The increased adoption of additive manufacturing (AM) and the acceptance of AM outsourcing created an ecosystem in which the sending and receiving of digital designs by different actors became normal. It has recently been shown that the STL design files -- most commonly used in AM -- contain steganographic channels. Such channels can allow additional data to be embedded within the STL files without changing the printed model. These factors create a threat of misusing the design files as a covert communication channel to either exfiltrate stolen sensitive digital data from organizations or infiltrate malicious software into a secure environment. This paper addresses this security threat by designing and evaluating a \emph{sanitizer} that erases hidden content where steganographic channels might exist. The proposed sanitizer takes into account a set of specific constraints imposed by the application domain, such as not affecting the ability to manufacture part of the required quality using the sanitized design.

翻译：增材制造技术的广泛应用及其外包模式的普及，构建了一个数字设计文件在不同参与者之间频繁收发的生态系统。最新研究表明，增材制造中最常用的STL设计文件中存在隐写通道，此类通道可在不改变打印模型的前提下，将附加数据嵌入STL文件。这些因素导致设计文件可能被滥用作隐蔽通信渠道，既可能泄露组织内部的敏感数字信息，也可能将恶意软件渗透至安全环境。本文通过设计并评估一种能清除隐写通道可能隐藏内容的净化器，以应对这一安全威胁。该净化器充分考虑了应用领域的特定约束条件，例如确保经过净化的设计文件仍能制造出符合质量要求的部件。