer itself... This would be yet another form of Identity Theft. There are many tips presented to consumers to protect themselves against Identity Theft. Many such tips and tools are available at http://www.creditlock.com . However, no one has known about such printer risk... Another tip added to the list should be to avoid lending your printer to others. In addition, in order to avoid having your identity stolen by someone reproducing your "yellow dot" pattern, maybe you should avoid printers with such feature.

  • 69 Posted by mikebbbus on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:19PM EDT Report Abuse

    Hey #55... Read the freakin' book! #35 was making a funny comment referring to George Orwell's 1984, NOT the war in Iraq!

  • 70 Posted by rizkybusiness99 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:42PM EDT Report Abuse

    #68...Finance Rule #1...Create a Problem that Only You Know How To Solve and thus you will be Greatly Rewarded for Solving the Problem You First Created....

  • 71 Posted by sead4u on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:10PM EDT Report Abuse

    sorry for you guys in the US, no more printed photos of Bush kissingass with BinLaden :D. for us in Albania (tiny little country in Europe) is not a problem, we have 5 or 6 laser-color-bluetooth-TV-minibar printers in total :P. let the Force be with you !!!!!

  • 72 Posted by lcwthr on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:58PM EDT Report Abuse

    Its ok it could save ones neck just incase if this becomes the only thing that shows ones innocence but it shld av a warning....

  • 73 Posted by bianca_femia on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:06PM EDT Report Abuse

    Isn't it great that we're all giving real criminals ways to hide their crimes? THat's just beautiful. Everyone who is complaining about their right to privacy is too busy to be concerned with the fact that you are fighting on the side of the guilty. Nice job expending all this energy and imagination which inevitably just helps out true monsters. Bravo.

  • 74 Posted by bianca_femia on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:06PM EDT Report Abuse

    I love how all the Bush-bashers are here screaming about a "slippery slope" situation of our democracy becoming a tyranny, while Bush is actually standing up to all this flack to install a democratic government in nations which have been oppressed for years. You have to pick one or the other, people. At least try to make sense and not talk out of both sides of your mouth simply because you want to take this opportunity to make a political point. Which is it? Is Bush trying to help dictatorships become democracies, or is he trying to destry our democracy? Please.

  • 75 Posted by djdfsn_stocks on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:44PM EDT Report Abuse

    As a mother and a friend to many women who have been molested as children and also had crimes committed against them by abusers, I say anything that help convict a guilty person is a boon. If pedophiles are printing photos to sell, they should receive the full weight of the law. THINK ABOUT IT: Do you seriously think the FBI really cares what Greenpeace is up to? If someone involved with Greenpeace is trying to save the polar bears, thats one thing. But if they're making death threats, that person or persons should be convicted. IT'S ILLEGAL FOR A REASON. And finally, don't you people know how counterfeit money ruins the economy, hurts businesses including little mom-and-pop places that our we unknowingly depend on as the backbone of our entrepenurial country? When your local shopkeep goes to the bank to make deposits and they're counterfeit, guess who suffers? Some "innocent" person only making 20's to get by until their paycheck? I don't think so. And those aren't the people who are the real threat. People get gutsy and that $20 or $100 becomes hundreds, then thousands, then more. THat has an effect on a local economy AT A GRASSROOTS LEVEL. I understand the concept of wanting to keep our freedoms, but I always scratch my head when people get so outraged. DO you have something to hide? If it's that serious, you should be worried. If you're cheating on your spouse, calm down. The Feds aren't interested in your petty crimes which are so unnerving to you. THERE ARE REAL BAD GUYS OUT THERE. If you don't know this personally then you've been lucky enough not to have it touch anyone in your life. Consider yourself lucky. But "bad guys" by anyone's definition exist and they are probably right in your neighborhood. People who don't know about it obviously only read human interest stories. Get a brain people. Are you more interested in protecting your abstract concept of freedom...or the reality that this could make or break convicting a murderer, a rapist, and abuser, a white-collar businessman who just embezzled your whole investment, or your parents pension? I think I'll go for the real good, versus my paranoid little imagination. You should all try it.

  • 76 Posted by millstone7201 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:20PM EDT Report Abuse

    With the way the world is today it doesn't bother me a bit if I am possibly being "spyed" on. To have our freedom we also have to make sacrifices to ensure our "freedom". We are just a bunch of whiners! We have taken our freedom for granted and terrorist are trying to TAKE AWAY our freedom. With the type of "spying" they are doing they are also catching pedophiles, murderers & other HARD criminals. I am thankful that they are "spying" & I really don't like using THAT word. Again, to have freedom you have to make sacrifices and if this is protecting us then we need to quit whining. Period. This world has gone literally crazy in a way that was unheard of many years ago. Times have changed. I am 97% accurate with a "sixth sense" & I KNOW something VERY MAJOR is fixing to happen & it ISN'T going to be pretty. I am 43 & have two sons that are 19 & 24. People in different generations who are a bit younger than my sons (even them) & a bit older than them, seem to want to turn a "blind eye" to such a serious situation that this country is in. They cannot handle the stress of the reality in this "everday" life anyway, therefore they complain because they have not EVEN thought about the consequences if we did NOT let the government do this. We have Al-Quada in our own backyards! The government is trying to protect us & we need to let them. They don't care about anyone looking at "legal" porn or "internet affairs" or who cheating on who, they are looking for "suspicious activity" & they HAVE found it! They don't have time & are NOT interested in reading every detail we write. So? Let them do thier job to protect us. It is VERY LITTLE to give up that part of our privacy to protect us COMPARED to what our troops are having to do. The government "watches" internet activity. Fine. It is a heck of a lot better than having more of our troops killed, or even ALL of us! If everyone who is whining about this would really stop & think of WHY it is done & what it CAN & WILL accomplish then our nation will be a much safer place. Would you rather be in combat or have terrorists attack us a LOT WORSE than 9/11? Or, let the government "glance" at your "personal diary"? It's not like they are gloating over what we type to eachother for goodness sakes! There is way too much OVERREACTING in this matter & some people need to bite thier tongues and start using thier brains. This is VERY NECESSARY FOR OUR FREEDOM!! FREEDOM IS NOT DOING WHAT YOU WANT-IT IS WANTING WHAT YOU DO! If you want your freedom, it is only gained by making sacrifices. Think about what could have happened if the government DIDN'T catch the terrorist on the internet that HAD PLANNED ATTACKS on OUR SOIL? OUCH! The ACLU needs shut up & quit trying to SPLIT this country apart TOO. Soon, there will be no Democrats or Republicans. If we don't come together for our nation & quit taking our freedom for granted, THE USA will be over powered or incinerated. Think about it. We need to pray to our Higher Power/God!

  • 77 Posted by rizkybusiness99 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:42PM EDT Report Abuse

    #77....Do You Honestly Believe Bush Cares About the People Of Iraq?....The Only Reason he Got Involved in This War In The First Place, Is Because He Promised His Father that He Would Put Saddam In The Ground!..Saddams Forces Almost Assasinated Bush Sr.....Our Country Still Believes the Reason we Went Back To Iraq was because of WMD's....But...We Could Care Less About WMD's because they would only Wipe out an Insignificant amount of Citizens via Truck Bomb In The U.S......The Real Reason He Sold This War is Doublefold....#1..Iraq has Many Times The Oil Reserves we ever Imagined..This Was Comfirmed BY Military & NSA Satellites....#2...Cheney's "Old Boys at Halliburton & KBR Kellogg Got a Super Sweet Deal Of Re-Building Iraq....They Get Paid 'Full Contract Price' without Re-Building Anything if Our Military Forces deem the Area "Hostile" To Re-Development....Getting Paid $10's of Billions For Doing Nothing!!..... and Finally If You Remember the "Decapitation Strike" on Saddam...This Just Coincidentally Happened on the Week Saddam Decided to Only Accept Euros For Oil Trades....Considering that the Basis of our Entire Economy is Conning the Rest of the World in Believing that our U.S. Currency and Electronic Monetary Assets are Worth more than our $10+ Trillion National Debt....Having Euros Become the #1 Currency will make the U.S. a Fully Debt Based Country...... My Family has Worked in Washington for Generations and this Information will eventually Reach the Public After we Oust Bush....But if You Believe Bush Want's To Create a Democracy for the Good Of Their Own People..Then I Have a $3 Bill I want to Sell You For $500...........

  • 78 Posted by expat6719 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:57PM EDT Report Abuse

    Thank you. Yet another example of the inexorable movement toward the death of democracy and the installation of totalitarianism by the fascist rules of the US.

  • 79 Posted by jamesconwell on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:27PM EDT Report Abuse

    For the record: Greenpeace and the ACLU commit crimes every day. ACLU commits Fraud all day long every day. Greenpeace members commit Criminal Trespass, Vandalism, Destruction of Private Property and Assault (such as death threats) every day. Sometimes they do even more outgrageous things. 5% of all Greenpeace members are violent wackos who cannot be trusted.

  • 81 Posted by sierradog7 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:21PM EDT Report Abuse

    A big problem with this is that the government treats people, human beings, like livestock when the government itself is made up of no more than human beings. No human being is more important in the big picture than another. If they can snoop through our papers and track us, we should be able to as well.

  • 82 Posted by megandwill on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:15PM EDT Report Abuse

    Unfortunately just because the printer doesn't display the dots doesn't mean that you aren't being tracked in some other way. We didn't know about the dots right awy. And for seekercsa above, you are fooling only yourself. Read the blurb about the FBI mis-using the dots to keeps tabs on the ACLU and Greenpeace. I don't agree with a lot of things that those orginizations do or stand for... but I do support their right to privacy until they have been caught breaking a law. Would be scary to think of Nixon's administration and FBI with tech like this and other tech that we have today. Nixon could have used it to stay in power for ever. Although some good might have come out of Nixon's misuse of all that power. He might have suceeded in Deporting Lennon and he would never run into that worthless little ----- at the Dakota. Seriously if stuff like these dots don't scare the heck out of you... then go and watch "Enemy of the State" and remeber that the movie is 10 years old. Those creeps at FEMA and DHS probably laugh now at how tame EOTS is compared to what they can really do now.

  • 83 Posted by blentzcristian on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:09PM EDT Report Abuse

    Who cares anyway, it's not so that anyone would actualy check this thinks,so what's the big deal?

  • 85 Posted by papaiosif on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:59PM EDT Report Abuse

    if you have nothing to hide you have nothing to be afraid of.....but lateley my printer started asking some strange questions. as the matter of fact in my office we have the "good" and the "bad" printer. one is very co-operative and is always by yourside while the other one is asking questions and is very cruel trying to break"" you. hehehe.. this info though is very interesting and as the matterof fact it should go public massively. no harm for the " good" citizens though...

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