arXiv Machine Learning

Semantic Differentiation for Tackling Challenges in Watermarking Low-Entropy Constrained Generation Outputs

arXiv:2601. 11629v2 Announce Type: replace-cross Abstract: We demonstrate that while the current approaches for language model watermarking are effective for open-ended generation, they are inadequate at watermarking LM outputs for constrained generation tasks with low-entropy output spaces.

arXiv Computation and Language
4d ago

TTMark: Pairwise Distortion-Free Watermarking Beyond Single-Token Entropy

TTMark introduces a pairwise watermarking framework that extends distortion‑free watermarking from single tokens to adjacent token pairs, enlarging the watermarking alphabet from V to V². By watermarking the joint distribution of consecutive tokens, the detector can exploit both token entropy and conditional entropy while maintaining distortion‑freeness. Experiments on multiple language models and datasets show that TTMARK improves detectability, robustness to edits, and localized watermark detection without degrading generation quality.

By Ruibo Chen, Zhengmian Hu, Donghang Lu, Xuehao Cui, Georgios Milis, Yihan Wu, Jian Du, Heng Huang
arXiv Computation and Language
4d ago

CORE-BREW: LLR-Based Soft Decoding for Robust Multi-Bit LLM Watermarking

CORE-BREW is a new multi‑bit watermarking method for large language models that uses log‑likelihood ratios for soft‑decision decoding, targeting a fixed hit rate to calibrate the watermark channel. It introduces entropy‑aware erasures to reduce perturbations in low‑entropy contexts and combines likelihood‑based scoring with soft‑decision list decoding to better exploit token‑level reliability. Experiments on open‑source LLMs show that CORE‑BREW improves detection robustness and payload recovery compared to the BREW baseline while keeping false‑positive rates low and maintaining translation quality metrics close to unwatermarked text.

By Joeun Kim, HoEun Kim, Young-Sik Kim
arXiv Machine Learning
4d ago

Dataset Watermarking with Provable Black-Box Detection

The paper introduces a dataset watermarking technique that embeds a watermark by increasing the co‑occurrence of randomly selected word pairs through meaning‑preserving local edits. The watermark can be detected solely from generated text with provable false‑positive control, and experiments on four base models and three datasets show reliable detection (p < 0.01) even when the watermarked data constitutes less than 5% of fine‑tuning tokens. Compared to existing methods, the approach better preserves benchmark utility and semantic integrity.

By Pengrun Huang, Kamalika Chaudhuri, Yu-Xiang Wang
arXiv AI
Sep 18

Watermarking Diffusion Language Models

The paper introduces the first watermark designed specifically for diffusion language models (DLMs), which generate tokens in arbitrary order unlike traditional autoregressive models. It overcomes the challenge of missing prior tokens by applying the watermark in expectation over the context and promoting tokens that strengthen the watermark when used as context. Experiments show a >99% true positive rate with minimal quality loss and comparable robustness to existing autoregressive watermarks.

By Thibaud Gloaguen, Robin Staab, Nikola Jovanovi\'c, Martin Vechev
arXiv Machine Learning
Jul 8

Beyond Heuristic Tuning: Power-Calibrated LLM Watermarking

arXiv:2607. 05694v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: Logit-based watermarking is a widely used mechanism for identifying LLM generated content, yet its effectiveness is governed by a fundamental trade-off between detectability and semantic distortion.

By Xiaopu Wang, Zelin He, Chengyuan Liu, Runze Li
arXiv Computation and Language
Sep 7

Robust Text Watermarking for Large Language Models via Dual Semantic Embeddings

The paper introduces Dual-Embedding Watermarking (DEW), a semantic watermarking technique for large language models that combines contextual and token-level embeddings. DEW applies algebraic vector-space operations to generate a watermark signal that remains robust to paraphrasing and translation, while obfuscating the signal with pseudo-random matrices seeded by a secret key. Experiments demonstrate state‑of‑the‑art robustness, especially against translation, with minimal computational overhead and preserved text quality at lower watermark strengths.

By Jonas Sch\"afer, Cezary Pilaszewicz, Gerhard Wunder
arXiv Computation and Language
Sep 1

More Haste, Less Speed: Weaker Single-Layer Watermark Improves Distortion-Free Watermark Ensembles

The paper investigates watermarking for large language model outputs, noting that stronger single-layer watermarks reduce token entropy and weaken subsequent layers. It demonstrates that detectability is limited by entropy and that watermark ensembles monotonically lower entropy and the green‑list ratio. The authors propose using weaker single‑layer watermarks to maintain entropy, showing through theory and experiments that this approach improves both detectability and robustness compared to strong baselines.

By Ruibo Chen, Yihan Wu, Xuehao Cui, Jingqi Zhang, Heng Huang