Authentication method for pharmaceutical products having coded packaging

A method for authenticating a pharmaceutical product, the pharmaceutical product being associated with packaging having disposed thereon or therein coded data including a number of coded data portions, each coded data portion being indicative of an identity of the pharmaceutical product and at least part of a signature, the signature being a digital signature of at least part of the identity and being encoded within a plurality of coded data portions, wherein the method includes:

• in a sensing device:
• sensing at least one coded data portion;
• and,
• generating, using the sensed coded data portion, indicating data indicative of:
• the identity;
• and,
• the at least one signature part;
• in a processor:
• determining, from the indicating data:
• a determined identity;
• and,
• at least one determined signature part;
• authenticating the pharmaceutical product using the determined identity and
• the at least one determined signature part,
• wherein the coded data is arranged in accordance with at least one layout having n-fold rotational symmetry, where n is at least two, the layout including n identical sub-layouts rotated 1/n revolutions apart about a centre of rotation, at least one sub-layout including rotation-indicating data that distinguishes that sub-layout from each other sub-layout, the sub-layouts defining the position of a plurality of first symbols encoding the identity and a plurality of second symbols defining at least part of the signature.