Method and apparatus for protecting the transfer of data
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A secure content delivery system, comprising:
- a set-top box to initiate a request for program data; and
a conditional access (CA) control system in communication with the set-top box, the CA control system to transmit information to a remote source, and in response, to receive a mating key being based on the transmitted information from the remote source, the mating key being used to encrypt a control word used for scrambling the program data prior to transmission to the set-top box.
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Abstract
According to one embodiment, a method for scrambling and descrambling program data comprises the receipt of a mating key generator message including a manufacturer identifier. The mating key generator message is transmitted to a first remote source identified by the manufacturer identifier. In response, a mating key is received from the first remote source. Then, the mating key is supplied to a second remote source, the mating key being subsequently used to encrypt a service key used for scrambling program data.
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Citations
31 Claims
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1. A secure content delivery system, comprising:
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a set-top box to initiate a request for program data; and
a conditional access (CA) control system in communication with the set-top box, the CA control system to transmit information to a remote source, and in response, to receive a mating key being based on the transmitted information from the remote source, the mating key being used to encrypt a control word used for scrambling the program data prior to transmission to the set-top box. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method comprising:
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receiving a mating key generator message including a manufacturer identifier;
transmitting the mating key generator message to a first remote source identified by the manufacturer identifier;
receiving a mating key from the first remote source; and
supplying the mating key to a second remote source, the mating key being subsequently used to encrypt a service key used for scrambling program data. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A mating key gateway adapted for communication with a plurality of subscriber management systems each associated with a different content provider, comprising:
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means for retrieving a mating key based on at least one of a serial number associated with a set-top box targeted to receive program data and a mating key generator; and
means for transmitting the mating key to the one of the plurality of subscriber management systems, the mating key being used to encrypt at least one service key provided to the set-top box. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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24. An apparatus adapted to receive scrambled content and descramble the scrambled content, comprising:
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a removable smart card adapted to receive (i) an encrypted control word, and (ii) a mating key generator message; and
a descrambler component to receive the encrypted control word and the mating key generator, the descambler component performs a cryptographic operation on the mating key generator to produce a key that is capable of decrypting the encrypted control word to recover a control word used for descrambling scrambled content loaded into the set-top box. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27)
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28. An apparatus adapted to receive scrambled content, comprising:
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a network interface; and
a descrambler component to receive a mating key generator message, at least one encrypted service key and a corresponding key identifier to indicates a tier of service associated with the encrypted service key over the network interface, the descrambler component performing a cryptographic operation on the mating key generator to produce a key for decrypting the encrypted service key to recover a service key used to descramble the scrambled content. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31)
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Specification