Enhanced Security

The widespread distribution of documents via e-mail, websites and portals
though an excellent medium for communication, is also making critical
information vulnerable to misuse. Today, companies are concerned about
protection of sensitive client information and proprietary knowledge, increasing
the importance of document security. Companies are looking towards ways to
integrate security technologies into their information control processes both to
ensure authenticity of documents as well as to restrict free access of
information.

Xerox, which is actively working toward smart document management, has
developed some solutions around this need. Previous year, the company
demonstrated Clarissa, a voice-activated technology. It was invented at its
European research center and is now being used on the International Space
Station.

Invention, innovation and integration are the key research drivers at Xerox,
which is today a $15.7 bn document management company. The computer mouse,
graphic user interface and Ethernet are some of its important contributions to
the world. Elaborating on the research initiatives at Xerox, Sophie Vandebroek,
chief technology officer and president, Xerox Innovation Group, said, “Xerox
has a strong history of innovation. The basic research that we do as a company
is focused on systems, solutions, services, and smart material. We have about
5,000 world-class engineers and scientists helping us carry out path breaking
research, and over 50,000 global patents to our name.” 

Some interesting next generation technologies are currently taking shape in
its labs while a few of them are ready to make their debut.

Intelligent Redaction

Currently there are many issues that make it necessary to protect particular
information within complex documents. For instance, in the medical field, it is
desirable that access to sensitive medical data be given to only those, who
require it. Thus, the doctor should have access to all medical information,
however, the front-office clerk handling payments and insurance should not see
sensitive patient's information. Likewise, litigation practitioners, loan
lending institutions, pharmaceutical companies and government agencies face
similar problems. Yet another issue causing problems for companies managing
their document content is the sheer numbers of documents to be tracked and
secured.

According to Dr Shriram Revankar, Xerox fellow and manager, “Presently
there are no existing tools that provide sufficient content analysis and
security, so there are not adequate systems available today to help companies
protect sensitive data embedded within documents.” Intelligent redaction will
allow document owners to more easily control who sees what in a document and who
has access to particular documents and information. It also creates a
behind-the-scenes audit.”

Redaction is the ability to control, what someone sees. For example, in a
document that has been censored; certain information is blocked out.
Traditionally, this has required intensive manual processing of the document to
identify sections to censor, leading to cumbersome and unpredictable management
of different versions of the same document for different audiences. Intelligent
redaction takes this concept one step further by allowing the document itself to
hide or expose information or data in it based on who is accessing the document.
The document appears different to different people because intelligent reaction
software ensures that the document itself can control who has permission to see
varying subsections of it. Particular levels of clearance are assigned to
certain sections of the document, so that when a person accesses that section
s/he can automatically see only the sections permitted to see. The person
reading the document may not even know that sections are missing.

Specialty Imaging

Some other interesting technologies being fine-tuned at Xerox are in the
area of specialty imaging. Not too long ago, high-quality paper, an official
seal, colored images, engraving or a watermark were enough to convince
recipients that a document was authentic. For centuries it worked for stock and
bonds, currency, birth certificates, identification papers, insurance policies
and other 'official' papers. But now, the widespread availability of
scanners, image-editing software and high-quality digital printers enables
anyone to turn out official looking documents that once required a skilled
offset press operator or an engraver. So how can those who issue the papers and
those who receive them be certain that they are dealing with authentic copies
and not forged ones?

Scientists at Xerox have been working on this problem. They have discovered
that while digital printing is part of the problem, it can also be part of the
solution. Some of their innovations take advantage of the variability enabled by
digital printing technology; others also involve the unique properties of the
toners or dry inks that are used in xerographic printing. These will increase
the tools available to those issuing valuable documents and thus aid in guarding
against counterfeiting.

“Run-lengths made possible by digital printing, are changing the economics
of counterfeiting,” said Reiner Eschbach, a Xerox research fellow. “In the
world of static information, once you have forged the basic form, you can
replicate it again and again, reaping big gains. But with digital printing, each
original can be different; you do not have a universal key after counterfeiting
just one, and that reduces the incentive.”

Auto Image Enhancement

Another exciting technology developed by Xerox scientists at their Europe
center is the Automatic Image Enhancement (AIE). Software exists to manually
“fix” digital image problems, but it requires time and a skilled craftsman.
The AIE automates color correction in Xerox systems. The basic AIE algorithms
brighten underexposed images, sharpen fuzzy prints, or burn the haze off a
vacation scene to let the bright colors shine through. It can correct the
shortcomings found in images clipped from a Web page or compressed too tightly
for a faster e-mail.

According to Monica Beltrametti, VP and director, Xerox Research Center,
Europe “Automatic Image enhancement combined with our image categorization
technology we can perform 'class based' image enhancement. It recognizes
image content to control enhancement parameter.” The AIE would not only make
the image editing much easier but will also help in Web searches, management of
archived digital images by allowing people to filter and search for images as
well as text. Information security is the single largest challenge, enterprises
face today. Innovation that can offer the right standards of security is
required at every stage.

Rolly Dureha

maildqindia@cybermedia.co.in