HP Blocks Printer Ink Made from Third Parties

HP Printers

Hewlett-Packard (HP) continually strives to ensure that no third-party ink is used in the use of their printers. First introduced in 2016, dynamic security is part of HP cartridge validation.

The company says it aims to protect the quality of the customer experience, maintain the integrity of the company's printing system, and protect intellectual property. This means that the company will prohibit the use of any ink or toner cartridge that does not contain a "new or used HP chip or electronic circuit" in certain printers.

However, HP has extended its dynamic security policy to many devices compatible with non-HP cartridges. The proof is the confession of one Reddit user, u/grhhull. He said they can no longer use third party cartridges with their HP branded printers.

"The specified cartridge has been blocked by the printer firmware because it contains a non-HP chip," says a message on the u/grhhull printer screen. In other words, this printer can only work with new or used cartridges with HP chips.

In 2016, HP released an optional update to remove dynamic security features. However, the changes are confusing because they only apply to certain models.

Although it's not clear which HP printers have dynamic security settings. It was later learned that the issue had spread to several models, including the OfficeJet Pro 6970, OfficeJet Pro 6968, OfficeJet 6950, and OfficeJet 7740. This aligns with HP's latest firmware updates released in December 2022 and January 2023. The company describes it as a dynamic security measure, used to block malicious attacks on cartridges that incorporate non-HP chips or modified electronic circuits.

They also demonstrated that periodic firmware updates can maintain the effectiveness of dynamic security measures and block previously functioning cartridges.