Systems and methods for expiring digital assets using encryption key

• US 20060106812A1
• Filed: 11/17/2005
• Published: 05/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Iron Mountain Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Iron Mountain Incorporated
• Inventors: Barnes, Matthew, Blumenau, Steven
• Application Number:
  US11/282,463
• Publication Number:
  US 20060106812A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/125 characterised by the use of retention policies retention policies for HSM systems G06F16/185
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/14 Details of searching files based on file metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/182 Distributed file systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2135 Metering
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2137 Time limited access, e.g. to a computer or data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2143 Clearing memory, e.g. to prevent the data from being stolen
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/913 Multimedia
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 Database or file accessing

Abstract

Systems and methods for managing digital assets in a distributed computing environment are described. Meta-data for the digital assets is stored separately from the digital assets. Meta-data for some of the digital assets is copied and stored at a central location. Meta-data for the digital assets is generated by clients of the system.

Claims

1. A method of preventing access to an expired digital asset, the method comprising:

(a) encrypting a digital asset using an encryption key, the digital asset associated with a tag specifying a time after which the digital asset should be unavailable, the encryption key having a predetermined expiration time; and

(b) destroying the encryption key after the predetermined time.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising marking the digital asset for expiration prior to encrypting the digital asset.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

copying the encrypted digital asset from a file system to another storage medium;

copying the encryption key to the another storage medium; and

wherein the destroying comprises, destroying the encryption key on the another storage medium after the predetermined time.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the encrypting comprises encrypting a plurality of digital assets using a single encryption key.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the encrypting comprises encrypting a plurality of digital assets using a respective encryption key for each digital asset of the plurality of digital assets.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the encryption is performed by a file system filter driver.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the encryption is performed by a plug-in module.

8. A system for preventing access to an expired digital asset, the system comprising:

a computing device having an application thereon that encrypts a digital asset using an encryption key, the digital asset associated with a tag specifying a time after which the digital asset should be unavailable, the encryption key having a predetermined expiration time, and destroys the encryption key after the predetermined time.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the digital asset is marked for expiration prior to encrypting the digital asset.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the computing device copies the digital asset from a file system of the computing device to another storage medium, copies the encryption key to the another storage medium.

11. The system of claim 8 wherein a plurality of digital assets are encrypted using a single encryption key.

12. The system of claim 8 wherein a plurality of digital assets are encrypted using a respective encryption key for each digital asset.

13. The system of claim 8 further comprising a file system filter driver in communication with the computing device to encrypt the digital asset.

14. The system of claim 8 further comprising a plug-in module in communication with the computing device to encrypt the digital asset.

15. A computer readable medium having executable instructions thereon to prevent access to an expired digital asset, the computer readable medium comprising:

(a) instructions to encrypt a digital asset using an encryption key, the digital asset associated with a tag specifying a time after which the digital asset should be unavailable, the encryption key having a predetermined expiration time; and

(b) destroying the encryption key after the predetermined time.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 15 further comprising marking the digital asset for expiration prior to encrypting the digital asset.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 15 further comprising instructions to copy the encrypted digital asset from a file system to another storage medium, instructions to copy the encryption key to the another storage medium, and instructions to destroy the encryption key after the predetermined time.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 15 wherein the instructions to encrypt comprise instructions to encrypt a plurality of digital assets using a single encryption key.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 15 wherein the instructions to encrypt comprise instructions to encrypt a plurality of digital assets using a respective encryption key for each digital asset of the plurality of digital assets.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 15 wherein at least some of the instructions are performed by a file system filter driver.

21. The computer readable medium of claim 15 wherein at least some of the instructions are performed by a plug-in module.