JP2005157828A - Method for controlling the number of times of partial print - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that it is possible only to limit the whole number of times of the use of a slip set, and that there is no means for limiting the number of times of the use in accordance with different using methods such as browsing and printing. <P>SOLUTION: This Web slip browsing print system constituted of a slip server on a Web and a plurality of clients is configured to minimize communication costs between a server and a client, and to specify the possible number of times of use for each of parts of contents or for each of the using methods of contents, and to make the client user surely observe the number of times of use. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to security in a system that distributes electronic content from a server and performs viewing, browsing, and printing on the client side.

  A conventional technique, for example, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 below, has a flag for specifying whether or not each area can be printed, and allows only the permitted area to be printed out.

  A conventional content usage frequency limit method, for example, Patent Document 2 below, transmits the usage status of a client to a server, manages the usage count for each client on the server side, and transmits a usage permission notification when the limit count is reached. The use is restricted by not doing.

In the current version (2003) of imageWARE Form Manager manufactured by our company, the ID and number of prints stored as attributes in the electronic form file are used to control the number of times the electronic form distributed from the WAS server to the client is printed. The upper limit value is copied to the print history file at the time of the first printing, and the number of times of printing is stored in the print history file in association with them. The number of times of printing is compared with the upper limit value of the number of times of printing to determine whether printing is possible. If printing is possible, the number of times of printing is incremented and printing processing is executed (coming soon).
JP-A-9-160899 (FIG. 1) JP 2003-67651 A (FIG. 1)

  The present invention relates to security in a system related to distribution and printing of electronic forms. In general, electronic files are very cheap to copy and distribute. For this reason, once an electronic file containing confidential information is transferred to a party other than the related parties, the content may be widely distributed, which is a big risk. In order to avoid this, it is necessary that the electronic file itself is not known even if it passes to a third party. To achieve this, it is common to encrypt electronic files. However, with simple encryption, the decryption key for use must be passed to the user, so simple encryption is sufficient if there are an unspecified number of users or they cannot be completely trusted. Risk cannot be reduced. Such a situation is actually possible in a business situation in which an agent mediates a transaction in a commercial transaction that does not involve movement of an object, such as a financial product. Therefore, we would like to minimize the risk of information leakage by limiting the opportunities and methods of using the content for such users and by increasing the costs and barriers necessary for unauthorized use. Among them, limiting the number of uses is easy for both information managers and users to understand. Various methods have been proposed as a method for realizing such use frequency limit, so refer to the background art.

  However, as electronic forms have become more complex, larger, and more accurate, the value of information is often different for each part of a set of electronic forms. This is because one set of electronic forms is provided in a form that is most suitable for the end business, and taking a typical company's ordering business as an example, the product list, the orderer list, and each orderer This is the case when the contract with is set. Let's analyze a little more about this example. There is no problem with the product list and how many times it is viewed and printed, and it seems appropriate to apply a usage policy that allows the contractor list and each contract to be viewed as many times as possible, but only up to two times. It is. This is because restricting the number of uses of a form with low necessity to protect information imposes unnecessary restrictions on the end business activities, thereby reducing business efficiency. However, the current technology can only limit the total number of times a form set is used, and no means is provided for limiting the number of times it can be used depending on whether it is used for browsing or printing.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the invention of claim 1 sets a usable number value for each partial form on the server, and refers to the usable number every time the software operating on the client uses the partial form. In the invention of claim 2, the number of times of use is set for each usage method in the server, and the number of times of use can be determined each time the software operating on the client uses the form in a specific usage method. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the electronic content main body data portion and the usage count control attribute portion are divided and stored, and in particular, the usage count control attribute portion is stored in a protected storage area. This makes it impossible for general users of client devices to illegally copy them to other client devices and reuse them more times than they can be used. The invention of claim 4 provides the result of partial use of the content to the user while the software of the client device observes the number of times of use instructed by the server, and the invention of claim 5 The software of the client device provides the user with the result of using the content in the usage method specified by the user while observing the number of times of use instructed from the server. In this way, illegal use cannot be made more strongly for crackers having higher skills than the method 3 assumes.

  As described above, the invention of the present proposal specifies the number of times of use for each part of the content or each method of using the content while minimizing the cost of communication with the server, and more reliably uses the number of times of use. It became possible to make client users comply.

  One embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGS.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a configuration diagram of a form printing system constructed between an agency and a head office via the Internet. A form server 1001 generates or stores a form, and has a function of generating and distributing form data in response to a request issued from the client PC 1002. The form browsing / printing software incorporated in the client PC is activated when the form data is received, and can display the form on the display of the client PC or print it on the printer 1003.

  FIG. 2 shows the operation of the form server when receiving a request from a client. When the form server receives a request from a client, it analyzes the request and prepares a template of form set data and usage setting data to be generated. The subsequent processing proceeds by sequentially filling the template with data. First, IDs are generated so that the form set, partial form, and usage method can be specified, and are embedded in the form set data and usage setting data. The form set and the partial form have a one-to-many relationship, and the partial form and the usage method have a one-to-many relationship. Next, a partial form is generated based on the request, encrypted with a common encryption key based on a random number, and embedded in the form set data. Next, a pair of an encryption key and a decryption key is generated for each usage method, the common encryption key is encrypted with the encryption key, embedded in the form set data accompanying the partial form, and the decryption key is embedded as it is in the usage setting data. Next, the number of times of use is determined for each usage method from the importance of the form and the authority of the client user, and this is embedded in the usage setting data. Finally, form set data and usage setting data are combined and sent to the client.

  FIG. 3 shows the data format of the form set data. Since the form set data is stored in a storage area that can be freely read and written by general users, all the information representing the form body is encrypted. As described above, the form set and the partial form have a one-to-many relationship, and the partial form and the usage method have a one-to-many relationship.

  FIG. 4 shows the data format of the usage setting data. Since the usage setting data is premised on being stored in an encryption protected area that cannot be read and written by a general user, the data format is not encrypted. Even in the usage setting data, the form set and the partial form have a one-to-many relationship, and the partial form and the usage method have a one-to-many relationship.

  The processing when the client receives distribution data obtained by combining form set data and usage setting data will be described with reference to FIG. 5 (corresponding to claim 3). When the client receives the data and reads it into the main memory, it stores only the usage setting data part of the received data in the storage area protected by the encryption key unique to each client device, which can be stored securely. After that, the form set data portion is stored in a general storage area. If the usage setting data part cannot be saved, it is assumed that data is to be extracted by illegal means, and the received data in the main memory is immediately discarded.

  In FIG. 6, the processing when the usage setting data and the form set data are delivered in order and the client receives each of them will be described (corresponding to claim 6). The client receives the usage setting data, reads it into the main memory, saves it in a storage area protected by a unique encryption key for each client device, and after it has been securely saved, the form is sent to the server. Request distribution of set data. The server distributes the form set data generated at the same time as the usage setting data, and the client stores it in a general storage area when receiving it. If the usage setting data cannot be saved, it is assumed that the data is extracted by unauthorized means, and the received data in the main memory is immediately discarded, and the server is not requested to distribute the form set data.

  With reference to FIG. 7, the operation of the client software when the user requests use of a form will be described. Upon receiving the request from the user, the software analyzes the user request and specifies the form set ID, partial form data ID, and usage method ID. Next, the usage setting data file is searched from the storage area protected by the form set ID, and the usable count is acquired from the partial form data ID and the usage method ID. If the available number of times is not greater than 0, the specified number of times has already been used, and a message to that effect is displayed and the process is stopped. If the available count is greater than 0, it is decremented and the decryption key stored adjacent to it is extracted. Next, the encrypted common key is extracted from the general storage area from the three IDs, and decrypted with the previously extracted decryption key. Next, the partial form body data encrypted with the common key is decrypted to obtain partial form body data. Next, by transmitting this to the usage method device according to the usage method, the user can use the partial form in a designated method.

1 is a configuration diagram of an Internet form printing system. The distribution data generation processing flowchart in the form server. Format of form set data. Usage setting data format. Process flow diagram when combined data is received by the form client. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a printing process when a form client receives usage setting data and form set data separately. Process flow diagram when using a form with a form client.

Claims (6)

  In electronic content consisting of a plurality of parts, the electronic content main body data is encrypted for each part, the electronic content has a decryption key and a usable frequency value for each part, and the number of usages can be set for each part Content data format.   It is characterized in that electronic content body data is encrypted for electronic contents having a plurality of usage methods, the electronic content has a decryption key and a usable frequency value for each usage method, and the usage frequency can be set for each usage method. Electronic content usage count control method.   When the electronic content is requested from the client to the electronic content server, the server delivers the electronic content to the client in the format of claim 1 or 2, and the client receives the electronic content, and at the same time, only the use frequency control attribute portion of the electronic content data is received. The client device is divided and stored in a storage area protected by a unique encryption key for each client device, and after it has been reliably stored, the encrypted electronic content data portion of the electronic content data is stored in a general storage area. A method for distributing and storing electronic content data with limited usage.   When the content data of claim 1 is stored by the method of claim 3, an available number value corresponding to the content portion is acquired by a usage request for the content portion from the user of the client device. A method of limiting the number of times electronic content can be used with a limited number of times of use, wherein the number of times of use is decremented, a decryption key is acquired, a corresponding content portion is decrypted, and transmitted to an output device.   When the content data of claim 2 is stored by the method of claim 3, an available count value corresponding to the content usage method is acquired in response to a content usage request in a specific method from a user of the client device. If it is larger, the usable frequency value is decremented, the decryption key is acquired, the content data is decrypted, and transmitted to the output device depending on the usage method. Usage limit method. Similar to the method of claim 3, when the electronic content is requested from the client to the electronic content server, the server requests the client to send only the usage count control attribute portion of the electronic content data to the client in the format of claim 1 or 2. The client receives it, stores it in a storage area protected by a unique encryption key for each client device, and after it has been securely stored, requests the content body data from the server again. A method for distributing and storing electronic content data with a limited number of usages, in which content main body data is transmitted to a client, and the client receives the content data and stores the electronic content data in a general storage area.

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