Management of security key distribution
US7415113B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 30, 2003 |
| Grant date | Aug 19, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 7, 2025 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L2209/60
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Security keys for the provision of a secure service such as content provision are generated in an ancestral hierarchy, so that invalidation of a key in the hierarchy results in a need to reconfigure all other keys in the hierarchy to the extent they share common ancestry. When a user subscription to the service lapses, a decision on invalidation of their key is based in a determination of whether it's more costly to the subscriber to invalidate the key, or continue providing an unpaid-for service. Keys can be allocated to users from domains of the hierarchy on the basis of their economic value to the provider, with higher value users being allocated keys from domains which share fewer common ancestors with other users of other domains than those users share with each other, to minimize inconvenience to high value users of key reconfiguration.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.