Inkjet technology is a growing force in the commercial printing world today. Higher quality reproduction, short run flexibility and customization are making inkjet technology attractive to all forms of business, including industrial printing and packaging providers.

With the integration of advanced security features, inkjet has a new market in which to compete – anti-counterfeiting and brand protection. Many industries that employ variable data printing (pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, food, industrial manufacturers, packagers and labelling) are now able to integrate advanced security features into existing processes.

Opportunity

As the market for variable data printing expands, there is an opportunity to gain ‘first mover advantage’ with a unique and robust product authentication solution, by combining the secure covert features of PhotoSecure SmartDye® and DNA Matrix™ taggants with variable data printing to produce customized codes, serial numbers, barcodes, or integrated graphics.

PhotoSecure DNA Technologies provides licenses and taggants tested in inks and in on substrates for the support for integration into a system for product authentication labelling, including 2 D Matrix barcode/security mark integration.

Market Facts

Counterfeiting and Brand Identity theft is accelerating with digital copying and printing techniques and with the outsourced remote manufacturing of highly Brand sensitive products. Global products depend on trust and recognition as the trade name and logo become just as important as the quality of the goods. There are larger incentives to cheat, and easy access to sophisticated technologies is encouraging criminals to produce increasingly successful fakes.

Consider these facts:

• PIRA International estimates that product counterfeiting represents 5 – 8% of world trade
• The World Health Organization estimates that 5 – 7% of the world’s medicines are fakes
• Losses to US businesses from the counterfeiting of trademarked consumer products is estimated at $200 billion a year (Dept of Commerce)

Most industries are at risk. The new breed of forgers is attracted by technological advances that make them more difficult to catch than the old. Generally, the counterfeiters have no previous criminal record, and the equipment they use is inexpensive and totally legitimate. HP estimates that they have over 200 million inkjet printers installed worldwide. How do you determine a legitimate print job from a fake with that kind of access to technology?

Think about something as ubiquitous as a barcode label. How difficult is it to reproduce?

Original or counterfeit?

Barcode label with covert alphanumeric code

The advancement of technology and its use by counterfeiters has allowed better copies to be made of both the actual product and the packaging. Modern computers, scanners and color printers have not only made it easier to mimic packaging and documentation, but have also reduced the skill level required to produce passable copies. Technology has also meant that better copies can be made, that are harder to detect and which are easier to slip into the ordinary trade channels used by legitimate commerce. Sometimes counterfeits are mixed with genuine goods, making it difficult to detect the fakes.

Solving Brand Owners’ Problems

Companies that find themselves competing with counterfeiters suffer a direct loss in sales. Some markets are even dominated by counterfeiters, creating barriers of entry for the producers of the genuine product. Trade names and Product quality reputations are damaged. Products are diverted to the wrong market and sold at uncontrolled or sometimes illegal prices.

But there is a growing change in attitude towards supply chain integrity – counterfeiting is no longer an accepted cost of doing business. Companies aren’t out to just limit gray market diversion or counterfeiting, they’re out to recover revenues.

Consumers, who are deceived into believing that they bought a genuine article when it was in fact a fake, blame the manufacturer of the genuine product when it fails, creating a loss of goodwill.

By integrating product authentication features into existing inkjet technology, and developing electronic bar code readers sensitive to forensic covert taggants, we provide your customers with protection against counterfeiting and product diversion – a level of security that will allow Brand Owners to recover revenues and market share, track distribution on an ongoing basis to control product piracy, preserve the integrity of their products in the marketplace and increase consumer confidence in their brands.

Key Features

• High security – extraction and matching of DNA sequence code provides irrefutable proof/ positive identification
• Simple, yet complex product authentication solution – easy to use, but with inherent complexity to prevent duplication
• Wide variety of applications – can be applied to virtually any tangible surface
• Multi level encryption provides moving target for counterfeiters
• Cost-effective solution – low cost per mark, with no major re-tooling or process re-design

Partnerships

DNA Technologies works with a number of partners to bring about an integrated and secure Track and Trace System.

Inks and Substrates – first and foremost from a technology point of view, the unique taggants must be fully integrated into the ink print technology and the substrate required for the job. DNA Matrix™ and SmartDyes^® have been integrated into all types of inks – offset, gravure, flexo, screen, and all types of ink jet inks – aqueous, solvent, CIJ, TIJ, and Piezo. In addition, hundreds of substrates have been used and tested and the chances are very high that these important enabling technologies can be applied by conventional printing technologies on any product. And, therefore can be made to happen as part of the normal business practices of the organization, inexpensively and reliably and made a part of the layered security solution. The paper, plastic, hologram, RFID, or any number of security features will become forensic, machine readable elements of the overall Brand Security Program. Ink partners include Gans Ink, HP, and Videojet.

Ink Jet Printers- Another key element to the overall integrated system is the digital printer. In the past, (and in many installations today) security printing systems were based on analog printing systems and like all offset and other printing could only provide a “patch” or shape for authentication. Now digital printing gives us the most important Unique Identifier at the unit level as a print step at high speed on the production line – at the critical point of final production or final QC. Our Partners include CodeTech (www.codetechcorp.com), inc.jet (www.incjet.com), Videojet (www.videojet.com), Kodak Brand Protection Group (http://graphics.kodak.com/CA/en/Product/Security_Authentication/default.htm) and HP SPS Printer Group (http://www.hp.com/oeminkjet).

Authenticators and Code Readers

One set of key partners is on the Authenticator – Reader product field. Our unique taggant sets require very closely tuned electronic devices for Authentication and especially important for track and trace, bar code reading. These devices must discover our SmartDye® laced DNA taggants and reduce them to data to automatically input information to the tack and trace software. Two of our partners in this field include Cognex (www.cognex.com) and InData (www.indatastore.com).

Track and Trace

Another set of partners are suppliers of Track and Trace Systems. A most important element in track and trace is the generation of secure unique code identifiers. Many times, millions or even billions of “numbers” are needed and they must feed directly to the on line digital printers at high speed. Then too they must be retained securely along with the information of taggant materials. Then updated from warehouse to store to buyer, AND made available to internet enquiries. Some of our partners include GenuOne (now part of Opsec www.opsecsecurity.com), Videojet (www.videojet.com) has recently acquired a full Track and Trace system and offer a fully integrated Brand Protection system. Another partner is TUV Rheinland, a global compliance and supply chain consultant and now Brand Protection system supplier (https://www.brm.tuv.com ). Also, Keezler Codes (www.kezzler.com) specializing in the very high volume code field.

- Mike Hayes, Managing Director, DNA Technologies; updated September 2011

The historic method of taxing cigarettes is to print a paper labels about ¾” x 1 ¾” each in bulk on high speed web gravure or offset presses. These will be printed as much as 20 or more across the web and 20 – 40 around the print cylinder. The stamp will be printed on security paper and, possibly other secure features with ink and with complicated and intricate images. The quantities are quite large and may occupy one or two presses 24 -7-52, day and night year round. They may be printed either in a Government printing office or by a security printer contractor. They will be sheeted for some applications and sliced into single wide label rolls in others depending on the application machine in use by the manufacturer. They are sold to the manufacturers or importers for adherence to the individual box. Application is usually by glue with a high speed packaging machine. Usually it is as a “seal” covering the box opening. This is used with both soft and hard pack cigarette boxes and is applied at the final packaging step in the factory. Inspection method is not known to the public, but is apparently by inspectors who go to retail outlets and look at the stamps for the security features.

The tax stamp “business” is characterized by widespread cheating with various methods of diversion: The most obvious cheating is by the manufacturer buying fake sheets of stamps that have some of the same images and some of the security features (sometimes no security features).

Other cheating occurs when the importers and distributers are offered either fake cigarettes and boxes and tax stamps that are ‘easily” fed into the bulk distribution system. Others may just be shipped without stamps to outside the country and then brought into the country and sold with no stamp at all.

The New Method

We probably do not know all of the ways to beat the present system, but a Serialized Unique Identifier Code and Track and Trace computer system provides the primary basis for a comprehensive solution to the problem.

Such systems have been installed in at least 3 important locations around the world and the technology is verified in actual use.

The Unique Identifier Code is a singular “number” (UIC) at the individual pack level. It can be used to track the life cycle of that particular pack of cigarettes. This is a process learned from the drug industry and other places where the details are really important to the end user and to compliance with legal requirements. The printed mark process described herein is the result of many years of technology learned from the printing industry and uses the most reliable methods to mark objects or labels with the same confidence low cost that applies to ink on paper as in all labelling and marking operations. The industry has learned from the RFID chip approach to the same issue that the chip is valuable to bulk control and tracking, but not needed for the single part – and the cost of the new answer to this situation is in the very small fractions of a cent per stamp.

Computer systems generate a huge number of Unique Identifier Codes through an encryption technology. The codes are printed on the basic stamp sometime soon after the bulk printing operation , possibly while sheeting or slitting the stamps with digital printing heads (like in our desktop printers) and each stamp gets its permanent identity “passport”.

These special inks are used to add two very important elements; an optical feature for machine reading, and a forensic feature that provides a final element of legal identity security. These two features are usually printed invisibly so the do not copy and then they can only be seen by special readers.

Reading and Inspection

The new approach requires automation and computerization in several ways; a special program is needed to generate unique identifiers; digital printing heads must reliably place small data codes or glyphs that contain UIC as well as data on time date place (possibly several time stamps); storage of the information; input from automatic code reading devices; updated storage; and input from field readers enquiring about authenticity.

The system requires opto-electronic devices that can see covert inks. These are much like the bar code readers used in retail and in factories for quality control and production information. Except that they are tuned to very special inks. The first reader is placed on the print station just after the digital printer places the UIC onto the stamp. Each print head requires one reader as a two step operation – one to confirm that an otherwise invisible mark exists, and two to start the life cycle “passport” information collection.

Next, readers are placed at the point of stamp application. There the UIC is again recorded providing absolute verification of the particular stamp having some “existence” of use.

Then in any number of warehouse or transportation locations, the hand held version of the reader can be used to further update location and date/time information. If at any step in the process, the reader does not see a proper invisible UIC, the system is so notified. This may be because the stamp is a fake, no stamp was presented, or some substitute stamp copied for instance, but lacking the covert mark has just entered the normal pattern of life.

Finally, the field inspector can carry either an Authenticator that “sees “ the existence of the ink/dye; or a more sophisticated bar code reader can interpret the UIC and even go on line to a website where the computer once again comes to life to report this final event for that “passport number”.

All forms of diversion and counterfeiting are monitored with this inexpensive approach.

Imagine that every single thing made anywhere in the world can be confirmed Genuine any where in the world by a hand held device that reads the date and place where it was made, where it should be and confirms its “passport number”. If desired – it can go back by internet to a source of information about its whole life. All made possible in a simple printed mark that is invisible but machine readable and contains a DNA molecular taggant!

-Wendell Smith, Chairman, DNA Technologies, July 2008

The degree of fake goods and the need for a supply chain protection that encompasses even the internet sale is highlighted by a French court’s order for EBay to pay 38.6 million Euros ($60.8 million) in damages to the French luxury goods company LVMH for the sale of fake goods through their channel of internet auctions! A July 1st, 2008 article published by The New York Times details the explosion of counterfeiting and the need for a solution to on-line brand protection issue.

PhotoSecure DNA Technologies has an effective set of taggants, inks and readers that provide the key technology for an integrated solution to the seemingly impossible task that brand owners and EBay and other companies face in this growing internet commerce field.

An integrated Track-and-Trace solution, using DNA Matrix™ taggants in invisible code marks made readable by SmartDye® fluorescent taggants begins the process. The marks are printed by digital ink jet at just the last minute and scanned with special bar code readers to authenticate the individual item and track it through its lifetime. The PhotoSecure solution uses forensic, covert DNA marks in combination with overt, transparent, customer legible marks, producing a reliable and inexpensive solution to counterfeiting and diversion. Track-and-Trace starts on the production floor all the way to the customer’s hands providing transparency to the location and authenticity of the item any where, any time, any place in the world. The DNA marker provides the ultimate forensic element for legal “comfort” and for maximum anti-counterfeiting deterrence.

Wendell Smith, President of PhotoSecure, mentioned key points in his speech at the Brand Protection Conference in February 2008. In the most complete supply chain tracking model, the enterprise IT system uses a common unique identifier code throughout the supply chain and code readers with security elements bring the data into the manufacturing and supply data collection system. Thus the security element is being run in conjunction with the enterprise management system and protecting the brand from manufacturer, to distributer, and to consumer. Various technologies are integrated including; computer generated encrypted Unique Identifier Codes “numbers” with secure memory for data management, printed forensic DNA marks on brand products by digital printers placing “last minute” coded marks with Unique Identifier Codes, Optical Scanners at each point in the distribution chain all occurring in normal production operations and fully integrated to enterprise computer management programs.

- Wendell Smith, Chairman, DNA Technologies; February 2008

IT has quietly become the major driving force for secure intelligent and track-able devices. The more successful ticket and label users have found that the ability to check on the whereabouts of valuable goods, documents and people is vital to the success and profit of the business as well as to security; now, IT outweighs the anti-counterfeiting features of security devices for many users.

Intaglio has been the key technology for years and still provides a hard to duplicate original. Guilloche and recently, microprint and rainbow printing are examples. What’s new is digital printing of numbers and devices for automatic reading for both verification of production and for data collection after use.

Thermal paper turns colour on application of heat or pressure. This allows for a simple print head to add unique, timely data in the field. What is new is colored inks and low cost good quality stocks. Embossing made from a carefully make die (or plate for ink) adds to the difficulty of counterfeiting. Intaglio printing has a natural raised feel. New offset inks have a raised feel (Ultratherm). Machine readable watermarks on paper and now digital watermarks for electronic transmissions are innovations.

• Internal thread; paper stock laminated with materials that show up when tearing a ticket or can be read by materials that show up tearing a ticket or can be read by machines. Very simple and obvious to the collection agent.
• Overprint films; destruction of laminates or coatings destroys the security document or changes observed image to make tampering obvious.
• Fluorescence; paper can be fluorescent in some conditions. Fluorescence and special lighting and sensors can be used for anti counterfeiting purposes.
• Foils; foil and some natural materials like fish scales and mother of pearl and some new man-made “deep” images copy as black spots, a spot of foil in the design of a ticket will be hard to copy or counterfeit. New is the combination of foil with numbers etc. and now there are also some materials that are made of random particles that can provide a unique finger print to an optical reader.
• Precise register; very careful register control such as perfect back to front register is very hard to duplicate.
• Dot structure moire; screening of images with fine dot patterns can produce moire patterns that declare void if copied with other screens. (Void Pantagraph). New is the printed device which when viewed with a hand held device can show “void” or other word.
• Magnetic strip; magnetic inks or tapes can provide security and other information, particularly useful for tracking of information about the person or object.
• Color change inks; clear ink that changes by chemical, pressure or temperature effects. (Rub and Reveal) (Validator)
• No copy inks; inks that are spectrally difficult or impossible to see by most copiers. (Copyproof) New in this field is (Kopout), an ink/foil system that can not be copied on typical copying machines.
• OVD’s holograms; the most interesting hard to copy technology in recent years has been images made from the holographic technology. Recently the images have moved from traditional laser light table holograms to optically variable devices of several kinds incorporating computer generated images both covert and overt, that improve the security and enable tracking and the now critical IT functions. There is a great deal of news in this field as there are more research efforts in this field than in any other. Holograms are being generated in minutes by computers (Simian) and in multilevel machine readable form, numbered, bar coded, placed directly on a CD ROM (or audio disc) and now embossed directly on press at press speed. (Nova Vision)
• Smart card; there is very rapid growth in this field. The smart card is built on typical credit card technologies but also has a microchip built in for all of the IT features and more.
• Biometrics; fingerprint, voiceprint, DNA, retina, scan All mentioned as a group; new technologies that are being used for security purposes. Some have links to print media, some may not.
• RF signals; some security devices are capable of emitting or changing electrical fields as a non contact overt security and information device.

What is the place for printers in this field?

Classes of technology:

• Paper
• Ink
• OVD-holography
• Computer generated images
• Automatic inspection (of production, of use)
• Biometrics

Summary of What’s New

1. Technically speaking

• Computer generated holograms and multilevel optically variable devices.
• High speed, low cost hologram imaging on press.
• Information technology; automatic reading and tracking systems.
• Refined printing techniques; microprint, rainbow, mixed intaglio, offset and letterpress.
• Paper; foils, fluorescence, destructive laminates, coatings.
• Ink; raised, reflective, uncopy-able pearlescence.
• Biometrics
• RF Technology

2. Commercial/Business

• Increased need for secure devices driven by technical capabilities of counterfeiters and increased value of event tickets, intellectual property etc.
• Computerization; rapid formation of very complex devices from numbering to OVDs.
• Computerization; for the many tracking and Information Technology features that are the driving force of the future.
• Smart card increase.
• Redemption coupons have proven to increase the use of amusements.
• Reduction in use of printed negotiable instruments, but, still important check writing activity and greatly increased check fraud.
• Growth in intellectual property sales; music, video, computer programs and the need for control and tracking of same.

- Wendell Smith, Chairman, DNA Technologies; July 2007