Christian Message Boards: Photos hide secret information

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Posted by Kindgo (Member # 2) on :

Thursday, 8 August, 2002, 11:39 GMT 12:39 UK
Photos hide secret information

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2180677.stm

Passport could get a whole lot smarter

There could be more to your passport photo than meets the eye as Israeli researchers find a way to embed signatures and fingerprints in images.
The technique developed by a team at Ben Gurion University in Israel could prove an invaluable addition to passport security.

The system works by converting fingerprints or signatures into numbers that in turn slightly alter the position of the millions of different coloured dots that make up a normal colour photo.

The documents can be faxed, scanned and reprinted without the hidden data disappearing, New Scientist magazine reported.

Portable reader

To reveal the hidden identification, the picture has to be scanned and then run through special computer software which will reconstruct the fingerprint or signature.

But Joseph Rosen and his team of scientists are designing a handheld reader to unscramble the information.

This would eliminate the need to run pictures through scanners and computers.

The system could also be used to hide vital information in company's logos.

Used by paedophiles

This is the first time that images have been used to disguise identity information. But using pictures to hide information is not new.

The recently exposed internet paedophile ring the Shadowz Brotherhood used apparently innocent picture files to hide obscene material of children being abused.

Some experts believe the terrorists involved in the 11 September attacks also used pictures to hide messages to each other.

The UK Government is keen to introduce more sophisticated passport systems in order to cut down on identity fraud, speed up check-ins and fight terrorism.

The Home Office has said that a computer chip containing biometric information such as iris pattern, hand geometry and fingerprints could be in use within four years