Method for protecting content using watermarking

• US 5,949,885 A
• Filed: 08/29/1997
• Issued: 09/07/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Leighton, F. Thomson
• Original Assignee: Leighton, F. Thomson
• Inventors: Leighton, F. Thomson
• Primary Examiner(s): Gregory, Bernarr E.
• Application Number:
  US08/920,365
• Time in Patent Office: 739 Days
• Field of Search: 380/3, 380/4, 380/23, 380/49, 380/51, 380/54, 380/55, 380/59, 283/113, 283/72, 283/73, 283/74, 283/85, 283/93, 283/57, 283/58, 283/59, 283/901, 283/902, 283/17, 341/51, 348/432
• US Class Current: 380/54
• 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: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0071 using multiple or alternating watermarks
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0063 in relation to collusion attacks, e.g. collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0081 whereby both original and watermarked images are required at decoder, e.g. destination-based, non-blind, non-oblivious
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0083 whereby only watermarked image required at decoder, e.g. source-based, blind, oblivious
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00884 involving a watermark, i.e. a barely perceptible transformation of the original data which can nevertheless be recognised by an algorithm
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32144 embedded in the image data, i.e. enclosed or integrated in the image, e.g. watermark, super-imposed logo or stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32154 Transform domain methods H04N1/32309 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32165 using cosine transforms
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32304 Embedding different sets of additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3233 of authentication information, e.g. digital signature, watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3236 Details of authentication information generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/324 Selecting a particular authentication information from amongst a plurality of different authentication information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection

Abstract

A watermarking procedure wherein each of a set of copies of the work has a slightly-modified form of a "baseline" watermark that is placed within a critical region of the data. The slight variations in the watermarks, however, are not perceptually visible and do not interfere with the work. If multiple persons collude to attempt to create an "illicit" copy of the work (i.e., a copy without a watermark), however, at least one of the modified watermarks is present in the copy, thereby identifying both the illicit copy and the copier.

Claims

1. A method of copy protection for a document, comprising the steps of:

generating a first digital string from the document to form a baseline watermark;

generating a second digital string from given text;

generating a watermark having a predetermined relationship to the first and second digital strings; and

inserting the watermark into the document to protect the document against illicit copying.

2. The method of copy protection as described in claim 1 further including the steps of:

retrieving a derived watermark from the document to form a third digital string;

generating a fourth digital string from the given text;

running a correlation test between the third and fourth digital strings; and

if the third and fourth digital strings have a predetermined correlation, generating an indication that the given text is present in the document.

3. The method as described in claim 1 wherein the given text includes a copy prohibition.

4. The method as described in claim 1 wherein the given text is a serial number.

5. The method as described in claim 1 wherein the second and fourth digital strings are generated using a secret hash function whose output is a string of pseudorandom numbers.

6. An access control method, comprising the steps of:

during a watermarking phase;

generating a first digital string from an object sought to be protected to form a baseline watermark;

generating a second digital string from given text;

generating a watermark having a predetermined relationship to the first and second digital strings; and

inserting the watermark into the object to protect access to the object;

upon an access request;

retrieving a derived watermark from the object to form a third digital string;

generating a fourth digital string from the given text;

correlating the third and fourth digital strings; and

if the third and fourth digital strings have a predetermined correlation, authorizing access to the object.

7. The method as described in claim 6 wherein the given text is a password.

8. The method as described in 6 wherein the second and fourth digital strings are generated using a secret hash function.

9. A method of watermarking an object, comprising the steps of:

generating a first digital string from the object to form a baseline watermark;

generating a second digital string from given text providing an indication that a first action with respect to the object is allowed and a second action with respect to the object is prohibited;

generating a watermark having a predetermined relationship to the given text and the second digital string; and

inserting the watermark into the object.

10. The method as described in claim 9 wherein the first action is copying the object and the second action is accessing the object.

11. The method as described in claim 9 wherein the first action is accessing the document and the second action is copying the object.

12. The method as described in claim 9 wherein the second digital string is generated using a random hash function whose output is a string of pseudorandom numbers.

13. The method as described in claim 9 wherein the object is a document.

14. The method as described in claim 9 wherein the object is an audiovisual work.

15. A method for determining whether an object has a given watermark, comprising the steps of:

processing the object to generate a data string;

correlating the data string with a value that is a function of the given watermark and a second watermark such that information useful in determining the given watermark cannot be obtained from the value; and

if the data string and the value correlate to a predetermined extent, indicating that the object has been watermarked with the given watermark.

16. The method as described in claim 15 wherein the function is an average of the given watermark and the second watermark.

17. A method for determining whether a document has a given watermark vector embedded therein, comprising the steps of:

processing the document to generate a data string;

correlating the data string with a value that is a function of the given watermark vector and a second watermark, wherein the second watermark masks information about the given watermark;

accepting the document as including the given watermark vector if the data string and the value correlate to a predetermined extent.

18. The method as described in claim 17 wherein the function is an average of the given watermark vector and the second watermark.

19. A access protection method operative in a device having means for outputting given content, comprising the steps of:

retrieving a derived watermark and a derived signal from the given content;

generating a digital string from the derived signal using a secure hash function;

correlating the derived watermark and the digital string; and

based on a result of the correlating step, taking a given action.

20. The access protection method as described in claim 19 wherein the given action includes the step of allowing the given content to be accessed if the derived watermark and the digital string correlate to the predetermined degree.

21. The access protection method as described in claim 19 wherein the given action includes the step of denying access to the given content if the derived watermark and the digital string correlate to the predetermined degree.

22. The access protection method as described in claim 21 wherein the device is a player and the given content is an audiovisual work.

23. A method for authorizing access to given content that has a given watermark embedded therein, comprising the steps of:

processing the given content to generate a first data string;

generating a second data string by applying a given function to the first data string;

correlating the first and second data strings; and

if the first and second data strings correlate to a given degree, providing a password to enable further processing of the given content.

24. The method as described in claim 23 wherein the further processing includes viewing the given content.

25. The method as described in claim 23 wherein the further processing includes copying the given content.

26. A method for computing a derived watermark, comprising the steps of:

processing a given work W to form a first data string x₁, x₂, . . . x_n,

processing a collection C of works to form a second data string y₁, y₂, . . . y_n ; and

computing the derived watermark z₁, z₂, . . . z_n by applying a given function f(x_i, y_i).

27. The method as described in claim 26 wherein f(x_i, y_i) is equal to (x_i -y_i).

28. The method as described in claim 26 wherein f(x_i, y_i) is equal to (x_i /y_i).

29. The method as described in claim 26 wherein the collection C of works consists of the work W.

30. The method as described in claim 26 wherein the work W is an video work having a plurality of frames, the first data string is derived from a first frame of the video work, and the second data string is derived from a second frame of the video work.

31. A method of access control for a document, comprising the steps of:

generating a first digital string from the document to form a baseline watermark;

generating a second digital string from given text;

generating a set of watermarks each having a predetermined relationship to the first and second digital strings; and

inserting the set of watermarks into the document to protect the document against illicit use.

32. The method as described in claim 31 further including the step of, at a subsequent time, processing the document to determine whether any of the set of watermarks are present.

33. The method as described in claim 32 further including the step of authorizing access to the document if at least a given number of the set of watermarks are present.

34. The method as described in claim 32 further including the step of authorizing access to the document if at most a given number of the set of watermarks are present.

35. The method as described in claim 31 wherein one of the set of watermarks is generated at a different time than at least one other of the set of watermarks.

36. A method for detecting a watermark in a document using information that, if disclosed, does not compromise security of the document, comprising the steps of:

processing the document to generate a data string;

correlating the data string with the information; and

accepting the document as including the watermark if the data string and the information correlate to a predetermined extent.

37. The method as described in claim 36 wherein the processing step includes digitizing the document and the information is an average of the watermark and a second watermark.