Information devices which select and use one out of plurality of encryption utilization protocols for protecting copyrights of digital productions

• US 6,182,215 B1
• Filed: 02/25/1998
• Issued: 01/30/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tatebayashi, Makoto, Harada, Syunji
• Primary Examiner(s): Barron, Jr., Gilberto
• Application Number:
  US09/030,785
• Time in Patent Office: 1,070 Days
• Field of Search: 713/150, 713/151, 713/152, 713/168, 713/172, 705/80, 705/57
• US Class Current: 713/168
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3271 using challenge-response
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4367 Establishing a secure communication between the client and a peripheral device or smart card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4627 Rights management associated to the content security in data switching network management H04L41/28; security management or policies for network security H04L63/20; access security in wireless networks H04W12/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/1675 Providing digital key or authorisation information for generation or regeneration of the scrambling sequence pseudo-random number generators in general G06F7/58

Abstract

A verifier and a claimant notify each other of verifier type information and claimant type information, respectively. The verifier determines a verifier method corresponding to a combination of the verifier type information and the notified claimant type information, generates challenge data in accordance with the determined verifier method, and transmits the challenge data to the claimant. On receiving the challenge data from the verifier, the claimant determines a claimant method corresponding to the combination of the claimant type information and the notified verifier type information. The claimant then performs claimant processing on the challenge data using the determined claimant method to obtain response data, and transmits the response data to the verifier. On receiving the response data from the claimant, the verifier performs verifier processing on the response data using the determined verifier method.

Claims

1. A communication system where a plurality of information devices, that are capable of executing a plurality of encryption utilization protocols, communicate with each other,

wherein each information device comprises:

notification means for transmitting type information showing a device type of a present information device, that represents at least one encryption utilization protocol that can be executed by the present information device out of the plurality of encryption utilization protocols, to another information device in the communication system with which communication is to be performed;

determining means for determining which encryption utilization protocol is to be used in the communication, from a combination of the type information of the present information device and type information received from the other information device with which the communication is to be performed; and

communication means, equipped with at least one protocol correspondence communication unit that performs communication using a corresponding encryption utilization protocol out of the plurality of encryption utilization protocols that are represented by the device type shown by the type information of the present information device, for having one of the protocol correspondence communication units perform the communication with the other information device using the encryption utilization protocol determined by the determining means, wherein there are n different device types, n being at least two,

wherein the determining means of each information device includes;

a table storage unit for storing at least one table where each combination of two device types selected from the n different device types is associated with protocol correspondence information that shows which of the plurality of encryption utilization protocols should be used for the combination;

a type information storage unit for storing the type information showing the device type of the present information device out of the n different device types;

a determination unit for determining, on being informed of the type information of the other information device with which the communication is to be performed, an encryption utilization protocol shown by protocol correspondence information that is associated in the table stored in the table storage unit to the combination of the type information of the other information device and the type information of the present information device as the encryption utilization protocol which is to be used in the communication; and

wherein the communication means has a protocol correspondence communication unit that corresponds to the encryption utilization protocol determined by the determination unit to perform the communication using the determined encryption utilization protocol.

2. The communication system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of encryption utilization protocols are a plurality of authentication protocols,

wherein each protocol correspondence communication unit in one of the plurality of information devices in the communication system includes:

an authentication unit for having another information device in the communication system with which communication is to be performed make an attempt to prove that the other information device is authentic using an authentication protocol determined by the determination unit, and for judging from the attempt whether the other information device is authentic; and

a transmission unit for transmitting data that is subject to protection to the other information device only when the authentication unit has judged that the other information device is authentic.

3. The communication system of claim 2,

wherein the table storage unit in each information device stores a plurality of different tables in which each combination of two device types selected from the n different device types is associated with protocol correspondence information that shows which of the plurality of authentication protocols should be used for the combination,

wherein a first table out of the plurality of different tables stores protocol correspondence information that shows a most secure authentication protocol that should be used for each combination of two device types selected from the n different device types,

wherein a second table out of the plurality of different tables stores protocol correspondence information that shows an authentication protocol with a highest processing speed that should be used for each combination of two device types selected from the n different device types,

wherein the determining means in the information device further includes a selection unit for selecting one out of the plurality of different tables stored in the table storage unit with consideration to which of high security and fast processing is desired for the communication to be performed and for informing the other information device of the selected table,

and wherein the determination unit in each information device determines the authentication protocol to be used in the communication from the table selected by the selection unit, out of the plurality of different tables stored in the table storage unit.

4. The communication system of claim 3, wherein the plurality of authentication protocols include a plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format,

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format include authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use public key encryption and authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use secret key encryption,

wherein the protocol correspondence information in the first table shows the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the public key encryption as most secure authentication protocols in challenge-response format,

wherein the protocol correspondence information in the second table shows the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the secret key encryption as authentication protocols in challenge-response format with the highest processing speed, and

wherein the communication means in each information device is equipped with protocol correspondence communication units which perform communication based on the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the public key encryption and protocol correspondence communication units which perform communication based on the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the secret key encryption.

5. The communication system of claim 4,

wherein an authentication unit in each protocol correspondence communication unit which performs communication based on an authentication protocol in challenge-response format that uses public key encryption in the information device comprises:

a first challenge data generation unit for generating a random number and transmitting the random number to the other information device as challenge data;

a first decryption unit for decrypting, on receiving response data from the other information device, the response data using predetermined public key data; and

a first judgement unit for judging whether the other information device is authentic based on a decryption result obtained by the decryption unit,

and wherein an authentication unit in each protocol correspondence communication unit which performs communication based on an authentication protocol in challenge-response format that uses secret key encryption in the information device comprises;

a second challenge data generation unit for generating a random number and transmitting the random number to the other information device as challenge data;

a second decryption unit for decrypting, on receiving response data from the other information device, the response data using predetermined secret key data; and

a second judgement unit for judging whether the other information device is authentic based on a decryption result obtained by the decryption unit.

6. The communication system of claim 2,

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols include a plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format,

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format include authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use public key encryption and authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use secret key encryption.

7. The communication system of claim 2,

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols include one-way authentication protocols in time sequence.

8. In a communication system where a plurality of information devices are capable of receiving data by executing at least one protocol out of a plurality of encryption utilization protocols between information devices in order to communicate with each other, the improvement of at least one information device comprising:

a notification unit for transmitting type information showing a device type of the information device, that represents at least one encryption utilization protocol that can be executed by the present information device out of the plurality of encryption utilization protocols, to another information device in the communication system with which communication is to be performed;

a determining unit for determining which encryption utilization protocol is to be used in the communication, from a combination of the type information of the present information device and type information received from the other information device with which the communication is to be performed, including

a table storage unit for storing at least one table where each combination of at least two device types is associated with protocol correspondence information that shows which of the plurality of encryption utilization protocols can be used for communication,

a type information storage unit for storing the type information showing the device type of the present information device out of the plurality of information device types, and

a determination unit for determining, on being informed of the type information of the other information device with which the communication is to be performed, an encryption utilization protocol shown by protocol correspondence information that is associated in the table stored in the table storage unit to the combination of the type information of the other information device and the type information of the present information device as the encryption utilization protocol which is to be used in the communication; and

a communication unit, equipped with at least one protocol correspondence communication unit that performs communication using a corresponding encryption utilization protocol out of the encryption utilization protocols that are represented by the device type shown by the type information of the present information device, for communicating with the other information device using the encryption utilization protocol determined by the determining unit.

9. The information device of claim 8 wherein the plurality of encryption utilization protocols are a plurality of authentication protocols, and the protocol correspondence communication unit includes:

an authentication unit for having another information device in the communication system with which communication is to be performed make an attempt to prove that the other information device is authentic using an authentication protocol determined by the determination unit, and for judging from the attempt whether the other information device is authentic; and

a transmission unit for transmitting data, that is subject to protection, to the other information device only when the authentication unit has judged that the other information device is authentic.

10. The information device of claim 9,

wherein the table storage unit stores a plurality of different tables in which each combination of two device types selected from the different device types is associated with protocol correspondence information that shows which of the plurality of authentication protocols should be used for the combination;

wherein a first table, out of the plurality of different tables, stores protocol correspondence information that shows a most secure authentication protocol that should be used for each combination of two device types selected from the different device types;

wherein a second table, out of a plurality of different tables, stores protocol correspondence information that shows an authentication protocol with a highest processing speed that should be used for each combination of two device types selected from the different device types;

wherein the determining unit in the information device further includes a selection unit for selecting one out of the plurality of different tables stored in the table storage unit with consideration to which of high security and fast processing is desired for the communication to be performed and for informing the other information device of the selected table; and

wherein the determination unit determines the authentication protocol to be used in the communication from the table selected by the selection unit, out of the plurality of different tables stored in the table storage unit.

11. The information device of claim 10, wherein the plurality of authentication protocols include a plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format;

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format include authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use public key encryption and authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use secret key encryption;

wherein the protocol correspondence information in the first table shows the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the public key encryption as most secure authentication protocols in challenge-response format;

wherein the protocol correspondence information in the second table shows the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the secret key encryption as authentication protocols in challenge-response format with the highest processing speed; and

wherein the communication unit is equipped with a first protocol correspondence communication unit which performs communication based on the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the public key encryption and a second protocol correspondence communication unit which performs communication based on the authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use the secret key encryption.

12. The information device of claim 11,

wherein the authentication unit in the first protocol correspondence communication unit performs communication based on an authentication protocol in a challenge-response format that uses public key encryption in the information device comprises:

a first challenge data generation unit for generating a random number and transmitting the random number to another information device as challenge data;

a first encryption unit for decrypting, on receiving response data from the other information device, the response data using predetermined public key data;

a first judgement unit for judging whether the other information device is authentic based on a decryption result obtained by the decryption unit; and

wherein the authentication unit in the second protocol correspondence communication unit performs communication based on an authentication protocol in challenge-response format that uses secret key encryption in the information device comprises;

a second challenge data generation unit for generating a random number and transmitting the random number to the other information device as challenge data;

a second decryption unit for decrypting, on receiving response data from the other information device, the response data using predetermined secret key data; and

a second judgement unit for judging whether the other information device is authentic based on a decryption result obtained by the decryption unit.

13. The information device of claim 9,

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols include a plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format;

and

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols in challenge-response format include authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use public key encryption and authentication protocols in challenge-response format that use secret key encryption.

14. The information device of claim 9,

wherein the plurality of authentication protocols include one-way authentication protocols in time sequence.