Method and apparatus for copy protection of images in a computer system
First Claim
1. A method of providing copy protection in a computer system comprising the steps of:
- program code executing in said computer system intercepting requests for transfer of data from a source region to a destination region;
specifying within said source region a protection region defining protected data;
said program code transferring data from said source region to said destination region, excluding said protection region.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method and apparatus for securing images from unlicensed appropriation on a computer system. Prior art graphics security measures, such as encryption, cease to protect the images once the images are deciphered and loaded into the video adapter memory. In the present invention, unlicensed transfers of image data from the video adapter to other storage means are substantially prevented by intercepting data transfer requests to the operating system and identifying whether the image is one to be protected. If the image is one that is marked for protection, the region of the data transfer incorporating the protected image is blacked out or replaced with a specified pattern or message. A preferred embodiment provides a library of software routines that are utilized by image display applications. These routines interface with the computer memory and the video display memory to block the copying of designated images by means of "hooks" into the operating system or operating environment. By means of these hooks and routines, the present invention identifies all regions on the video device that contain a protected image and exclude these regions from any operation that transfers data from the video display memory. Any attempts to transfer the designated regions result in an image containing "blacked out" regions in their place. The preferred embodiment includes an encryption scheme for image security prior to display.
190 Citations
58 Claims
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1. A method of providing copy protection in a computer system comprising the steps of:
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program code executing in said computer system intercepting requests for transfer of data from a source region to a destination region; specifying within said source region a protection region defining protected data; said program code transferring data from said source region to said destination region, excluding said protection region. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method for protecting files within a computer system from misappropriation, said method comprising the steps of:
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encrypting files selected for protection; deciphering said encrypted files only for authorized applications; prohibiting copying of decrypted file data selected for protection from device memory, said prohibiting process implemented in program code executing in said computer system and comprising the steps of; intercepting data transfer requests; determining a protected region of said device memory comprising said decrypted file data selected for protection; copying into a destination memory only data from those portions of said device memory not within said protected region. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of file protection for a computer system comprising the steps of:
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encrypting selected files using an encryption key; intercepting a read request from an application program; determining if a requested file is one of said selected files; allowing said read request to resume if said requested file is not one of said selected files; if said requested file is one of said selected files, finding said encryption key in a table by matching a registered application program signature with said application program and selecting a registered encryption key associated with said registered application program signature; deciphering said requested file using said registered encryption key; loading said decrypted file into a portion of memory assigned to said application program. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method of providing copy protection of images in a computer system comprising the steps of:
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encrypting selected images using an encryption key; intercepting a request to read an image from an application program; determining if said requested image is one of said selected images; allowing said request to resume if said requested image is not one of said selected images; if said requested image is one of said selected images, finding said encryption key in a table by matching a registered application program signature with said application program and selecting a registered encryption key associated with said registered application program signature; deciphering said requested image using said registered encryption key; loading said decrypted image into a portion of memory assigned to said application program; prohibiting copying of said decrypted image selected for protection from device memory. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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26. An article of manufacture comprising:
a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for providing copy protection, the computer readable program code in said article of manufacture comprising; computer readable program code configured to cause a computer to intercept requests for transfer of data from a source region to a destination region; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to specify within said source region a protection region defining protected data; and computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to transfer data from said source region to said destination region, excluding said protection region. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. An article of manufacture comprising:
a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for protecting files within a computer system from misappropriation, the computer readable program code in said article of manufacture comprising; computer readable program code configured to cause a computer to encrypt files selected for protection; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to decipher said encrypted files only for authorized applications; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to prohibit copying of decrypted file data selected for protection from device memory, said prohibiting program code further comprising; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to intercept data transfer requests; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to determine a protected region of said device memory comprising said decrypted file data selected for protection; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to copy into a destination memory only data from those portions of said device memory not within said protected region. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38)
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39. An article of manufacture comprising:
a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for file protection for a computer system, the computer readable program code in said article of manufacture comprising; computer readable program code configured to cause a computer to encrypt selected files using an encryption key; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to intercept a read request from an application program; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to determine if a requested file is one of said selected files; if said requested file is not one of said selected files, computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to allow said read request to resume; if said requested file is one of said selected files, computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to find said encryption key in a table by matching a registered application program signature with said application program and selecting a registered encryption key associated with said registered application program signature; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to decipher said requested file using said registered encryption key; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to load said decrypted file into a portion of memory assigned to said application program. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43, 44)
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45. An article of manufacture comprising:
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a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for providing copy protection of images in a computer system, the computer readable program code in said article of manufacture comprising; computer readable program code configured to cause a computer to encrypt selected images using an encryption key; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to intercept a request to read an image from an application program; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to determine if said requested image is one of said selected images; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to allow said request to resume if said requested image is not one of said selected images; if said requested image is one of said selected images, computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to finding said encryption key in a table by matching a registered application program signature with said application program and selecting a registered encryption key associated with said registered application program signature; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to decipher said requested image using said registered encryption key; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to load said decrypted image into a portion of memory assigned to said application program; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to prohibit copying of said decrypted image selected for protection from device memory. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47, 48, 49, 50)
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51. An article of manufacture comprising:
a computer usable medium having computer readable program code embodied therein for providing copy protection in a computer system, the computer readable program code in said article of manufacture comprising; computer readable program code configured to cause a computer to intercept requests for transfer of data that is displayed on a display means from a source region to a destination region; computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to specify within said source region a protection region defining protected data; and computer readable program code configured to cause said computer to transfer data from said source region to said destination region, excluding said protection region. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58)
Specification