Description: Exploring some of the latest solutions designed to enhance the security of print processes and products Keywords: security packaging, security printing, victoria gaitskell

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2. 12 PRINTACTION · April 2019 PRINTACTION.COM
Exploring the secret world of
security printing and some of
today’s latest solutions designed
to enhance the security of print
processes and products
By Victoria Gaitskell
S
ecurity printers get paid
more for their products
than other commercial
printers — a minimum
increase of 10 percent but
maybe as high as 15 or 20
percent more, according
to U.S.-based security
printing consultant Ri-
chard D. Warner. “Usually it takes a big
financial investment and a lot of time – at
least a good couple of years – and a lot of
trial and error for a commercial printer to
get up to speed with security printing.
They rely heavily on outside technology
suppliers,who will help them, but it is still
a big jump for the printer.They’ve got to
be committed to do it.”
Warner holds several U.S. patents for
security printing technologies. He works
with printing organizations, suppliers,
printers, and end-users to develop other
patents,implement new technologies,and
execute anti-counterfeiting projects.From
1977 to 2002 he was Vice President and
Director of Research for the Graphic Arts
Technical Foundation (GATF) and Print-
ing Industries of America. With Ryerson
University Associate Professor Richard
Adams, he co-authored a book, Introduc-
tion to security printing, now in its second
edition, which defines basic security
printing technologies, identifies new mar-
kets and security end products, and ex-
plains risk management issues and operat-
ing protocols. It also discusses the special
materials needed for security printing,
such as inks, substrates and security de-
vices, as well as the prepress, press and
bindery/finishing issues unique to security
printing.
In the 1980s and 1990s Warner’s career
SOUPED-UP
SECURITY
SECURITY PRINTING
PHOTOS:
HIROKAZU
TSUNAKAWA,
SOLO

3. PRINTACTION.COM April 2019 · PRINTACTION 13
Left and above:
Images showcase
the effect of Ricoh
invisible red toner
through a graphic
project by Hirokazu
Tsunakawa, Art
Director and
Designer at SOLO
New Communica-
tion Studio in
Toyko, Japan.
took a dramatic turn when the CIA re-
cruited him to help investigate inter-
national counterfeiting operations that
produced fake U.S. currency. Other feder-
al cases he worked on involved counterfeit
casino chips and gaming plaques for high-
stakes players — items whose secret and
complicated construction nowadays often
includes RFID chips or ultraviolet (UV)
security prints using inks that are visible
only under UV or infrared-emitting light.
A conversion process
“Security printing is a conversion process
that starts with a commercial product that
is correct both aesthetically and informa-
tionally,” Warner continues. These prod-
ucts may take a wide variety of forms and
can include currency, cheques, credit
cards,identity documents,postage stamps,
licences,transit passes,and packaging and
labels.Because these products are liable to
be counterfeited, security printers must
incorporate extra security features into
them.
“The tricky part is they have to do it
without affecting the aesthetics or infor-
mation on the product, and generally the
security features have to be added simul-
taneously with the commercial print run,
especially with digital printing. That re-
quirement makes it much more difficult.
Usually it is accomplished with a lot of
programming to integrate the required
security features into the printing process
so they work seamlessly,” he explains.
Warner says newer security features in-
clude 2D barcodes that carry significantly
greater information storage than conven-
tional supermarket one-dimensional bar-
codes. He explains the matrices of two
types of 2D barcodes in particular – HD
barcodes and QR codes – can be designed
to deter counterfeiting and knockoffs. He
predicts that expensive DNA signatures,
now available from various suppliers, will
become increasingly common, especially
in the food and pharmaceutical industries.
Also on the rise are computer chips that
replace holograms on plastic polymer
credit cards and ID cards.
“Most recently,” Warner says, “integrat-
ed computer chips are being used for au-
thentication which are almost thin enough
to be embedded into paper substrates.
Last but not least is photonics, a process
which is still being worked on at university
research labs using finely ground-up ma-
terials such as ferric oxide [rust], opals,
and gems that change colours when acted
upon by electromagnetic radiation. If re-
duced to practice, photonics could bring
about a major change in how we protect
packages, labels, documents and cards.”
Secrecy requirement
Security printers also have to segregate
part of their facility and storage area to be
totally secure from break-ins and only
admit people working on security prod-
ucts inside. “All sorts of security checks
are required on these personnel,” Warner
says. “It’s like two different companies
operating in the same building. The rea-
son is the first thing a lot of criminals want
to do is get a job with a security printer to
get trained on the latest programs and
equipment.They may also try to sneak in
and secretly use the security printer’s
equipment and materials.”
For many reasons, security printers
tend to be secretive about most details
regarding their design process, security
features, equipment, substrates and inks.
Even some informational gatherings for
security printers have restricted access.
For example, Intergraf’s SecurityPrinters
Banknotes + Identity conference requires
all registrants to submit detailed docu-
mentation as well as product samples and
only admits thosewho have been vetted by
a committee of experts.
Security-focused solutions
Ricoh Canada is atechnology supplierthat
strives to help print service providers
build security features into their processes;
its clients include four out of five major
Canadian banks. Ricoh Intelligent Print
Data Stream (IPDS) boasts a secure bi-
directional data communication system
between the printer and the server that
sends the data to be printed. Meanwhile,
Magnetic Ink Character Recognition
Printing (MICR) is a financial-industry
standard method for the secure printing of
cheques or bonds, including a dedicated
font and toner with iron microfilaments.
Some of Ricoh’s optional technology can
be used to convert a desktop printer into a
MICR printer. Clive Buckley, Product
Manager, Production & Graphics Prod-
ucts, explains Ricoh’s recent uptick in
sales of this product indicates that govern-
ment and insurance companies still con-
sider cheques to be a secure method of
payment.
Another option is invisible red toner,
introduced last July, available for Ricoh
fifthcolourpressesC7210XandC7210SX.
The specialized toner is invisible under
regular circumstances,but under UV light,
shows as a distinguishable red – adding
security features to a range of applications
such as event tickets and gamified signage.
A new security ink from Leibinger was
introduced last December to help protect
against product packaging piracy. For use
with the Leibinger JET3up PI inkjet print-
er,the ink at first glance looks like a classic
black ink but under a UV light, tiny fluor-
escent pigments begin to glow greenish. If
it remains black, it’s a fake, Leibinger ex-
plains.
On the software side, last February
Agfa Graphics released Fortuna 11
high-security design software, designed to
help safeguard counterfeit-sensitive docu-
ments. The modular release allows users
to choose from different features to match
their needs. In creating unique designs to
protect sensitive documents,users can rely
on a potent graphical base editor that
reconciles aesthetics with security, Agfa
says. Fortuna 11 also includes Live Pre-
view so users can view changes in their
security designs in real time.
Meanwhile in August,Agfa introduced
the fourth version of Arziro Design, a
dedicated ecosystem for the security print-
ing market.The Adobe Illustrator plug-in
update includes a guilloche generator and,
for validated security printers and govern-
ment entities, rainbow colouring capabil-
ities to protect against forgeries and
counterfeiting. The generator enables
users to create guilloches that can be com-
bined with other tools to create complex
security design in Illustrator.
Rainbow or iris printing is a rainbow
colouring process used in security printing
to help prevent colour-accurate reproduc-
tion of documents by photocopiers and
scanners. It is designed to protect security
documents against colour separation or
copying by subtly merging colours into
each other, resulting in a gradual colour
change. Agfa says the new rainbow func-
tionality in Arziro Design allows security
designers to view the rainbow inks while
creating the document, as well as create
inkjet proofswith the rainbow print visible
to help generate the correct output for
print.
In a move to further safeguard data and
devices in the workplace, Xerox in July
2018 introduced Xerox Workplace Solu-
tions. For companies operating fleets of
printers and multifunction devices, the
solutions provide two security offerings:
Content Security, to protect intellectual
property by monitoring all content that is
printed, copied or scanned; and Mobile
Phone Unlock, which allows a mobile
phone to unlock and authenticate Xerox
AltaLink and VersaLink devices, eliminat-
ing the need for card readers and their
proximity cards.
“Security printing is a conversion
process that starts with a
commercial product that is
correct both aesthetically and
informationally.”
1935
Established in 1897,
Canadian Bank Note
is a security printer
best known for
supplying the Bank of
Canada’s banknotes
since 1935.