Hiding Information in Document Images

J. Brassil, S. Low, N. F. Maxemchuk, L. O’GormanAT&T Bell LaboratoriesMurray Hill, NJConsider 2 distinct document pages which we labelAandB. The pages are sufficiently similar that they areindistinguishable upon visual inspection, even whencompared "side-by-side." However in one of the pagesthe locations of certain text words have been shiftedhorizontally by an imperceptible amount. Suppose thateither page is selected at random and is reproduced,possibly recursively, using either an ordinary plain papercopier or facsimile device. Can one determine if such acopy was derived from A or B?In this paper we show how to use spatial informationto reliably hide data in document images. Experimentalresults reveal that this information survives thedistortions introduced by noisy image reproductiondevices. We also describe the implementation of aprototype document marking and distribution system.The system can be used to discourage unauthorizedreproduction and dissemination of either copyrighteddocuments distributed electronically, or paper copies ofconfidential executive memoranda.

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