Koenig & Bauer and Schwarz Druck Launch ‘Protected at Print’ Initiative

Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection has announced a strategic partnership with security printing company Schwarz Druck for the launch of its ‘protected at print’ initiative – an important step towards integrating smartphone-readable authentication into the design of secure documents, before printing.

At the heart of the initiative lies Stegano, Koenig & Bauer’s proprietary invisible authentication technology, which embeds variable information – such as unique codes for traceability – into the document design. The Stegano app is then used to visually analyse the print image of the document to extract the hidden information for authentication purposes.

As the variable information can be embedded into any area of the printed image, there is no restriction on design and no need for visible markers, added layers, or disruptive elements.

Schwarz Druck’s role as launch partner is significant. As an established specialist in high-security printing for governments and regulated sectors, its early adoption of Stegano signals strong market interest in practical, deployable smartphone verification solutions that can be scaled without major infrastructure costs.