Revocation information updating method, revocation information updating apparatus and storage medium

• US 7,392,225 B2
• Filed: 12/13/2004
• Issued: 06/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation), Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation), Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Tamura, Masafumi, Tatebayashi, Makoto, Harada, Shunji, Kozuka, Masayuki, Hirota, Teruto, Kamibayashi, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell; Jim
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran; Hai
• Application Number:
  US11/010,771
• Publication Number:
  US 20050154880A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,289 Days
• Field of Search: 705/50
• US Class Current: 705/50
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• 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 20/0021 involving encryption or decryption of contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier

Abstract

At least one set of revocation information for identifying electronic appliances that should be revoked for content protection and master revocation information for identifying electronic appliances that have special permission to update the revocation information are recorded in advance into a special storage region on a storage medium. When the storage medium is loaded into an electronic appliance indicated by the master revocation information, the revocation information can be updated. However, when the storage medium is loaded into an electronic appliance indicated by the revocation information, the electronic appliance is revoked and so the protection of contents is improved.

Claims

1. A storage device that is capable of recording and playing back a digital content when used by an electronic appliance having at least one of a function for playing back a digital content and a function for recording a digital content, operative with a revocation information updating apparatus, the storage device comprising:

a special storage region in which one or more sets of revocation information for identifying electronic appliances that are invalidated from accessing the storage device and master revocation information for identifying revocation information updating apparatuses that have special permission to update the revocation information are recorded in advance;

a judging means for judging, when the storage device is loaded into the revocation information updating apparatus, whether the revocation information updating apparatus is permitted to update the revocation information present on the storage device, based on the master revocation information;

an updating means for updating the revocation information, depending on the judgment made by the judging means.

2. The storage device of claim 1, wherein each set of revocation information is associated with an application system which is for processing digital contents to be recorded on the storage device,

the revocation information updating apparatus is permitted updating of revocation information for at least one application system,

and the judging means further bases on the revocation information recorded on the storage device, in judging whether updating is permitted to the revocation information updating apparatus.

3. The storage device of claim 2,

wherein the revocation information updating apparatus stores thereon first identification information and second identification information, the first identification information identifying an electronic device which is permitted updating of revocation information, and the second identification information identifying an electronic device which is permitted to use digital contents processed by a certain application system,

the judging means a) judges whether the revocation information updating apparatus is permitted to update revocation information, based on the master revocation information and on the first identification information, and b) judges, only when the revocation information updating apparatus is judged to be permitted to update revocation information, whether updating of revocation information for the certain application system is permitted to the revocation information updating apparatus, according to the revocation information for the certain application system, and to the second identification information,

and the updating means has the revocation information updating apparatus update the revocation information recorded on the storage device, depending on the judgment made by the judging means.

4. The storage device of claim 1 wherein the special storage region includes (1) revocation information data that identifies a first group of appliances of a plurality of appliances that are not authorized to receive proprietary data, and (2) master revocation data that identifies a second group of appliances of the plurality of appliances that are authorized to change predetermined stored data that enables the second group of appliances to alter a table of appliances constituting the first group of appliances.

5. A storage device storing revocation information data which can be updated by a predetermined revocation information updating apparatus identified in the storage device, the predetermined revocation information updating apparatus being permitted to perform updating, the revocation information also including information on an appliance whose permission for recording digital contents onto the storage device and/or for reproducing digital contents recorded on the storage device has been revoked, the storage device comprising:

a storing means for pre-storing master revocation information data on a special storage region allocated in the storage device, the master revocation information data including information on a revocation information updating apparatus whose permission to update revocation information data has been revoked, the special storage region includes (1) revocation information data that identifies a first group of appliances of a plurality of appliances that are not authorized to receive proprietary data, and (2) master revocation data that identifies a second group of appliances of the plurality of appliances that are authorized to change predetermined stored data that enables the second group of appliances to alter a table of appliances constituting the first group of appliances;

a judging unit for, upon detecting the storage device being inserted to the revocation information updating apparatus, judging whether updating is permitted to the revocation information updating apparatus, based on information data on the revocation information updating apparatus that the revocation information updating apparatus has; and

an updating unit for

     1) having the inserted revocation information updating apparatus update the revocation information data, when the updating is judged to be permitted, and

     2) prohibiting the revocation information updating apparatus from updating the revocation information data, when the updating is not judged to be permitted.

6. The storage device of claim 5, storing thereon revocation information data associated with an application system which is for processing digital contents to be recorded on the recording device,

the revocation information updating apparatus is permitted updating of revocation information data for at least one application system,

and the judging means further bases on the revocation information data recorded on the storage device, in judging whether updating is permitted to the revocation information updating apparatus.