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Technology

Digital images contain their maker's mark

By Paul Marks

12 November 2008

New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

Digital cameras leave a telltale fingerprint buried in the pixels of every image they capture, allowing forensic scientists to tell what camera model was used to take a shot

(Image: Stock.xchng)

IF YOU thought your digital photos could not be traced back to you, think again. It turns out that digital cameras leave a telltale fingerprint buried in the pixels of every image they capture. Now forensic scientists can use this fingerprint to tell what camera model was used to take a shot.

To capture an image, digital cameras use a light-sensitive microchip called a charge-coupled device, or CCD, made…

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