According to the EFF, most color printers and copiers have been printing “yellow dots” on documents since 2004. These “dots” are encoding marks that can be used to identify the origin of a document. From their website:
Printer dot surveillance is a disturbing end run around individuals’ right to anonymous speech. Anonymity is a vital freedom — it can help political or religious speakers, labor organizers, or whistleblowers avoid retribution for their beliefs and opinions. Around the world, anonymity is an important practical protection for dissidents and religious groups against persecution by repressive governments.
Furthermore, it’s deeply troubling that printer manufacturers implemented this surveillance mechanism under the table after secret meetings between government representatives and technology manufacturers. Printer companies don’t disclose the tracking to their customers and so the existence of these yellow tracking dots remains secret.
Pretty interesting findings. Read the whole article here. What makes it even more interesting is the docucolor decoder guide posted here.
Tags: copiers, printers, yellow dots
