Systems for forensic steganography. A server is interfaced with storage facilities that store an object accessible by two or more users, each of which users are associated with respective profiles comprising one or more user-specific attributes. A method detects a user request to view the object. User-specific attributes are encoded into a steganographic message, which is formatted for saving into one or more locations in the object, thus generating a protected object. The protected object is delivered to the requesting user. Encoding, application and formatting techniques are configured to make the steganographic message undetectable by human viewing of the protected object. A web crawler or other policing technique can detect misappropriation in the form of unauthorized dissemination by detecting the presence of the encoded steganographic message embedded in the protected object. Decoding the steganographic message reveals the user-specific attributes so as to identify the user who disseminated the protected object.