Looking back over the year that was, a number of key developments, covered in this newsletter during 2022, stand out in terms of their innovation and potential opportunities (or threats, as the case may be).
These developments are summarised in the following observations:
University research continues to focus on material-based security features, including optical metasurfaces, physical unclonable functions (PUFs), features embedded into the product itself, and edible codes.
Security solution providers are continuing to develop optical features, often combined with covert security, tamper-evidence, unique identifiers, and associated data management systems. This demonstrates many providers’ ongoing belief that overt security features, validated with the naked eye, remain the first ‘port of call’ for checking authenticity. At the same time, suppliers are embracing physical/digital (‘phygital’) solutions that are drawing them into the realm of near-field communication (NFC), blockchain, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Some security solution providers are looking to extend their brand protection technologies into the realm of sustainability and the circular economy.
As far as actual applications by brand owners are concerned, while some brand owners continue to apply material- based security features in the form of labels, we are hearing a lot more about applications in the area of microchips, NFC, blockchain and NFTs, especially with regard to collectible items and luxury goods.
We are also hearing at lot about the way authentication is carried out on consumer goods such as sneakers, sold on e-commerce sites like e-Bay. Rather than using security features for authentication, the emphasis is on checking loads of specific details inherent to the item itself – or even just checking photos of those specific details. This doesn’t bode well for the authentication solutions industry.
A number of government-led initiatives around anti-counterfeiting and supply chain security could accelerate the move towards universal solutions for authentication and traceability on different products.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the individual developments that shaped 2022, as we move forward into the new year.
Sculpting light waves with optical metasurfaces – in contrast to conventional optics, which rely on light refraction and propagation, optical metasurfaces consist of artificial materials with tiny nanostructures that capture light and re-emit it with a defined phase, polarisation, modality and spectrum, thus allowing the sculpting of light waves with unprecedented accuracy.
For example, researchers from Wuhan University in China have developed a metasurface device displaying three types of images depending on the illumination light: a holographic image, a structural-colour nanoprinting image with a polarisation-dependent watermark, and the same image without watermark.
The unwatermarked nanoprinting image is observed with natural light, the watermarked image with an optical polariser, and the holographic image under coherent laser light.
‘The tiny metasurfaces could be attached to currency, ID cards, credit cards, certificates, watches or rings for anticounterfeiting,’ said one of the researchers.
Creating PUFs from silk – academics at South Korea’s Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology have created PUF tags incorporating silk fibres from domesticated silkworms. Micro-holes within the fibres act as a naturally occurring PUF in the form of unique patterns of diffracted light which are then converted into a digital format.
Tags manufactured into metal parts – Texas A&M University researchers have developed a method of embedding hidden, readable magnetic tags, encoded with authentication information, within the additive manufacturing (3D printing) process of otherwise non-magnetic steel parts.
The team used direct energy deposition (DED) additive manufacturing to encode the tiny magnetic tags inside the metal parts. The tag is read using a magnetic sensor device – such as a smartphone – to scan the area on the product where the tag is located.
Edible codes – the University of California has developed unique edible identifiers, called CandyCodes, for confirming the authenticity of pharmaceuticals.
A food-grade adhesive is applied to individual pills, which are then coated with a random assortment of CandyCodes – multi-coloured decorative confectionery of tiny balls made with sugar and starch. Each pill is then photographed, and its image data stored in a database.
Consumers use their smartphone to take a picture of one of the pills and access an online portal where the photo is compared to the image data.
Edible QR codes have also been developed for pharma pills using processed silk proteins from genetically modified silkworms (yes, them again!), with distinct fluorescence emission colours.
The proteins can form a matrix code, laid out in a 3D checkerboard pattern of little squares of different silks, encoding information such as SKUs.
The rise of micro-optics for brand protection – Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) has launched its SIGN® micro-optics solution for product authentication. SIGN is applied directly to packaging with high-precision embossing tools that do away with specially printed labels.
SIGN comprises 3D elements, dynamic structures and information that changes with the viewing angle. To create the effects, a reflective surface such as standard hot stamping foil is required.
No additional device is needed to authenticate SIGN, as the effects are clearly visible to the naked eye by simply tilting the security feature.
In another development, Nanopixel has created MicroEdge™, a patented optical security feature moulded directly into the surface of plastic products or packaging.
MicroEdge features include a combination of 3D, animated, flip, or on/off images.
The technology is based on small, light- efficient micro-facets that reflect pixels made of light both above and below the focal plane, which create the 3D animation and other visual effects. The effects are viewed under ordinary diffused lighting conditions.
Since MicroEdge facets are moulded directly into the container, no extra materials are needed to create the effect, and there are no additional manufacturing costs.
A third micro-optics development sees the partnership of Crane Currency and Essentra Packaging developing a range of security features for the pharmaceutical and beauty packaging industry.
Crane’s security label portfolio is based on its micro-optics technology originally developed for banknote authentication. The labels offer 3D effects along with independent movement across multiple axes of tilt. They support security inks as well as track and trace, taggants and tamper-evident constructions.
And lastly, Fathom Optics has patented a software-based process using light field technology to bring 3D and motion graphics to security print without additional materials such as lenticular sheets or metallic foils.
A new type of security hologram – Toppan has launched Illumigram™, a new security hologram in which 3D images appear in response to strong light, such as a smartphone’s flashlight.
The images appear blurred under normal visible light conditions, such as fluorescent light, only coming into focus under intense light, such as the flashlight on a smartphone. If the light source is moved, the 3D images that appear move accordingly, enabling more intuitive verification by the user.
Toppan is targeting pharmaceutical products, cosmetics, luxury brands, machinery and parts, licensed goods and tickets/vouchers for the new feature.
‘Phygital’ seals with VOID tamper-evidence – Securikett has developed a security seal printed with a serialised QR code, and four symbols resembling those on a Las Vegas slot machine. The symbols are directly correlated with the QR code, so that when consumers scan the code with their smartphone or tablet, the exact same symbols appear on the smartphone response page.
As an added element of security – as well as an extra bit of fun – one of the four symbols is concealed by scratch-off ink.
Making NFC tags more secure – NXP Semiconductors has released its NTAG® 22x DNA family of NFC integrated circuits.
The NFC tags incorporate a unique identifier, together with scan counter, cryptographic security, and tamper- detection mechanisms, as well as battery- free, capacitive sensing to measure changes in ambient conditions, such as liquid fill levels – all on a single chip.
The tags can be scanned by regular NFC readers, such as most modern smartphones, without the need for a special app.
Early deployments are focused on appliances and healthcare products, along with luxury-brand drinks, such as wine and spirits, which require intelligent closures.
Brand protection service provider, SMX, and luxury brand LVMH Métiers d’Art, are collaborating on a series of R&D projects aimed at improving traceability for raw materials and to enable efficient sorting for recycling in the luxury fashion industry.
SMX’s core technology is a track and trace solution utilising a sub-molecular hidden marker system that can permanently and irrevocably mark solids, liquids or gas at multiple points in the supply chain, along with a unique reader and blockchain record.
The first project is expected to be completed in early 2023.
Another development pertains to the use of Digimarc’s invisible watermarks to identify packaging attributes and increase plastic recycling.
The watermarks are in the form of invisible unique barcodes that are repeated across the entire surface of the packaging to create a tile effect. The codes are either integrated within the packaging label or embossed into the mould that forms the plastic container.
The watermarks are a key part of an initiative called HolyGrail 2.0, which is driven by the European Brands Association and backed by dozens of global brands, including Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo and Unilever.
Testing efforts include a semi-industrial trial using a prototype detection sorting unit produced by Pellenc ST in collaboration with Digimarc. The prototype is the first of its kind to combine near-infrared/visible detection and digital watermarks in an optical sorting solution.
A high-resolution camera on the sorting line detects and decodes the watermarks, which allows the packaging to be sorted into different streams (eg. food-grade versus non-food-grade plastics).
Material-based features – the aforementioned Fathom Optics optical feature is used by Little Sparrows Technologies, a Boston-based medical device company, on its ‘bili∙ruler’ – a tool to aid in the visual assessment of infant jaundice.
In particular, the company needed an authentication solution that didn’t require mobile phones or access to electricity.
Fathom and Little Sparrows partnered with Amherst Label to create a feature depicting a moving, stylised Little Sparrows Technologies’ logo, using a permanent adhesive on a layflat polypropylene material.
Another application relates to HP’s micro-optic, tamper-evident labels, which form a key element of its Anti-Counterfeiting and Fraud (ACF) programme. The labels are supplied by Crane Authentication for ink and toner cartridges.
ACF comprises a step-by-step guide and demonstration video on HP’s website for differentiating genuine cartridges from counterfeits, with the first step being to check that the micro-optic label on the cartridge packaging is exhibiting the correct features.
NFC, microchips and NFTs – a partnership between p-Chip Corp, Kaasmerk Matec and the Consorzio del Parmigiano Reggiano has led to the creation of a digital traceability tag for parmesan cheese wheels.
The tag consists of a p-Chip micro-transponder with a unique serial number, embedded into casein labels, which are, in turn, embedded into the cheese rind.
The chip ‘sits dormant on an object and when you put modulated light of a specific frequency on it, this wakes up the circuit, which checks its memory and emits an encoded micro RF signal that a specific p-Chip reader picks up and decodes into a unique serial ID,’ explained p-Chip.
p-Chip is currently focusing on the food industry, where manufacturers need granular visibility, down to every ingredient, product, and process.
A second application refers to life-of- garment NFC tags embedded into the front of collectible football jerseys, belonging to 2021 Copa Do Brasil champions Atlético Mineiro.
The solution is based on Identiv’s NFC technology and collectID’s patented solution for combining NFC tags and blockchain. The result is an encrypted tag, based on NXP NTAG 424 DNA chips.
The tag provides each jersey with a unique identity that grows with each interaction with the tag. Owners can check the authenticity of the jersey by scanning the tag with their smartphone. They can then register and transfer their ownership of the jersey via a collectID app.
With this solution, owners receive not only a physical product but also a digital twin of that product, in the form of an NFT.
Relegation of physical features – last year, we continued to witness the relegation of physical authentication features to a secondary role behind barcode scanning.
A case in point refers to football tickets issued for the Champion’s League Final in Paris, where the primary visual feature was a 2D code – and where the event turned to chaos when thousands of fake tickets were discovered.
In this instance, a quick manual check of the look and feel of the ticket, in terms of overt security features, could have acted as a very effective first filter.
Belief that smartphone connectivity is universally available… when it’s not! – it is easy to forget that smartphone connectivity is by no means universally available. Furthermore, while most new smartphones do have NFC technology, not everybody has access to one. As smartphones enter a mature part of the product life cycle, new models appear less frequently. This has implications for any reliance on the latest technology, as more customers view their smartphone as ‘good enough’.
Authenticating with a photo – Real Authentication’s online luxury goods authentication service demonstrates the shift towards authenticating a picture of a product rather than the product itself.
The service involves the client uploading close-up, high-resolution photos of numerous details of the item under investigation, which are then reviewed by two authenticators. The authenticators check all the way down to the denier of a stitch, but only on the basis of the photos received.
Another example of authenticating with a photo is provided by ApiraSol GmbH, a supplier of market surveillance and product intelligence services.
Whereas brand protection managers traditionally monitored what was going on in the market by ordering huge quantities of test purchases, delivered to their office, they now prefer to primarily work with high- quality images of all parts of a product, in combination with POS intelligence, advised ApiraSol.
Authentication in luxury resale… using anything but security features – when sneakers are purchased through eBay, the seller ships them to expert authenticators for a multi-point physical inspection, after which a unique NFC-enabled tag is applied to the left sneaker.
The elements inspected include the packaging box, sizing labels, soles, stitching, logos, heel tabs, laces – and even the smell of the shoe!
No mention is made, however, of any specific overt or covert security features being inspected on the product, which leads one to wonder whether in most cases these features just don’t exist.
EU green product passports – the EU is reviewing its circular economy rules, a core element of which are ‘digital product passports’ for tracking the origin of all materials and components used to manufacture everyday consumer goods.
Products will carry a machine-readable ID number, similar to passports, in the form of, say, a 2D barcode.
Given that these codes will be mandated across entire industries throughout the EU, the potential exists for them to double as universal product authentication devices… as long as they are suitably secured against cloning.
Smarter food safety – as a first step towards enhancing traceability systems in the food sector, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released a final rule on ‘Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods’.
The rule mandates the use of traceability lot codes and standardised key data elements pertaining to the supply chain of foods at particular risk of contamination, including fish, soft cheeses, nut butters, and several types of fresh fruit and vegetables.
Those who manufacture, process, pack, or hold such foods must collect and maintain records of these data elements for seven critical tracking events, including harvesting, packing, shipping, receiving, and transformation.
The FDA is encouraging traceability technology providers to develop creative, low-cost, financial models that are accessible to food producers of all sizes.
