A researcher discovered that Microsoft Paint and Photos applications invisibly embed GUID-based watermarks into images, even for locally generated or edited output. The technique was reverse-engineered and documented, revealing how Microsoft traces image provenance without visible alteration to users.
Background
Microsoft has increasingly added provenance tracking features to its default applications. This follows broader industry trends around AI-generated content watermarking and digital rights management.
- Source
- Hacker News (RSS)
- Published
- Aug 24, 2026 at 11:28 PM
- Score
- 7.0 / 10