Method and system for shielding data in untrusted environments

• US 9,209,971 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2014
• Issued: 12/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cofactor Computing LLC
• Original Assignee: Cofactor Computing LLC
• Inventors: Sathaye, Sumedh Wasudeo, Deshmukh, Nitin Sadashiv
• Primary Examiner(s): LEMMA, SAMSON B
• Application Number:
  US14/160,531
• Publication Number:
  US 20150207625A1
• Time in Patent Office: 686 Days
• Field of Search: 380/44, 380/30, 380/277, 726/26, 713/189
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 21/62 Protecting access to data via a platform, e.g. using keys or access control rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0894 Escrow, recovery or storing of secret information, e.g. secret key escrow or cryptographic key storage
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/14 using a plurality of keys or algorithms

Abstract

Described herein are techniques related to shielding data. A method and system for generating a transformation knowledge key (TKK) may include a TKK generator operable to generate a TKK used to shield the data. The TKK is configured to include at least two components. A library of shielding algorithms is configured to include at least two types of shielding algorithms. The TKK generator is configured to select the at least two types of shielding algorithms to generate the at least two components. The TKK generator is operable to concatenate the at least two components in a configurable order to generate the TKK.

Claims

1. A system to shield data, the system comprising:

a hardware processor;

a transformation knowledge key generator operable to generate a transformation knowledge key used to shield the data, wherein the transformation knowledge key is configured to include at least two components; and

a library of shielding algorithms configured to include at least two types of shielding algorithms, wherein the transformation knowledge key generator is configured to select the at least two types of shielding algorithms to generate the at least two components;

wherein the transformation knowledge key generator is operable to concatenate the at least two components in a configurable order to generate the transformation knowledge key;

wherein the library of shielding algorithms is configured to include a plurality of shielding algorithms comprising;

an encryption type algorithm configured to generate a first component of the transformation knowledge key;

a noise insertion type algorithm configured to generate a second component of the transformation knowledge key;

a data splitting type algorithm configured to generate a third component of the transformation knowledge key; and

a data byte reformatting type algorithm configured to generate a fourth component of the transformation knowledge key,

wherein the at least two components are selectable from the first component, the second component, the third component and the fourth component arranged in the configurable order.

2. The system as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

a data transformer operable to transform the data into N segments of shielded data, each one of the N segments of shielded data using a corresponding one of N instances of the transformation knowledge key to shield the data, N being a positive integer.

3. The system as recited in claim 2, further comprising:

a communications agent operable to distribute I ones of the N segments of shielded data to a trusted environment and J ones of the N segments of shielded data to an untrusted environment, wherein I+J=N, and wherein I and J are non-negative integers.

4. The system as recited in claim 3, wherein the communications agent is operable to receive the I ones of the N segments of shielded data and the J ones of the N segments of shielded data stored in the trusted and the untrusted environment respectively, and the data transformer is operable to reconstruct the data from the N segments of shielded data using a an instance of the transformation knowledge key.

5. The system as recited in claim 3, wherein all instances of the transformation knowledge key and the transformation knowledge key generator reside in the trusted environment.

6. The system as recited in claim 3, wherein each instance of the transformation knowledge key is configured to be shielded by the data transformer.

7. The system as recited in claim 3, wherein credentials to authorize a change in a configuration of the transformation knowledge key generator reside exclusively in the trusted environment.

8. The system as recited in claim 3, wherein a policy engine agent is configured to make a change in the transformation knowledge key generator, the policy engine agent being operable to add a new shielding algorithm to the library of shielding algorithms, wherein the policy engine agent resides exclusively in the trusted environment.

9. The system as recited in claim 8, wherein the policy engine agent is configured to make a change in the data transformer.

10. The system as recited in claim 2, wherein the transformation knowledge key is a data byte string, wherein the byte string includes encoded information processed by the data transformer in the configurable order to perform shielding of the data.

11. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the encoded information is configured to include a nested instance of the transformation knowledge key.

12. The system as recited in claim 2, wherein the data is transformed in to the N segments of shielded data using M components of the transformation knowledge key arranged in the configurable order, M being a positive integer, wherein each processing of an intermediate component of the M components generates a partially shielded data and processing of a final component of the M components generates the N segments of shielded data.

13. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the encryption type algorithm is an Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), the AES using a symmetric key, wherein the encryption type algorithm independently controls a shielding factor by configuring the symmetric key having S-bits, S being a positive integer.

14. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the encryption type algorithm uses asymmetric keys, wherein the encryption type algorithm independently controls a shielding factor by configuring at least one of the asymmetric keys having A-bits, A being a positive integer.

15. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the library of shielding algorithms further comprises:

a cryptographic hash type algorithm configured to generate a fifth component of the transformation knowledge key, the fifth component being added to the configurable order.

16. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the noise insertion type algorithm is configured to shield the data by inserting a noise pattern in the data in accordance with coded instructions included in the second component.

17. The system as recited in claim 16, wherein the noise pattern is configured to be at least one of a toggle pattern, a swap pattern, a rotation pattern, and a XOR pattern, each member of the noise pattern corresponding to a coded instruction.

18. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the data splitting type algorithm is configured to split the data into N segments of partially shielded data in response to the third component being selected in the configurable order to be different than the last, N being a positive integer.

19. The system as recited in claim 18, wherein splitting of the data into the N segments of partially shielded data uses an instance of the transformation key.

20. The system as recited in claim 19, wherein the split into the N segments of partially shielded data is based on a set of configurable percentage split ratios, cardinality of the set being equal to N.

21. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the data byte reformatting type algorithm is configured to shield the data by changing data byte sequence in accordance with coded instructions in the transformation knowledge key, wherein the data byte reformatting type algorithm is selectable to be at least one of big-endian, small-endian, origin offset, and any one of P-factorial permutations where P is an integer less than or equal to size of the data.

22. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the library of shielding algorithms further comprises:

a communication channel selection algorithm configured to select one or more simultaneous channels of communications from N channels of communications to transfer the data that is shielded.

23. A method of generating a transformation knowledge key, the method comprising:

segmenting the transformation knowledge key in to at least two components selectable from a first component, a second component, a third component and a fourth component;

providing a library of shielding algorithms configured to include at least four members including an encryption type algorithm, a noise insertion type algorithm, a data splitting type algorithm and a data byte reformatting type algorithm;

providing the encryption type algorithm configured to generate the first component;

providing the noise insertion type algorithm configured to generate the second component;

providing the data splitting type algorithm configured to generate the third component;

providing the data byte reformatting type algorithm configured to generate the fourth component; and

concatenating the at least two components selectable from the first component, the second component, the third component and the fourth component in a configurable order to generate the transformation knowledge key;

at least one of the segmenting, providing and concatenating steps is implemented by a hardware processor.

24. One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:

segmenting the transformation knowledge key in to at least two components selectable from a first component, a second component and a third component;

configuring a library of shielding algorithms to include at least four members including an encryption type algorithm, a noise insertion type algorithm, a data splitting type algorithm and a data byte reformatting type algorithm;

configuring the encryption type algorithm to generate the first component;

configuring the noise insertion type algorithm to generate the second component;

configuring the data splitting type algorithm to generate the third component;

configuring the data byte reformatting type algorithm to generate the fourth component; and

concatenating at least two components selectable from the first component, the second component, the third component and the fourth component in a configurable order to generate the transformation knowledge key.