Printer tracking dots: Difference between revisions

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Tracking dots, also known as printer steganography or machine identification codes (MICs), are an often-overlooked yet serious privacy concern. These tiny, nearly invisible markings are added by many color laser printers to every page they print.<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printer_tracking_dots</ref> While originally intended as an anti-counterfeiting measure, they have significant implications for privacy, surveillance, and personal freedoms. <ref>https://www.eff.org/issues/printers</ref>

Tracking dots are typically arranged in a barely visible yellow pattern on each printed page<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20180305181029/https://w2.eff.org/Privacy/printers/docucolor/</ref>. These dots encode:

*The printer’s serial number

*The exact time and date of printing

*Possibly other identifying information

==Consumer impact summary==

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It is worth noting that there is no public oversight or legal requirement for manufacturers to implement tracking dots, yet they are present in many common printer models. The lack of regulation means users have no recourse to disable this feature.

~~===How Tracking Dots Work<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20180305181029/https://w2.eff.org/Privacy/printers/docucolor/</ref>===~~

~~Tracking dots are typically arranged in a barely visible yellow pattern on each printed page. These dots encode:~~

*The printer’s serial number

*The exact time and date of printing

*Possibly other identifying information

=References=

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 Tracking dots, also known as printer steganography or machine identification codes (MICs), are an often-overlooked yet serious privacy concern. These tiny, nearly invisible markings are added by many color laser printers to every page they print.<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Printer_tracking_dots</ref> While originally intended as an anti-counterfeiting measure, they have significant implications for privacy, surveillance, and personal freedoms. <ref>https://www.eff.org/issues/printers</ref>
+Tracking dots are typically arranged in a barely visible yellow pattern on each printed page<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20180305181029/https://w2.eff.org/Privacy/printers/docucolor/</ref>. These dots encode:
+*The printer’s serial number
+*The exact time and date of printing
+*Possibly other identifying information
 ==Consumer impact summary==
@@ Line 14: / Line 20: @@
 It is worth noting that there is no public oversight or legal requirement for manufacturers to implement tracking dots, yet they are present in many common printer models. The lack of regulation means users have no recourse to disable this feature.
-===How Tracking Dots Work<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20180305181029/https://w2.eff.org/Privacy/printers/docucolor/</ref>===
-Tracking dots are typically arranged in a barely visible yellow pattern on each printed page. These dots encode:
-*The printer’s serial number
-*The exact time and date of printing
-*Possibly other identifying information
 =References=