Printer Spying on You?

[gronko]

Imagine that every time you printed a document, it automatically included a secret code that could be used to identify the printer - and potentially, the person who used it. Sounds like something from an episode of "Alias," right?


Unfortunately, the scenario isn't fictional. In a purported effort to identify counterfeiters, the US government has succeeded in persuading some color laser printer manufacturers to encode each page with identifying information. That means that without your knowledge or consent, an act you assume is private could become public. A communication tool you're using in everyday life could become a tool for government surveillance. And what's worse, there are no laws to prevent abuse.


Link > http://www.eff.org/issues/printers

Also, there is a List of Printers Which Do or Do Not Display Tracking Dots

Link > http://www.eff.org/pages/list-printers-which-do-or-do-not-display-tracking-dots

 

[blancorasta]

i saw this a while back on a documentairy "Big Brother, Big Business. about how its ilegal for the govt to store info in its citizens. so they get around it by buying info that corporations keep on us. as it's not illegal for companies to keep "customer records." like how google stores every search you make, the govt could buy this info, though google i believe asserts that they dont sell or give any info without a subpoena.

peace

 

[gronko]

Yeah i think thats fairly common practice now

Heres a youtube link to the Big Brother Big Business vid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k12-yxStwIc

i saw this a while back on a documentairy "Big Brother, Big Business. about how its ilegal for the govt to store info in its citizens. so they get around it by buying info that corporations keep on us. as it's not illegal for companies to keep "customer records." like how google stores every search you make, the govt could buy this info, though google i believe asserts that they dont sell or give any info without a subpoena.

peace

 

[!!!]

This has been the case for many many years now. I think it doesn't apply to laser printers, or at least it didn't a few years back.

 

[Derka]

You would be amazed at what you can recover off the commercial printer's hard drives. 1000+ documents that can easily be viewed after connecting the 2.5 inch drive to a computer.

 

[daheadies]

Pretty sure its the patriot act that makes it so we have no rights against this.. Govt can pretty much act on anything they want if its in the interest of national security... Obama supports it, and established during Bush.. They can leagally tap our phones too.. They are not supposed to be using the info obtained if a/b drugs and other crimes, but more terrorist stuff...

 

[explozivosuge]

Printers with hard disks, sell to business because it is wery rapid and can work in network without a computer allways store all printed documents, with full path of who send it to printer. Network Admin know all , and big brother psycho is real. If you want to print some personal stuff at work, use an old printer if exist, or rename your stuff with a common job of YOUR user in entreprise. If your print letters dayly and today want to print a papae article, you should rename it to Letter from Texaco...

 

[s13sr20det]

i saw a video on wimp.com a while ago where guys would buy pallets of old printers and take the hard drives out of them and download everything that was printed. they had printers from hospitals with patient info, police stations with BOLOs and whatnot. very scary. looks like they took it down b/c, i cant find it.