JP2010081372A - System, device and method for registering electronic filing document and computer program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a function of imparting a time stamp to an electronic filing document delegated from a user while returning an original to the user, storing a copy and extracting the place of the original changed by comparing the original and the copy in response to a request from the user. <P>SOLUTION: A system for registering the electronic filing document includes: a user terminal 2; and a device 4 for registering the electronic filing document, which can communicate with a time-information feeder 3. The device 4 attaches a time-stamp token prepared by using time information acquired from the time-information feeder 3 to the electronic filing document when receiving a time-stamp imparting request and the electronic filing document as an object from the user terminal 2, and transmits the original data to the user terminal 2 while storing the copying data by its own. The device 4 extracts an inconformity when copying data and the original data stored are compared and do not conform when receiving an originality-verification request and the original data from the user terminal 2 while transmitting the result of a comparison to the user terminal 2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

Attaching a time stamp to electronic document data entrusted by the user, returning the original to the user, storing a copy in the database, comparing the original with the copy in response to a request from the user, and modifying the original The present invention relates to a system, an apparatus, a method, and a computer program for extracting data.

For example, the so-called e-document law was enacted in April 2005, and it has become common to store documents previously stored in paper as electronic data.
In such electronic data, it is important to be able to prove when it was created and to prove that it has not been changed after creation.
Time stamps have been used for this proof.

Here, the “time stamp” used in this specification has the following meaning.
The normal time stamp refers to the date and time of creation of data recorded in a folder or file. In this specification, it is proved that the electronic document has not been tampered with in combination with the function of the electronic signature (hereinafter referred to as the “time stamp”). , "Originality verification").
The flow of processing related to the provision of a time stamp having such an electronic signature function is generally as follows.
In order to verify the originality of the electronic document DOC, a hash value H of the electronic document DOC is generated with a predetermined hash function. The institution that issues the time stamp acquires the exact time of the date and time that the electronic document DOC exists as the date and time that it wants to prove, and the issuing institution obtains the data that combines the time information T and the hash value H. Encryption with the private key, that is, a digital signature S is performed to create a time stamp token D. This time stamp token refers to time stamp data created by an organization that issues time stamps.
The issuing agency or user stores the time stamp token D created in the electronic document DOC as an attachment.
In order to prove that the electronic document DOC has not been tampered with, the user does the following.
The digital signature S of the time stamp token D is decrypted with the public key of the issuing organization, and the hash value Hx and time information Tx are extracted. This is compared with the hash value H included in the time stamp token D and the time information T. If the hash values H and Hx match and the time information T and Tx match, it can be proved that the hash value H exists at the time of the time information T. Subsequently, the hash value Hdoc of the electronic document DOC is obtained, and if the hash value H and Hdoc match, it can be proved that the electronic document DOC has not been changed since time T.

As described above, it is possible to verify the originality of an electronic document by using a time stamp. A number of patent applications have been filed for such techniques for verifying the originality. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-041903 “Information” The processing system, information processing method, and information processing program require a plurality of time certificate authorities to issue time stamps, and the received plurality of time stamps are stored in association with original data, thereby improving fault tolerance. A technique that enables time stamp verification with high accuracy and reliability is disclosed. Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2005-101883 “E-mail document originality assurance device” is a device that saves transmitted e-mail, and creates and adds a time stamp to the stored e-mail document. Disclosure of technology to enable securing.

JP 2007-041903 A JP 2005-101883 A

Many of the inventions that give the conventional time stamp as exemplified in Patent Documents 1 and 2 above prove the presence or absence of tampering after the time stamp was given, but when the original is changed, The original document and the document after the change are compared and no difference is extracted.
Therefore, the conventional technique for providing a time stamp has the following problems.
In other words, if the contents of the original were changed even a little, it could not be proved that the documents had the same contents (contracts, plans, etc.). It is not uncommon for the carelessness that the contents of the original have been accidentally changed. Nevertheless, it is extremely inconvenient if the document after the change cannot be authenticated as being identical in content to the document before the change.

  Furthermore, if an electronic document with a time stamp attached is lost, even if there is an electronic document with the same content, there is a disadvantage that it cannot be proved that the content is the same because the digital stamp is missing. .

For this reason, the present invention is not limited to simply issuing a time stamp, but can check whether there is a change when the original electronic document may have been changed by carelessness. The purpose is to provide a service that also has the function of extracting
Also, depending on the file format of the electronic document, the contents may be changed simply by browsing the electronic document. Therefore, it aims also to avoid such an inconvenience.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention described in claim 1
A system that gives a time stamp to an electronic document according to a request from a user, and generates and registers a copy of the electronic document with the time stamp, and supplies a user terminal used by the user and accurate time information. A time information supply device, an electronic document registration device communicable with the user terminal and the time information supply device, the electronic document registration device comprising: a user information storage means for storing user personal information; a time stamp; Data storing means for storing copy data of an electronic document to which a user is attached in association with user personal information, and a time stamp grant request for receiving a time stamp grant electronic document together with a time stamp grant request from the user terminal Time for proving the date and time of the request for time stamping from the receiving means and the user terminal Time information acquisition means for acquiring information from the time information supply device, time stamp giving means for attaching a time stamp token created using the time information to the electronic document, and electronic document attached with the time stamp token Is created as original data, duplicate data of the original data is generated, the original data is transmitted to the user terminal, the electronic document registration means for registering the duplicate data in the duplicate data storage means, and the original from the user terminal The originality verification request accepting means for receiving the original data together with the originality verification request, and the duplicate data corresponding to the received original data are taken out from the duplicate data storage means, and the duplicate data is compared with the original data to be matched. If there is not, data that extracts the mismatched part and sends the comparison result to the user terminal Characterized in that it has a compare means.
In this specification, the original electronic document is referred to as “original”, the “original” attached with a time stamp token is referred to as “original data”, and a copy of “original data” is referred to as “replicated data”.

Thus, not only the originality is verified, but the original data is compared with the stored duplicate data, so that the presence or absence of the original and the change location when there is a change can be extracted.
By the way, the time used as the time stamp is created by the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) to create a standard time, which is supplied by NICT's NTP (network time protocol) server. A general user may receive a standard time supply from the NTP server and give a time stamp to the electronic document. However, the document to be time stamped is a document that needs to prove that it has not been tampered with by the other party or a third party as represented by the contract. In order for the time stamp to be an objective basis, it is desirable that the time stamp be provided by a neutral third party other than the user.
The invention according to claim 1 relates to a system implemented by a third-party organization responsible for assigning a time stamp. The electronic document registration apparatus performs various processes by the third party organization.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that the time stamp assignment request receiving means converts the acquired electronic document into a predetermined data format if the electronic document is not in a predetermined data format. And
As a result, for example, PDF (Portable Document) that cannot be edited after creation of files created with Word (Microsoft product name) or MICROSOFT EXCEL (registered trademark)
Format) files can be converted to prevent changes to the original due to carelessness.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that the data comparison means transmits, together with the comparison result, duplicate data corresponding to the received original data to the user terminal.
Thus, the user of the system of the present invention may consider that the time stamp issuing organization has a backup.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the electronic document registration apparatus further includes originality verification means for verifying originality based on a time stamp token attached to the original. And
As a result, the system of the present invention has a function of verifying the originality in addition to issuing a time stamp and holding a backup, so that it can bring great convenience to the user.

  The electronic document registration apparatus according to claims 5 to 8, the electronic document registration method according to claim 9, and the computer program according to claim 10 also achieve the above object.

  It is possible to verify the originality by assigning a time stamp, but not only that, but if the user accidentally changes the original by storing a copy of the original with the attached time stamp token Even so, the changed portion can be extracted by comparing the original data and the replicated data.

Embodiments of the system of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic document registration system 1 according to the present invention includes an electronic document connected to an information processing apparatus (hereinafter referred to as “user terminal”) 2 and a time information supply apparatus 3 used by a user via a communication network N. And a registration device 4.

The user terminal 2 is an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer, a PDA, or a mobile phone used by a user who wants to give a time stamp to his / her electronic document.
The time information supply device 3 is a device that supplies accurate time information in response to a request from the electronic document registration device 4. The NICT NTP server is a typical time information supply device, but is not limited thereto.
In FIG. 1, only one user terminal 2 is connected, but an arbitrary number is connected.

As shown in FIG. 2, the electronic document registration apparatus 4 includes a user information storage unit 5, a duplicate data storage unit 6, a time stamp addition request reception unit 7, a time information acquisition unit 8, a time stamp addition unit 9, and an electronic document registration unit. 10, an originality verification request accepting unit 11, an originality verification unit 12, and a data comparison unit 13.
However, the classification of each means shown in FIG. 2 is merely for convenience of explanation.
Each means is implemented by hardware and software according to its function. In the case of software, the CPU executes a computer program stored in a storage means such as a ROM or a hard disk. Since these are well-known matters, description thereof will be omitted.
The electronic document registration device 4 and the user terminal 2, and the electronic document registration device 4 and the time information supply device 3 transmit and receive data via communication interface means and a communication network N (not shown).
Further, although not shown in FIG. 2, the electronic document registration apparatus 4 also includes storage means for storing work intermediate data, parameters, encryption keys, and the like as the process progresses.

The user information storage means 5 stores information related to the user including the user name, contact information, etc. in a database in association with the user ID. When transmission / reception of a target electronic document or the like is performed by a mail attached with the electronic document or the like, an e-mail address is included as a contact address.
The duplicate data storage means 6 stores the duplicate data of the electronic document attached with the time stamp token as a database together with the user ID in association with the document ID.

  The time stamp assignment request receiving means 7 performs a process of receiving a time stamp assignment target electronic document together with the time stamp assignment request from the user terminal 2. If the acquired electronic document is not in a predetermined data format, the time stamp assignment request accepting unit 7 may perform processing for converting the file format. For example, in the parameter file, the presence / absence of file conversion processing, and the file format before and after conversion when the processing is performed (for example, a file created in Word → a file in PDF format) are described. It is recommended to read parameters.

  The time information acquisition unit 8 performs processing for acquiring time information that proves the date and time of the time stamp assignment request from the user terminal 2 from the time information supply device 3.

  The time stamp assigning unit 9 creates a time stamp token using the acquired time information, and performs processing for attaching the time stamp token to the document data received from the user terminal 2.

  The document data registration unit 10 generates duplicate data of data (= original data) obtained by attaching a time stamp token to the electronic document (= original) received from the user terminal 2, and transmits the original data to the user terminal 2. Then, the process of registering the duplicate data in the duplicate data storage means 6 is performed.

  The originality verification request accepting unit 11 performs a process of receiving the original data together with the originality verification request from the user terminal 2.

  The originality verification means 12 performs a process of verifying the originality based on the time stamp token included in the original data.

If the verification by the originality verification unit 12 fails, the data comparison unit 13 retrieves the copy data corresponding to the received original data from the copy data storage unit 6 and compares the copy data with the original data if they do not match. A process of extracting the mismatched portion and transmitting the comparison result to the user terminal 2 is performed. Duplicate data may be transmitted together with the comparison result.
The above is the system configuration of this embodiment.

Next, the operation of this system will be described. First, the data structure of the database necessary for this system will be described.
FIG. 3 shows an example of the user information database, and FIG. 4 shows an example of the duplicate database. Each database is stored in the user information storage means 5 and the duplicate data storage means 6, respectively.

In FIG. 3, the user information database stores a user ID (5a), a user name (5b), a contact address, etc. (5c). The contact information includes the e-mail address of the person in charge in addition to the address and the name of the person in charge.
In FIG. 4, the duplicate database stores the original data name (6c) in association with the document ID (6a) and also stores the user ID (6b) of the user.

Next, the processing flow of this system will be described.
The processing by this system is roughly divided into processing for giving a time stamp according to a user's request and processing for determining whether or not an original has been changed according to a user's request.

First, a process for assigning a time stamp will be described with reference to FIG.
Here, it is assumed that the user A is going to receive a time stamp on an electronic document created by the user A.
The user A uses the user terminal 2 to request the electronic document registration device 4 to give a time stamp and transmits the electronic document (step S1).

The time stamp assignment request accepting means 7 receives the electronic document and also receives information related to the user A, for example, the name of the user A, a contact address, and the like (step S2). If the name of the user A is not registered in the user information storage means 5, a user ID is generated, and the received information related to the user A is registered in association with the user ID (step S3).
The file format of the received electronic document is detected, and if it is a file format that requires file conversion, it is converted into a file of a predetermined format (step S4). As the file format, for example, the electronic document name is file. If it is doc, it can be determined from the file extension such that the file is created by the application software Word with the file extension doc. When it is predetermined that a file created by Word is converted to a PDF file, file. doc is converted to PDF, and file. Convert to pdf. It is assumed that a computer program for file conversion is stored in a storage unit (not shown) of the electronic document registration apparatus 4. When the file is converted, the electronic document to be subjected to time stamping, creation of duplicate data, and originality verification is an electronic document after the file conversion.

Next, the time information acquisition means 8 accesses the time information supply device 3 and inquires about the current accurate time (step S5).
Using the acquired time information, the time stamp giving means 9 gives a time stamp to the electronic document by the following procedure (step S6).
First, a hash value is calculated by substituting the received electronic document (or electronic document after file conversion) into a predetermined hash function. This hash value and the acquired time information are combined and encrypted with the private key of the electronic document registration apparatus 4 to obtain an electronic signature. A time stamp token is created from the hash value, time information, and electronic signature, and attached to the electronic document. This is time stamping.
The electronic document registration unit 10 assigns a document ID to the original data and generates duplicate data, and transmits the original data to the user terminal 2 of the user A (steps S7 and S8). The transmission method includes a method of attaching to a mail addressed to the mail address of the user A, but is not particularly limited. At this time, the document ID is also notified. This is for the case where the user A makes an inquiry to the electronic document registration apparatus 4 about this original data at a later date. On the other hand, the duplicate data is stored in the duplicate data storage means 6 in association with the document ID. At the same time, the user ID is also stored (step S9).

Through the above processing, the time stamp stamp requested by the user and the registration of the duplicate data obtained by duplicating the original data are made.
Next, processing accompanying the originality verification request from the user will be described with reference to FIG.

The originality verification request receiving means 11 receives the document ID and original data together with the originality verification request from the user terminal 2 (step S10). You may make it receive transmission of user ID. In other words, it is important to receive information that can specify who and what electronic document (= original) is required to verify the originality.
The originality verification means 12 verifies the originality by the following procedure (step S11).
The electronic signature included in the time stamp token is decrypted with the public key of the electronic document registration apparatus 4 and the hash value and time information included in the electronic signature are extracted. The hash value and time information are respectively compared with the hash value and time information included in the time stamp token. If they match, it can be proved that the electronic document included in the original data exists at the date and time indicated by the time information. Next, if the hash value obtained by substituting the electronic document into a predetermined hash function matches the hash value included in the time stamp token, it is possible to prove non-falsification after the time stamp is given. If the original document verification is successful (“success” in step S12), the electronic document registration apparatus 4 transmits the result to the user terminal 2 and ends the processing (steps S13 and S14).

  If the originality verification fails (“failure” in step S12), the data comparison unit 13 retrieves the copy data corresponding to the received original data from the copy data storage unit 6 based on the document ID (step S15). The duplicate data and the original data are compared to extract a mismatched portion, and the comparison result is transmitted to the user terminal 2 together with the duplicate data (steps S16 and S17). Thus, even if the user terminal 2 mistakenly changes the electronic document to which the time stamp is given, the user terminal 2 can know how and where the electronic document has been changed, and can obtain a copy of the data before the change. . In other words, the user A not only is given a time stamp by a third-party organization called the electronic document registration device 4 but also can store a backup of the document in this third-party organization in preparation for later certification. .

  In the above-described embodiment, file conversion is appropriately performed before the time stamp is assigned (step S4 in FIG. 5). However, the file conversion process may be omitted. However, if omitted, it is desirable to consider limiting the file format to which the time stamp is applied and setting the file attribute to non-writable.

  In the above embodiment, when an originality verification request is received, originality verification processing is performed on the electronic document registration apparatus 4 side, but originality verification is performed on the user terminal 2 side and verification fails. The original data may be transmitted to the electronic document registration apparatus 4. That is, originality verification may be performed on the user terminal 2 side, and the electronic document registration apparatus 4 may always perform comparison with the replicated data. This is because it is unlikely that an inquiry will be made about the original changes that have not been changed since the time stamp was given.

  In the above embodiment, when the verification of the originality fails, the original and the copy are compared, the unmatched portion is extracted, and the process of notifying the user terminal 2 is performed. Data may be simply transmitted to the user terminal 2. In this case, the comparison with the original data is performed on the user terminal 2 side. The comparison is performed using a comparison means such as a program determined according to the type of file, but it may also be a visual check.

In the above embodiment, the user terminal 2 and the electronic document registration apparatus 4 transmit and receive data with the user via the communication network N. However, a medium such as a CD-R storing the electronic document is manually transmitted. May be delivered.
In short, in the present invention, as a user-provided service, it is important not only to give a time stamp but also to prepare some countermeasures in case the original is changed by keeping a copy. is there.

The present invention can contribute to improving the convenience of the user when saving a document with electronic data instead of the conventional paper.

It is a system configuration figure of this embodiment. It is a functional block diagram of the electronic document registration apparatus of this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the data structure of the user information database of this embodiment. It is a figure which illustrates the data structure of the replication database of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the flow of the process which provides the time stamp of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the flow of a comparison process of the original and replication of this embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 System 2 of this embodiment User terminal 3 Time information supply apparatus 4 Electronic document registration apparatus 5 User information storage means 6 Duplicate data storage means 7 Time stamp assignment request reception means 8 Time information acquisition means 9 Time stamp assignment means 10 Electronic document registration Means 11 Originality verification request accepting means 12 Originality verification means 13 Data comparison means N Communication network

Claims (10)

A system for giving a time stamp to an electronic document according to a request from a user, and generating and registering a copy of the electronic document with the time stamp,
A user terminal used by a user; a time information supply device that supplies accurate time information; and an electronic document registration device that can communicate with the user terminal and the time information supply device.
This electronic document registration device
User information storage means for storing user personal information;
Duplicate data storage means for storing duplicate data of an electronic document to which a time stamp is given in association with personal information of the user;
A time stamp giving request receiving means for receiving an electronic document to be time stamped together with a time stamp giving request from the user terminal;
Time information acquisition means for acquiring, from the time information supply device, time information proving the date and time of the time stamp grant request from the user terminal;
A time stamp attaching means for attaching a time stamp token created using the time information to the electronic document;
An electronic document that uses an electronic document attached with a time stamp token as original data, generates duplicate data of the original data, transmits the original data to the user terminal, and registers the duplicate data in the duplicate data storage means Registration means;
An originality verification request accepting means for receiving original data together with an originality verification request from the user terminal,
The duplicate data corresponding to the received original data is retrieved from the duplicate data storage means, and if the duplicate data does not match the original data, a mismatch portion is extracted and the comparison result is transmitted to the user terminal. Data comparison means;
An electronic document registration system comprising: The time stamp assignment request accepting unit converts the acquired electronic document into a predetermined data format if the electronic document is not in a predetermined data format.
The electronic document registration system according to claim 1. The electronic document registration system according to claim 1, wherein the data comparison unit transmits, to the user terminal, copy data corresponding to the received original data together with a comparison result. The electronic document registration apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising originality verification means for verifying originality based on a time stamp token attached to the electronic document. Document registration system. A device for giving a time stamp to an electronic document according to a request from a user, and generating and registering duplicate data of the electronic document with the time stamp,
Connect to a user terminal and a time information supply device that supplies accurate time information so that communication is possible.
User information storage means for storing user personal information;
Duplicate data storage means for storing duplicate data of an electronic document to which a time stamp is given in association with personal information of the user;
A time stamp giving request receiving means for receiving an electronic document to be time stamped together with a time stamp giving request from the user terminal;
Time information acquisition means for acquiring, from the time information supply device, time information proving the date and time of the time stamp grant request from the user terminal;
A time stamp attaching means for attaching a time stamp token created using the time information to the electronic document;
An electronic document that uses an electronic document attached with a time stamp token as original data, generates duplicate data of the original data, transmits the original data to the user terminal, and registers the duplicate data in the duplicate data storage means Registration means;
An originality verification request accepting means for receiving original data together with an originality verification request from the user terminal,
The duplicate data corresponding to the received original data is retrieved from the duplicate data storage means, and if the duplicate data does not match the original data, a mismatch portion is extracted and the comparison result is transmitted to the user terminal. Data comparison means;
An electronic document registration apparatus comprising: The time stamp assignment request accepting unit converts the acquired electronic document into a predetermined data format if the electronic document is not in a predetermined data format.
The electronic document registration apparatus according to claim 5. The electronic document registration apparatus according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the data comparison unit transmits the copy data corresponding to the received original data together with the comparison result to the user terminal. 8. The electronic document registration apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising originality verification means for verifying originality based on a time stamp token attached to the electronic document. Document registration device. In order to give a time stamp to an electronic document according to a request from a user and to generate and register duplicate data of the electronic document given the time stamp,
A method performed by a computer configured to be communicable with a user terminal used by a user and a time information supply device that supplies accurate time information,
This computer
User information storage means for storing user personal information;
Duplicate data storage means for storing duplicate data of an electronic document to which a time stamp is given in association with personal information of the user;
Have
A step of receiving a time stamp granting electronic document together with a time stamp granting request from the user terminal;
Obtaining time information proving the date and time of the time stamp assignment request from the user terminal from the time information supply device;
Attaching a time stamp token created using the time information to the electronic document;
An electronic document attached with a time stamp token as original data, generating duplicate data of the original data, transmitting the original data to the user terminal, and registering the duplicate data in the duplicate data storage means; ,
Receiving original data together with the originality verification request from the user terminal;
A step of retrieving duplicate data corresponding to the received original data from the duplicate data storage means, comparing the duplicate data with the original data, extracting a mismatched portion and transmitting a comparison result to the user terminal. ,
The electronic document registration method characterized by performing the process including this. In order to give a time stamp to an electronic document according to a request from a user and generate and register duplicate data of the electronic document with the time stamp,
It is configured to be able to communicate with a terminal device used by a user and a time information supply device that supplies accurate time information,
User information storage means for storing user personal information;
Duplicate data storage means for storing duplicate data of an electronic document to which a time stamp is given in association with personal information of the user;
A computer program that causes a computer to execute processing;
For the above computer
A step of receiving a time stamp granting electronic document together with a time stamp granting request from the user terminal;
Obtaining time information proving the date and time of the time stamp assignment request from the user terminal from the time information supply device;
Attaching a time stamp token created using the time information to the electronic document;
An electronic document attached with a time stamp token as original data, generating duplicate data of the original data, transmitting the original data to the user terminal, and registering the duplicate data in the duplicate data storage means; ,
Receiving original data together with the originality verification request from the user terminal;
The duplicate data corresponding to the received original data is retrieved from the duplicate data storage means, and if the duplicate data does not match the original data, a mismatch portion is extracted and the comparison result is transmitted to the user terminal. Steps,
A computer program that executes

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