What happened
Brandon Thomas, founder of ArtCraft, argues that invisible tracking signals he calls "spymarks" go beyond visible watermarks. Google's SynthID embeds hidden signals in images, audio, text and video, and its SynthID-O variant can store a 64-bit database identifier plus 72 error-correction bits in a 512x512-pixel image.
Why it matters
Unlike visible watermarks meant to prove authenticity or ownership, spymarks are designed to track how content is used without the user's knowledge or consent, according to Thomas, raising privacy concerns.
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The term "watermark" has long been associated with benign purposes such as proving authenticity, securing banknotes, or displaying copyright. Thomas argues that a similar-sounding technology is now emerging with a different aim: invisible tracking signals embedded in content without users' awareness. He proposes the word "spymark" to make the privacy risk explicit, saying a spymark is "the Rumpelstiltskin of privacy."
Spymarks can be embedded in the frequency domain of an image, carrying a database identifier linked to user information such as name, IP address, date of birth, address, or political affiliation. Unlike standard metadata that can be inspected and deleted, these signals are buried deep in the media and may persist after editing, keeping the file traceable. Thomas warns that if spymarks become widespread across devices and social media, reconstructing the spread of content—and tracking individuals or "dangerous ideas"—could become easy, moving society closer to the surveillance state depicted in George Orwell's "1984."
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