To prevent clips from being cut out of a video or inserted, add a non-repeating sequence of bar codes onto either the whole frame or the main object of the video, such as a person talking. The bar code can use subtle „watermark” shading that does not interfere with viewing – it only needs to be readable by computer. The sequence of bar codes can be recreated at a later time if the algorithm is known, so if a clip is cut out of the video or added, then the sequence no longer matches the replication. Altering the video frame by frame also changes the bar code, although the forger can bypass this security feature by reading the original bar code, removing it before retouching and adding it back later. Still, these extra steps make faking the video somewhat more difficult. The main security feature is that the length of the video cannot be changed without altering the sequence of bar codes, which is easily detected.

The maker of the video may generate the bar codes cryptographically using a private key. This enables confirming the source of the video, for example in a copyright dispute.

Probably the idea of bar-coding videos has already been implemented, because watermarks and time stamps on photos have long been used. The main novelty relative to treating each frame as a photo is to link the bar codes to each other over time.