Server-issued GUID watermark gets applied to all images generated via Paint or Photos AI features, even those that are made locally on Copilot+ PCs.
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Li says that simple curiosity spurred him to investigate the AI features of the Paint app in Windows 11 . The image generation functionality being capable of calling a remote API was expected. However, the dev got more curious when four apparent model files were found in the app path for local processing. Specifically, one of the local files was an ONNX-like model, the other 3 were encrypted ONNX-like files…
With all four files unencrypted and open to probing, investigations led to watermarker.dll being uncovered. Initially, Li thought it was just for visible watermarking tooling, leaving a Copilot logo on the bottom right of the image. It calls the AddPerceptibleWatermark function to do this. However, with curiosity stoked by the DLL file’s larger-than-expected size, the dev decided to ask AI to analyze the file. The AI found there was also a function to embed an invisible watermark.
The invisible watermarking function is called WmkWriteWatermark. Microsoft’s embedding process basically insists on this invisible watermark in its Stable Diffusion image generation output. If WmkWriteWatermark fails for any reason, the generation process will result in an error.
Li provides some further technical insight into the hidden watermark. Most strikingly, he asserts that the watermarking information mixes a server-issued GUID into the pixels. That isn’t the end of the identifying data bundling. “Paint does more than alter the pixels,” notes the dev. “It also attaches C2PA Content Credentials to the saved file. The code responsible for this lives in ProvenanceHelper.dll, backed by provenancesdk.dll.”
Claude will begin digitally watermarking marking AI-generated text and images
Key considerations
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- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/artificial-intelligence/microsoft-paint-and-photos-apps-add-invisible-watermark-to-ai-generated-content-developer-reverse-engineers-guid-embedding#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com/membership
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