Printer and copier manufacturers have been doing this for years.

PC LOAD PAPERS PLEASE.

That's a crap argument, actually.

They'd still have to find the machine (out of the millions that are out there) and then have to tie you to that particular machine (might be hard if it is at a print shop thousands of people have used) and then tie you to that particular printer as that particular
document was coming out... it's no different than tying you to a particular knife used in a stabbing based on the marks left by the imperfections on the blade of that knife really.

I was waiting for this to come up. Really puts a dent in my money printing operation too.

What we need is a database of which printers put the snitch on the page and where on the page it gets put.

Once armed with that info, a sharpie silences the snitch.

I guess I can't print €11 notes anymore.

/Mine goes up to 11.

"No, not again. I... why does it say paper jam when there is no paper jam? I swear to God, one of these days, I just kick this piece of shiat out the window."

"You and me both, man. That thing is lucky I'm not armed."

"Piece of shiat."

I came here for the Office Space references and was not disappointed. Love you Farkers.

/back up in your ass with the resurrection

Do people REALLY try and counterfeit money with an inkjet printer? Are there REALLY people out there dumb enough to be fooled by such obvious fakes?

This isn't to say that inkjet printers can't print high-quality images, but the printing method is so completely different from that used for currency that a blind person could tell them apart.

Laser printers too; they're different but in a different way.

Phil Moskowitz: I was waiting for this to come up. Really puts a dent in my money printing operation too.

Slacker. Do it the ol-fashun way, with hand-engraved plates. The pride of workmanship shows through.

zimbach: Do people REALLY try and counterfeit money with an inkjet printer? Are there REALLY people out there dumb enough to be fooled by such obvious fakes?

This isn't to say that inkjet printers can't print high-quality images, but the printing method is so completely different from that used for currency that a blind person could tell them apart.

Laser printers too; they're different but in a different way.

It's a completely different type of printing altogether.

colovion: That's a crap argument, actually.

They'd still have to find the machine (out of the millions that are out there) and then have to tie you to that particular machine (might be hard if it is at a print shop thousands of people have used) and then tie you to that particular printer as that particular
document was coming out... it's no different than tying you to a particular knife used in a stabbing based on the marks left by the imperfections on the blade of that knife really.

The edge of a knife, or striations on a bullet are required for or direct results of, the proper operation of the item. I see no such relation to the ID tag from a printer, it seems, on the surface, simply a tracking mechanism.
That may not be scary for 'public' use printers where a large number of people will be printing documents, but for small office / home office or even personal application (laser printers are easy to find sub $200 for black and white printing), it makes it trivial to track down an individual or group based only on a printed page.

I print all my funny money at the local OfficeMax.

/I'm dead when the strippers find out.
//Yes, strippers.
///Hot ones.

Did you know that they used to be able to do this with typewriters and old printers because of imperfections or wear on parts?

How about the fact that pen companies put in tracers that will allow a chemical analysis to show what year and company the ink came from?

This stuff is all over already. And it hasn't led to serious tracking of people, though it has helped in a lot of forgery/false document cases. If you want to get upset about the government tracking you, try getting upset over FBI biometrics databases being put in operation. Now THAT'S scary.

In additional to making a person insane, now there's proof that printer manufacturers are violating your civil rights

Fixed that for you Subby

TheGreyPiper: It's a completely different type of printing altogether.

It's a completely different type of printing.

colovion: That's a crap argument, actually.

They'd still have to find the machine (out of the millions that are out there) and then have to tie you to that particular machine (might be hard if it is at a print shop thousands of people have used) and then tie you to that particular printer as that particular
document was coming out... it's no different than tying you to a particular knife used in a stabbing based on the marks left by the imperfections on the blade of that knife really.

It's always better to live with a bit more privacy than settling for a bit less.

Looks like all my future printers will be Okidata or Samsung.

zimbach: Do people REALLY try and counterfeit money with an inkjet printer? Are there REALLY people out there dumb enough to be fooled by such obvious fakes?

This isn't to say that inkjet printers can't print high-quality images, but the printing method is so completely different from that used for currency that a blind person could tell them apart.

Uh, not just printing methods, but the paper is much different. A blind person would probably be much likely to tell them apart.

This is fairly old news, as I'm sure has been said. And yes, there's an entire branch of forensics that deal with tracing back to typewriters.

But is this something we really want? Where the heck are the people who claim that guns are their only defense against tyranny?

Nevermind... They're down in the basement stroking their guns.


/ has a couple of old dumpster-dived laserjets.

Link (new window)

Revenge?

maxheck: But is this something we really want? Where the heck are the people who claim that guns are their only defense against tyranny?


Defending against laws that require traceable bullets. I really have no clue why, other than the possibility of a slight increase in cost, people that use guns for LEGITIMATE reasons would be against this.

No one is going to snag the shot from your rifle to see if you shot too many deer in season. No one's going to track you down for an errant shot in hunting grounds that hit a tree.

Unless you commit a crime they're not going to bother to run the test to figure out what run the bullet was from. On the other hand, if some gang-banger, or school shooter, or angry husband or wife shoots someone its another police tool.

Unright:
Uh, not just printing methods, but the paper is much different. A blind person would probably be much likely to tell them apart.

Linen paper is fairly easy to find, also see "clean room paper" - tons of it in fabs - not that I'd try it but knows someone that did.

Also bleached out $1 bills pass the security pen test - a $19 profit on a twenty.

maxheck: This is fairly old news, as I'm sure has been said. And yes, there's an entire branch of forensics that deal with tracing back to typewriters.

As a former typewriter repairperson and unabomber suspect, I can attest to this.

colovion:
"The printer id is to hard to track to be worth anything."

The why have them at all?

/sorry for paraphrasing

EU Commissioner for Justice Freedom and Security has finally made it to 2005. God for him/her.

GIS, seems interesting

sacrileg: colovion:
"The printer id is to hard to track to be worth anything."

The why have them at all?

/sorry for paraphrasing

Ah, that's a good point.

They aren't going to bother trying to trace what you are printing unless it is SERIOUSLY suspicious/disturbing. You can print all of the "I h8 Bu$h!" flyers you want to, the FBI won't be busting down your door with a warrant for your printer. However, if you're printing out the blueprints of the White House and mailing them to Hezbollah... they're going to look into that, extensively.

All of the people freaking out about this are freaking out needlessly (they're suffering from delusions of grandeur... the government couldn't care less about their silly shenanigans.) Those who DO need to worry... I don't exactly feel sorry that they are worried seeing as I don't want them to succeed anyway.

Deneb81:

I have to wonder how certain people expect to organize a revolution if it ever came to that.

Not to paint with a broad brush, but consider the people who consistently claim gun rights and how they otherwise vote.

On the eve of the revolution, how would you communicate?

With printed screeds?

Via email?

Via phone?

Basically the same people who claim the right to throw off a tyrannical state have cut off any means to do so. I doubt the few popguns they have left are going to make the difference.

colovion: sacrileg: colovion:
"The printer id is to hard to track to be worth anything."

The why have them at all?

/sorry for paraphrasing

Ah, that's a good point.

They aren't going to bother trying to trace what you are printing unless it is SERIOUSLY suspicious/disturbing. You can print all of the "I h8 Bu$h!" flyers you want to, the FBI won't be busting down your door with a warrant for your printer. However, if you're printing out the blueprints of the White House and mailing them to Hezbollah... they're going to look into that, extensively.

All of the people freaking out about this are freaking out needlessly (they're suffering from delusions of grandeur... the government couldn't care less about their silly shenanigans.) Those who DO need to worry... I don't exactly feel sorry that they are worried seeing as I don't want them to succeed anyway.

This is all so they can convict someone once they catch them. It's like fingerprints or DNA - if you aren't in the database, it won't help them catch you, but it will certainly convict you when they do.

Dynamite has incorporated tracking color coded beads. They do not disappear when the BOOM happens. They remain -- or so i have read.

Cox and Forkum cartoons imply virginity. Just saying.

I used to work for epson about three years back and it sounds exactly like something stupid they'd pull. On the bright side, all of the epson models listed are like 10+ years old and almost nobody uses them anymore - probably cause the cart or toner stops when only 25% remains, just like all the rest of their products.

I can attest to this, I found it a disgusting business tactic.

krupintupple: 10+ years old and almost nobody uses them anymore

You'd be surprised. I work for a company that converts paper from rolls to sheets for printers. We're one of the last companies that still makes 'green-bar' tractor-feed paper for printers, and we make a metric assload of it. When I started there I was shocked that anyone still used it, and I'm still amazed at the amount we put out.

MarkMartinFan:

As a former typewriter repairperson and unabomber suspect, I can attest to this.

Your manifesto. May I subscribe to it?

zimbach: Do people REALLY try and counterfeit money with an inkjet printer? Are there REALLY people out there dumb enough to be fooled by such obvious fakes?

It is a completely different printing process, but you would be amazed what people try to pass off as genuine cash. Mrs. R. is a banker and comes into contact daily with fake money. It comes from businesses where maybe the cashier isn't the brightest bulb. Some of it might take a little more than cursory exam, and maybe the cashier doesn't give a rip. But lots of it looks like it was made by 6 year olds as a school project. Such is life.

And if you get caught with a fake, the best thing, although illegal, is to pass it off. Not at your bank, you idiot. "If you try to deposit it, the bank keeps the money and you are out of luck. Go buy burgers.

Manic_Repressive
krupintupple: 10+ years old and almost nobody uses them anymore

You'd be surprised. I work for a company that converts paper from rolls to sheets for printers. We're one of the last companies that still makes 'green-bar' tractor-feed paper for printers, and we make a metric assload of it. When I started there I was shocked that anyone still used it, and I'm still amazed at the amount we put out.

yeah, probably in businesses where the bosses are too cheap to buy a replacement for their legacy systems. I have worked in a couple of crappy businesses like that. I can see some government bureaucracies still stuck with legacy systems also, because the funding and politics of buying a new system are too difficult to overcome.

"...too cheap to buy a replacement for their legacy systems"
Some businesses still need to print duplicate & triplicate invoices. The best way to do that is with an impact printer.
Try going through a detailed invoice and needing to see who signed for it. Auto parts, freight carriers and many commercial suppliers still use them.