TYPE DESIGN INFORMATION PAGE last updated on Mon Apr 15 05:30:38 EDT 2024
FONT RECOGNITION VIA FONT MOOSE
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Invasion of privacy
This one will surprise many: suppose you and your neighbor both buy the same font from LetterPerfect or Linotype, say. You install it on your computers--this usually requires running an "exe" file if you are on a PC. Good, the fonts are now installed. Well, your font is different from your neighbor's. The good old "exe" placed up to five of the computer identification numbers on your network in the font itself (check the first few lines just past the "exec" in type 1 fonts--they will show up as comments or "Notices" if you run t1disasm from the t1utils package). What if you are connected on the internet while installing the fonts? Will your computer's IPL be stored? Scary thought, isn't it? It's like buying a car and the seller decides to engrave your credit card number on the bumper. Wake up, this is exactly what Linotype and LetterPerfect and possibly others are doing today! |
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Luc Devroye ⦿ School of Computer Science ⦿ McGill University Montreal, Canada H3A 2K6 ⦿ lucdevroye@gmail.com ⦿ http://luc.devroye.org ⦿ http://luc.devroye.org/fonts.html |