# BiSLW: Bi-Spectral Latent Watermarking for Generative Diffusion Models

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.02643 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.02643/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Robustness, privacy and adversarial aspects, one of 14 directions in Diffusion models.
- Builds on 14 of its 23 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 2 Jul 2026.

## Placed in

- Diffusion models / [Robustness, privacy and adversarial aspects](https://mlsanity.com/diffusion/robustness-privacy-and-adversarial-aspects/)
- LLM safety and security / [Watermarking generated content and models](https://mlsanity.com/safety/watermarking-generated-content-and-models/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 14 of 14)

- [Deep Residual Learning for Image Recognition](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1512.03385/) (2015)
- [Denoising Diffusion Probabilistic Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.11239/) (2020)
- [FiLM: Visual Reasoning with a General Conditioning Layer](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1709.07871/) (2017)
- [CNN-generated images are surprisingly easy to spot... for now](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1912.11035/) (2019)
- [HiDDeN: Hiding Data With Deep Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1807.09937/) (2018)
- [The Stable Signature: Rooting Watermarks in Latent Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.15435/) (2023)
- [On the detection of synthetic images generated by diffusion models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2211.00680/) (2022)
- [Tree-Ring Watermarks: Fingerprints for Diffusion Images that are Invisible and Robust](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.20030/) (2023)
- [Robust Invisible Video Watermarking with Attention](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1909.01285/) (2019)
- [Watermarking Images in Self-Supervised Latent Spaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2112.09581/) (2021)
- [RoSteALS: Robust Steganography using Autoencoder Latent Space](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2304.03400/) (2023)
- [WMAdapter: Adding WaterMark Control to Latent Diffusion Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.08337/) (2024)
- [LaWa: Using Latent Space for In-Generation Image Watermarking](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2408.05868/) (2024)
- [Semantic Watermarking Reinvented: Enhancing Robustness and Generation Quality with Fourier Integrity](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.07647/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Diffusion-based generative models have transformed visual content synthesis, yet they remain vulnerable to unauthorized usage and lack reliable attribution methods. Existing watermarking techniques often treat latent tensors as static spatial feature maps or depend on pixel-domain modification, and most do not explicitly leverage the internal frequency structure of the latent space for dual-band redundant embedding, leaving them susceptible to the stochastic nature of diffusion and regeneration attacks. We introduce BiSLW, a trainable bi-spectral latent watermarking framework that jointly embeds aligned identity signals across complementary spectral bands of the decoded diffusion latent using learned encoders and decoders, going beyond fixed-pattern frequency approaches. We leverage the inherent frequency structure of diffusion latents to design a dual-band watermarking framework. Low-frequency components encode global semantics, while high-frequency components capture fine texture. We exploit this structure to embed watermarks across complementary spectral bands. The watermark is independently injected into both bands via learned encoders and recombined before decoding, ensuring it becomes intrinsic to the generative trajectory. Dual spectral decoders recover the watermark from each band, while a cross-band consistency constraint enforces alignment between semantic and textural embeddings. Experiments show that BiSLW achieves a strong balance between perceptual fidelity and robustness, improving PSNR by over 3 dB compared to prior latent diffusion watermarking methods while preserving near-perfect bit accuracy under aggressive regeneration and common distortions, all with negligible computational overhead.
