System and method for securing documents using an attached electronic data storage device

• US 7,770,220 B2
• Filed: 08/16/2005
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Fernstrom, Christer E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran; Ellen
• Assistant Examiner(s): Woldemariam; Nega
• Application Number:
  US11/204,961
• Publication Number:
  US 20070056034A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,813 Days
• Field of Search: 380/200, 380/30, 713/192, 713/168, 713/182, 726/4, 726/13, 726/30, 726/24, 719/311, 709/12, 709/14, 717/124
• US Class Current: 726/20
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6227 where protection concerns the structure of data, e.g. records, types, queries

Abstract

A system and method for controlling the reproduction of secure documents includes detecting an electronic data storage device of a secure document; reading the electronic data storage device of the secure document; determining rules for accessing the information stored in the electronic data storage device of the secure document; obtaining a user identity; comparing the rules for accessing the information with the user identity; and determining which of the information stored in the electronic data storage device to allow access to.

Claims

1. A system for creating multiple printed versions of a document comprising:

an image producing system for printing a first printed version of an electronically tagged secure document with an unrestricted group of visibly unrestricted portions visible to a first user and a restricted group of visibly restricted portions hidden from the first user based on rules for user access; and

a first portable data storage device with a transceiver physically attached to the first printed version of the electronically tagged document, wherein the first portable data storage device includes a data structure to store data contents of visibly restricted portions of the document, rules for user access to the visibly restricted portions of the document, and at least one location within the document of the visibly restricted portions;

whereby, in response to a second user receiving authorization to access the visibly restricted portions, the image producing system reading the data structure from the first portable data storage device via the transceiver physically attached to the first printed version of the electronically tagged document, and the image producing system printing a second printed version of an electronically tagged secure document with the data contents of the visibly restricted portions inserted and made visible at the location specified in the data structure.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an input device for scanning a printed document to create an electronic version of the printed document containing a plurality of portions of visually perceptible data to be categorized, based on a combination of i) markings in the printed document and ii) user authorization restrictions, as any one of visibly restricted portions and visible unrestricted portions; and

a computing loader for storing the data structure onto the first portable data storage device wherein the markings are color highlights on the printed document.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the color highlights on the printed document include a separate color for each user authorization restrictions that define rules for accessing the data content.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first portable data storage device with the transceiver physically attached to the first printed version of the electronically tagged secure document is a radio frequency identification tag and wherein the second version of the document includes a second portable data storage device to store the data structure with a transceiver physically attached thereto.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the document contains blacked-out areas representing one or more positions where the data content would reside.

6. The system of claim 3 wherein the separate color in the color highlights on the printed document defines rules for accessing the contents for all non-contiguous portions of visually perceptible data to be categorized as visibly restricted portions.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the separate color in the color highlights on the printed document are formed in a margin of the printed document.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a user interface for receiving a request from the second user to reproduce the first printed version of the electronically tagged secure document with at least a portion of the visibly restricted portions which have been stored in the first portable data device;

a computing reading device that reads the first portable data storage device physically attached to the first printed version of the electronically tagged document;

a secure document server determines the rules for accessing the visibly restricted portions along with a user'"'"'s identity; and

wherein the image producing system inserts, from the first portable data storage device, the contents of those visibly restricted portions which have been authorized, in response to the user'"'"'s identity allowing access thereto, whereby the location of the contents to be inserted into the second printed version of the electronically tagged secure document is read from the first portable data device.

9. A system for printing a different version of a document comprising:

an input device for scanning a printed document to create an electronic version of the printed document containing a plurality of portions of visually perceptible data to be categorized, based on a combination of i) markings in the printed document and ii) user authorization restrictions, as any one of visibly restricted portions and visible unrestricted portions;

a computing loader for storing the data structure onto the first portable data storage device;

a computing reading device for reading a data structure from a first portable data storage device via a transceiver physically attached to a first printed version of an electronically tagged secure document, wherein the computing device, determines from the data structure, a restricted group of visibly restricted portions of information to which access is to be restricted, and the data structure includes contents of visibly restricted portions, rules for accessing the visibly restricted portions, and locations within the first printed version of the electronically tagged secure document of the visibly restricted portions;

a user interface module for receiving a user'"'"'s identity; and

an image producing system for printing a second printed version of a document and inserting, from the first portable data storage device, the contents of those visibly restricted portions which have been authorized, in response to the user'"'"'s identity allowing access thereto, whereby the locations of the contents to be inserted into the second printed version of the secure printed document being printed is read from the first portable data device.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the data structure comprises information to which access is to be restricted and user authorization restrictions for the information and wherein the markings are color highlights on the printed document, and wherein the second printed version of the electronically tagged secure document includes a second portable data storage device to store the data structure with a transceiver physically attached thereto.

11. The system of claim 9, further comprising:

an input device for scanning a printed document to create an electronic version of the printed document containing a plurality of portions of visually perceptible data to be categorized, based on a combination of i) markings in the printed document and ii) user authorization restrictions, as any one of visibly restricted portions and visible unrestricted portions; and

a computing loader for storing the data structure onto the first portable data storage device wherein the markings are color highlights on the printed document.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the color highlights on the printed document include a separate color for each user authorization restrictions define rules for accessing the information stored in the electronic data storage device

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the rules for accessing the information defines a user identity.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the user identity is a password.

15. The system of claim 9 wherein the image producing system comprises an electrostatographic machine.

16. A computer-implemented method for creating multiple versions of a document comprising:

reading from an input device an image scan of a printed document to create an electronic version of the printed document containing a plurality of portions of visually perceptible data to be categorized, based on a combination of i) markings in the printed document and ii) user authorization restrictions, as any one of visibly restricted portions and visible unrestricted portions;

selecting information in a document to which access to be restricted;

defining rules for accessing the information;

producing a data structure that includes contents of the visibly restricted portions, rules for accessing the visibly restricted portions, and locations within the printed document of the visibly restricted portions;

storing the data structure in a portable data storage device with a transceiver; and

creating, with an image producing system, a first version of a printed document with the restricted group of visibly restricted portions hidden from a first user based on the user authorization in the data structure, the portable data storage device attached to the printed document, whereby in response to a second user receiving authorization to access to the visibly restricted portions, the image producing system reads the data structure from the portable data storage device via the transceiver physically attached to the first printed version of the electronically tagged document, and the image producing system prints the contents of the visibly restricted portions which have been authorized at the locations specified in the portable data device, into a second printed version of a printed document, whereby in response to a second user receiving authorization to access the visibly restricted portions, the image producing system reads the data structure from the portable data storage device via the transceiver physically attached to the first printed version of the electronically tagged document, and the image producing system prints a second printed version of an electronically tagged secure document with the data contents of the visibly restricted portions inserted and made visible at the location specified in the data structure.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the document includes information to which access is to be restricted and information to which access is not to be restricted and wherein the markings are color highlights on the printed document, and wherein the second printed version of the electronically tagged secure document includes a second portable data storage device to store the data structure with a transceiver physically attached thereto.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the information in the document to which access is to be restricted is selected using a color marking technique.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein the rules for accessing the information to which access is to be restricted defines a user identity.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the color highlights on the printed document include a separate color for each user authorization restrictions that define rules in the data structure.

21. The method of claim 18 wherein the separate color in the color highlights on the printed document defines rules for accessing the information for all non-contiguous portions of visually perceptible data to be categorized as visibly restricted portions.

22. A computer-implemented method for creating multiple versions of a document comprising:

detecting an electronic data storage device physically coupled to a first version of the secure printed document;

reading the electronic data storage device of the first version of the secure printed document and the data structure includes contents of visibly restricted portions, rules for accessing the visibly restricted portions, and locations within the first version of secure document of the visibly restricted portions;

determining rules for accessing the contents stored in the electronic data storage device of the secure printed document;

obtaining a user'"'"'s identity;

comparing the rules for accessing the information with the user identity;

determining which of the information stored in the electronic data storage device to allow access to; and

creating, in response to the user'"'"'s identity allowing access thereto, a second version of a secure document with contents of those visibly restricted portions which have been authorized inserted thereinto, whereby the contents and the location of the contents to be inserted into the secure printed document is read from the electronic data device.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the rules for accessing the information stored in the electronic data storage device define a user identity.

24. The method of claim 22 further comprising inserting the information that the user has access to into a new document and reproducing the document.