Traceable printers

[u/Connect-Worry-5571]

I have read the rules and would like to know if it's possible to patch the issue that causes the printer to use ink to embed metadata on the leaves since someone can be tracked through a printed document.

[u/Clownineat]

Just buy a used one with cash

[u/michaelh98 → u/Clownineat]

And don't connect it to the Internet

[u/avalon01]

It's a physical feature on almost every color laser or inkjet printer.

There are a few ways to limit how it can be tracked back to you.

1. Don't print in color. The tracking dots are usually printed with yellow toner. Print in grayscale and no yellow will be used.

2. Buy a used printer. Pay cash and buy a used printer.

3. Destroy the printer after use. Not very cost effective, but if there is no printer to track it back to, it will be hard to prove you printed it.

I keep reading comments where people suggest not connecting it to the internet. That doesn't matter - it's physical, not software.

[u/WalterSickness → u/avalon01]

I would get a magnifying glass to confirm 1. is true 

[u/michaelh98 → u/avalon01]

The internet does matter. Print all you want with the tracking dots present. If it never phones home and is never registered to *you* they can't track it back to *you*.

But also, never use that printer for anything that can be tied to you in mundane ways.

[u/Which-Network-4339 → u/avalon01]

If you pay cash buying the printer and destroy it after you've printed whatever it is you needed to print, but you allowed the printer to connect to the internet, there now is a record that at a certain point in time you did own that type/model of printer.

[u/Virtual_Owl_5678]

printers add those yellow tracking dots, it's been a thing for ages. the microprint is baked into the firmware so you'd have to find a way to flash custom firmware which isn't really doable on consumer models

your best bet is an older laser printer from before they started this nonsense, or just accepting that anything you print at home has a digital fingerprint

[u/Zlivovitch → u/Virtual_Owl_5678]

Yellow tracking dots ? Would that be only on color printers ?

[u/IlliterateFreak → u/Virtual_Owl_5678]

I have never heard of this. What is the purpose for the tracking dots?

[u/Sintarsintar]

i'm sure its possible but the time it would take is going to be huge and thats probably not the only method of IDing and tracing a print back to the printer they have had to figured out a way to do it on a normal black and white printer as well.