Digital printing has moved packaging production onto the network. Files travel from management information systems to presses, artwork updates arrive over the cloud, and variable data flows into every job. With that connectivity comes a risk profile the industry did not face twenty years ago: unauthorized access to press systems, exposure of customer data, and production disruption.
Why connected presses changed the risk picture
Digital printing transfers digital files directly onto materials without physical plates. Every stage of that workflow, from MIS to RIP to press, is a digital handoff. Packaging Insights spoke with Bobst, Mondi, Flint Group Digital Xeikon and Xaar about how suppliers handle the exposure. The shared answer is layered: controlled workflows, restricted access, and encryption.
Bobst runs controlled data workflows in which job-specific data is not permanently stored locally on presses. Customers use anonymized identifiers supplied by their management information system, and presses connect to encrypted cloud services that isolate them from the customer's internal network. Flint Group Digital Xeikon describes the same logic in production terms: controlled data handling, restricted access, and closed-loop production processes.
Real incidents set the precedent
The threats are not theoretical. Security researchers found a remote code execution flaw in the PostScript processing of HP LaserJet Pro and Enterprise printers, a finding that drew attention to network-connected print workflows in general. Earlier, the PrintNightmare vulnerability in the Windows Print Spooler service, flagged by CISA in 2021, showed how a print service can become an entry point for code execution. Both were patched, and both are now cited as reasons to treat press and workflow security as a production issue rather than an IT footnote.
Where personal data enters packaging
Personalized packaging was named one of Packaging Insights' top packaging trends for 2026. Limited editions, regional variants and campaign-specific packaging rely on variable data, and some of that data is personal. Suppliers point to a practical boundary: personalization does not require personal data on the pack. Xaar's work with Diageo, Kammann and Marabu on Johnnie Walker bottles showed how digital inkjet can individualize decoration without exposing consumer information. Mondi keeps serial barcodes data-free: the unique numbers are linked to logistics information only at the customer's end.
What the shift means for buyers and printers
Security in digital packaging print now spans digital certificates, encryption, authentication, access control, intrusion detection and staff training. Compliance frameworks such as GDPR shape how production data is handled, and press vendors increasingly certify their platforms, as with the ISO 27001 certification of Bobst Connect.
The economics of digital packaging favor short runs, which is why custom-printed boxes and labels now arrive in quantities that offset production could not support at the same price. For print buyers, the practical questions are simple: where does job data live, who can access it, and what happens to variable data after the run? For printers, the same questions define a growing part of prepress responsibility. Security has become a prepress discipline: the file pipeline is now part of the product.
The industry conversation is only beginning. As digital presses handle more packaging volume, how far should security responsibility extend beyond the machine itself?
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