Your Printing Service Might Read Your Documents (washingtonpost.com) 21
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Washington Post: If you're printing something on actual paper, there's a good chance it's important, like a tax form or a job contract. But popular printing products and services won't promise not to read it. In fact, they won't even promise not to share it with outside marketing firms. The spread of digital file-sharing -- along with obnoxious business practices by printing manufacturers -- has pushed many U.S. households to give up at-home printers and rely on nearby printing services instead. At the same time, major printer manufacturers have adopted mobile apps and cloud-based storage, creating new opportunities to collect personal data from customers. Whether you're walking to the corner store or sending your files to the cloud, it's tough to figure out whether you're printing in private.
Ideally, printing services should avoid storing the content of your files, or at least delete daily. Print services should also communicate clearly upfront what information they're collecting and why. Some services, like the New York Public Library and PrintWithMe, do both. Others dodged our questions about what data they collect, how long they store it and whom they share it with. Some -- including Canon, FedEx and Staples -- declined to answer basic questions about their privacy practices. Wondering whether your printer app or printing service stores the content of your documents? Here's The Washington Post Help Desk's at-a-glance guide to printer privacy. Here's a summary of each company's privacy policy as it pertains to storing the content of your files:
HP: HP's privacy policy states that it does not store the content of files when using their printers or HP Smart app, providing reassurance that they do not invade privacy by snooping into print jobs.
Canon: Canon's privacy policy indicates that it can collect personal data, including files and content, which may be used for marketing purposes. However, Canon did not disclose whether they store, use, or share the content of printed documents.
FedEx: FedEx's privacy policy states that it collects user-uploaded information, including the contents of documents uploaded for printing services, leaving room for potential advertising or sharing with third parties. Although FedEx prioritizes customer privacy, it did not specify the extent of encryption or whether document content is included.
UPS: While the UPS Store, a subsidiary of UPS, can store the contents of printed documents, it does not use this information for marketing or advertising without user consent. The storage duration is undisclosed, but UPS honors customer requests for data deletion.
Staples: According to Staples' privacy policy, the company can store personal data such as copy/print materials, driver's license numbers, passport numbers, and mail contents. They may also use copy/print materials for advertising. The duration of data storage is not disclosed.
PrintWithMe: PrintWithMe, a company placing printers in shared spaces, temporarily stores printed documents with a third-party cloud provider for 24 hours. CEO Jonathan Treble assures that the data is never used for advertising.
Your local library: The New York Public Library, one of the largest library systems, does not store the contents of printed documents. Their computers only retain file names and delete them at the end of the day. However, privacy policies may vary among different libraries, so it is advisable to inquire beforehand.
Ideally, printing services should avoid storing the content of your files, or at least delete daily. Print services should also communicate clearly upfront what information they're collecting and why. Some services, like the New York Public Library and PrintWithMe, do both. Others dodged our questions about what data they collect, how long they store it and whom they share it with. Some -- including Canon, FedEx and Staples -- declined to answer basic questions about their privacy practices. Wondering whether your printer app or printing service stores the content of your documents? Here's The Washington Post Help Desk's at-a-glance guide to printer privacy. Here's a summary of each company's privacy policy as it pertains to storing the content of your files:
HP: HP's privacy policy states that it does not store the content of files when using their printers or HP Smart app, providing reassurance that they do not invade privacy by snooping into print jobs.
Canon: Canon's privacy policy indicates that it can collect personal data, including files and content, which may be used for marketing purposes. However, Canon did not disclose whether they store, use, or share the content of printed documents.
FedEx: FedEx's privacy policy states that it collects user-uploaded information, including the contents of documents uploaded for printing services, leaving room for potential advertising or sharing with third parties. Although FedEx prioritizes customer privacy, it did not specify the extent of encryption or whether document content is included.
UPS: While the UPS Store, a subsidiary of UPS, can store the contents of printed documents, it does not use this information for marketing or advertising without user consent. The storage duration is undisclosed, but UPS honors customer requests for data deletion.
Staples: According to Staples' privacy policy, the company can store personal data such as copy/print materials, driver's license numbers, passport numbers, and mail contents. They may also use copy/print materials for advertising. The duration of data storage is not disclosed.
PrintWithMe: PrintWithMe, a company placing printers in shared spaces, temporarily stores printed documents with a third-party cloud provider for 24 hours. CEO Jonathan Treble assures that the data is never used for advertising.
Your local library: The New York Public Library, one of the largest library systems, does not store the contents of printed documents. Their computers only retain file names and delete them at the end of the day. However, privacy policies may vary among different libraries, so it is advisable to inquire beforehand.
Library (Score:3)
The local library seems to have good privacy (wiping everything and restoring the original image every time a new user logs in) and charges, IIRC, 10 cents a page to print.
Re:Library (Score:4, Informative)
The local library seems to have good privacy (wiping everything and restoring the original image every time a new user logs in) and charges, IIRC, 10 cents a page to print.
Does the local library also wipe that 500GB hard drive storing thousands of scanned and printed images sitting inside the large multi-function high-speed printer they leased, or do they just hand the whole thing back to the vendor when the replacement printer arrives because they didn't even know it was there in the first place.
Just curious...
Re: (Score:2)
It's a good question. Their IT seems competent but I don't really know. Have to ask them next time I take the wife there to stock up on DVD's.
Printer (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:1)
I picked up an HP Laserjet 5 for free from a law office in town.
At the beginning of the COVID lockdown, when we were all WFH, I hauled it out and plugged it in to run the self-test. A grinding noise produced a page with beautiful print, but un-baked toner. So, I did what any self-respecting nerd should do, I opened it up to see what was broken (with a little help from You Tube). Turns out, these printers are very repairable, and require little more than a screwdriver to disassemble. They are VERY nicely mad
HP shocker! (Score:2)
HP's policy seems remarkably privacy-friendly, given their obnoxious toner and cartridge policies.
Copyright (Score:2)
I remember asking a cd duplicating company about there copyright policy. They informed me that they don't duplicate copyrighted material. When I asked how that worked fir the original author, they seemed quite certain of it.
Any good printing company will be paying attention to what they are printing. They are also likely checking that they aren't unintentionally violating copyright law. So take the privacy claims with a grain of salt ...
Re: (Score:3)
*their*
*for*
Using ChatGPT, are we?
Re: Copyright (Score:1)
Re:Copyright (actually) (Score:2)
Rasterise your documents before uploading them? (Score:2)
Anything rather than try to own a printer: https://theoatmeal.com/comics/... [theoatmeal.com]
Re: (Score:2)
I've noticed that some PDF viewers, like Foxit reader, have added cloud storage features that automatically back up your documents to the cloud.
And that cloud is owned by a Chinese company...
Re: (Score:2)
I've noticed that some PDF viewers, like Foxit reader, have added cloud storage features that automatically back up your documents to the cloud. I would be concerned about the security of those services.
Foxit Reader has become more and more bloated with every release. Certainly the Adobe PDF code libraries haven't been the cause of that?
Re: (Score:2)
blocked (Score:2)
I blocked my printer's access to the internet.
Never used a printing service (Score:2)
And don't plan to using it anytime soon.
If I need to print something, will do it in the office or home or friend's place.
Is anyone surprised? (Score:2)
If it's important enough to print, then it's certainly too important to trust it to joe.Random. If I need to print something, I put it on a memory stick, pick up any due-for-return library books and take it there. Walking, in the process, past one shop which also does document printing, and another that has photo printing up to A3 on a variety of stocks.
Something needs to be done about this (Score:1)