JPH09179734A - Method for preventing unauthorized use of software for evaluation - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the continuous unauthorized use of a data file by comparing use time limit information and date information read from a processor and limiting the use of the data file in the case of exceeding a use time limit. SOLUTION: A date is acquired in a time acquisition means 13, the one to which allowable using time set beforehand is added is defined as the use time limit and the use time limit information is prepared. Then, the obtained use time limit information is added to the end time limit information 17 of the data file 7 and it is turned to a storage file. Then, the obtained storage file is stored in a secondary storage means or the like by utilizing the file management means 12 of an application software main body 10. Then, the date at present is acquired as the date information by the time acquisition means 13. Then, the obtained date is compared with the use time limit stipulated by the use time limit information previously obtained from the data file 7 and the read of the data file is stopped in the case that the obtained date exceeds the use time limit.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software, and more particularly to a method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software that requires the use of a data file.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in software distribution,
An evaluation version (evaluation software) is distributed in order to get a wide range of legitimate software evaluations. The distribution of such an evaluation version is for the purpose of software evaluation only, and it is usually lent out free of charge.Therefore, it is necessary to prevent unauthorized use for practical purposes such as daily business. Has become. Generally, in order to prevent such unauthorized use, it is often the case that a part of normal functions, such as a printing function and a file storing function, is restricted.

However, in the case of software such as a database in which the storage of data is important, it is not desirable to limit the storage of the data in particular, and there are many demands for removing the limitation of the file storage function. . As a technique for responding to such a demand and preventing illegal use, conventionally, a method of limiting the period of use or the number of times of use of evaluation software (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-54529).
Further, there is known a method (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-65716) in which a password is used and the password is judged so that it cannot be used illegally after a certain period of time.

FIG. 11 is used in a method of limiting the period of use and the number of times of use of the above evaluation software.
It is a figure which shows an example of a structure of the program file by which the illegal use prevention was given. In FIG. 11, reference numeral 1 is an evaluation application software body, and 2 is a protect program. The protect program 2 is provided with end time limit information 3 that is information regarding the evaluation end time limit, number-of-uses information 4, and time acquisition means 5. The end time limit information 3 is calculated based on the start time at the start of evaluation, recorded, and held in the file. The use count information 4 is updated each time the evaluation software is used, and is compared with a preset and recorded allowable count. The time acquisition means 5 acquires the start time when the program is started, and normally,
The time information is obtained from the clock mechanism of the hardware via the time acquisition means of the operating system. Then, based on such a configuration, the protect program 2 compares the activation time with the expiration date at the time of activation of the evaluation software, or determines whether or not the number of times of use is within a preset allowable number of times. If it exceeds the allowable range, stop the start of the evaluation software,
Alternatively, the software file is deleted.

[0005]

By the way, when the method using the program file shown in FIG. 11 is adopted, the manufacturer (distributor) of the evaluation software usually sets (installs) the evaluation software. There is. However, in recent years, in order to have more users evaluate the evaluation software, it has been distributed over a network or a CD-ROM. Then, like this, networks and CDs
-When distributed by ROM, if the start time is set at the time of installation, this start time will be left to the user's hands, and there is a risk that fraud will occur when the first end deadline is set. . For example, by performing the installation a plurality of times, it becomes possible to use it for a long time. That is, make a copy of the program file before setting the software, evaluate the data for a certain period of time or a certain number of times, save the data, reset the program file saved as another evaluation, start the evaluation, and save it. By opening the saved data, the software can be continuously used. Although a method of deleting the data file at the same time as the software can be considered, the data file can generally be duplicated, and by re-evaluating the duplicated file, it is possible to continue using the software. turn into.

In order to avoid such an inconvenience, a method has been proposed in which a password is used as described above, and the password is judged so that it cannot be used illegally after a certain period of time. However, in that case, it is necessary to set the deadline uniformly in advance so that it operates only for the same period so that the setting of the deadline is not entrusted to the user.
However, if you set the deadline uniformly like this,
For users who have delayed the acquisition of the evaluation software, the use period becomes short, and new inconvenience occurs such that the evaluation cannot be performed sufficiently.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. By preventing continuous unauthorized use of data,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software that prevents continuous unauthorized use of evaluation software.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems Claim 1 of the present invention
In the unauthorized use prevention method for evaluation software described, in the unauthorized use prevention method for evaluation software that requires the use of a data file, a process of adding expiration date information to the data file and storing it in Processing of reading date information from the processor using the software for use is compared with the expiration date information stored in the data file and the date information read from the processor, and the date obtained from the date information is defined by the expiration date information. It is the means for solving the above-mentioned problem that the processing for limiting the use of the data file is provided when the expiration date has passed.

According to the present invention, the expiration date information is added to the data file created by the user, and the expiration date information is compared with the date information read from the processor. Since the process of limiting the use of the data file is performed, it is possible to prevent the continuous unauthorized use of the data file. Here, the data file includes not only a data file of a word processor or the like but also a file that stores setting information of the user when using the software. It should be noted that although there are many pieces of software in which it is not essential to create a data file, the present invention can be applied to all evaluation software by creating such a file at the same time when the software is started.

In the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 5 of the present invention, in the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software that requires the use of a data file, at least a part of the data stored in the data file is used. Can be encoded based on a key depending on the date of creation of the data, and then the encoded data can be stored in the above-mentioned data file, and it can be verified whether or not the stored data can be properly compounded. Storing the verified pattern in the data file, reading the date information from the processor using the evaluation software when using the data in the data file when using the evaluation software, and the date After reading the information, based on the key depending on the date information read When the verification pattern is compounded, the process of verifying whether the compounding of the data of the data file can be performed correctly, and when it is verified that the compounding of the data of the data file cannot be performed correctly, A means for solving the above-mentioned problems is provided with a process of restricting the use of the data file.

According to the present invention, at least a part of the data to be stored in the data file is encoded and stored based on the key depending on the creation date of the data, and the stored data can be properly compounded. A verification pattern that enables verification of whether or not it is stored in the data file. Then, when the data of the data file is used in using the evaluation software, the verification pattern is compounded based on the key depending on the date information read from the processor, and the data of the data file is compounded. Verify that the conversion can be done correctly. Further, when it is verified that the data of the data file cannot be properly combined, a process of limiting the use of the data file is performed.
Therefore, it becomes possible to prevent continuous unauthorized use of the data file, and it becomes difficult to falsify the data by encoding at least a part of the data.

That is, if the expiration date information is simply added to the data file, the expiration date information may be tampered with by a technique such as reverse engineering. In order to avoid such a possibility, for example, a method of encrypting the expiration date information may be considered, but in that case, if the storage location is specified, only that part will be copied from the other expiration date data file. There is a risk that fraud such as performing In the present invention, however, it is possible to more reliably prevent unauthorized use of the evaluation software by making it difficult to falsify the data as described above.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on an embodiment. FIGS. 1A and 1B are views for explaining a first embodiment of the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 1 of the present invention,
FIG. 1 (a) is a block diagram of an application file 6 which is the evaluation software, and FIG. 1 (b) is a data file 7
FIG. The application file 6 comprises an application software main body 10 and a protect program 11, and the application software main body 10 is provided with a file management means 12. The file management means 12 is a means for storing data as a file, and has the same kind of mechanism as that provided in many software for inputting / outputting data.

The protect program 11 is provided with a time acquisition means 13, a data encoding means 14, and a data decoding means 15. The time acquisition means 13 is for acquiring the date (time) information, and is for acquiring the start time when the program is started, like the time acquisition means 5 shown in FIG. ) Is to obtain time information from a hardware clock mechanism or the like via the time acquisition means. The data encoding means 14 converts the data to be stored into a file format, and specifically, simply adds a digitized date to the stored data. The data decoding means 15 extracts date information from the data which has been subjected to the encoding procedure. Then, these time acquisition means 13, data encoding means 14, and data decoding means 15
With the above, the protect program 11 can determine whether the data in the data file is within the time limit, that is, whether the data file is an illegal one that has passed the expiration date. On the other hand, in the data file 7, as shown in FIG. 1B, in addition to the user data 16, end time limit information 17 which is an area for storing the time limit information is provided.

Next, in the case of storing data in the user data 16 of the data file 7 by using the application file 6 and the data file 7 having such a configuration and in the case of further reading the data file 7, FIG.
Description will be made with reference to (a) and (b). In order to store the data, first, as shown in FIG.
Protect program 1
1 (step-A1, hereinafter referred to as ST-A1), if the file is a new file, the time acquisition means 13 acquires the date and a preset allowable usage time (allowable usage days) is added. The expiration date is used as the expiration date (ST-A2). If the data file 7 is an existing file, the expiration date information already read is used as it is (ST-A3).

Then, the obtained expiration date information is added to the expiration date information 17 of the data file 7 to make it a storage file (ST-A4). Next, the obtained storage file is stored in the secondary storage means (not shown) or the like by using the file management means 12 of the application software body 10 (ST-A5). For example, when storing a new file, the current date is 95/1/1 (19
If the allowable usage time is 30 days, 95/1/31 is stored as usage expiration information.

To use the data (data file 7) stored in this way, first, referring to FIG.
The data file 7 is read out as shown in (b) (ST
-B1), the expiration date information is extracted from this data file 7 (ST-B2). If the expiration date information is not stored, the data file 7 is regarded as being illegally used and the reading is stopped. next,
The time acquisition means 13 acquires the current date as date information (ST-B3). Then, the obtained date is compared with the expiration date specified by the expiration date information previously obtained from the data file 7 (ST-B4), and if the obtained date is beyond the expiration date, , Stop reading the above data file.

For example, if the current date is 95/2/1 and the expiration date specified in the expiration date information of the data file to be used is 95/1/31, the reading is stopped and the The data file is no longer usable. If the obtained date is within the expiration date, that is, if the application file 6 is used within the regular period, the data file 7 is read normally and is used for the evaluation of the application file 6. To be done.

In such a method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software, the expiration date is stored in the data file 7 used by the protect program 11, and the expiration date has passed when the data file 7 was read. In this case, since the reading is stopped in this case, the data file 7 can be used only for a predetermined period set in advance, and therefore the application file 6 requiring the use of the data file 7 is used.
The use of can also be limited to a certain period.

That is, in the conventional method in which the expiration date information is stored in the program file (application file), the created data file is saved or a copy of the data file is saved, so that the expiration date has passed and the program file ( Even if the data file as well as the application file is deleted, the evaluation program can be reset as a new evaluation and the duplicated data file can be opened, resulting in continued use of the program file (application file). Become. Therefore, according to the method of the present embodiment, even if the data file is copied, the expiration date information is stored on the data file side, so that the usage of the data file after the expiration date has passed Can be surely restricted.

In general, software may use a file for various settings, and the setting file is essential for starting the software. Therefore, if the method of the present invention is applied to this setting file, it is possible to operate only for a fixed period allowed after the software itself is obtained. Further, by applying the present invention to a plurality of software, it is possible to evaluate data transfer between the plurality of software.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are views for explaining a second embodiment of the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 1 of the present invention, and FIG. Application file 1 for evaluation software
8 is a block diagram of the data file 19, and FIG. 3B is a block diagram of the data file 19. The difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is that when the expiration date information is added to a data file and stored in the data file, the expiration date information is encrypted not by simply digitizing the date. There is a point to change. As for encryption, any form may be used as long as it is a recoverable operation for date information, and of course, existing encryption technology can be applied.

The application file 18, which is the evaluation software shown in FIG. 3A, is the same as the application file 6 shown in FIG.
The application software main body 20 is provided with a file management means 22 similar to the file management means 12 described above.

The protect program 21 is provided with a time acquisition means 23, a data encoding means 24, a data decoding means 25, and expiration date information 26. The time acquisition means 23 is the time acquisition means 13 shown in FIG.
It functions similarly to. The data encoding means 24 encrypts the expiration date information as described above and adds it to the data file 19. The data combining means 25 is for extracting the expiration date information from the data file 19, performing an inverse calculation of encryption, and returning it to the information indicating the original expiration date. Expiration date information 26
Is for storing the expiration date information set at the first startup. The expiration date information 26 includes
When the application file 18 itself is distributed, a predetermined value indicating unset is set. In addition, in the application file 18, an area for holding an encoding key Ki for a file opened by execution of the software when the file 18 is activated is stored in an area of the protect program 21 on the main memory (shown in the figure). Is omitted). On the other hand, in the data file 19, as shown in FIG.
7, the expiration date information 28, which is an area for storing the expiration date information, is provided.

Next, using the application file 18 and the data file 19 having such a configuration, when data is stored in the user data 27 of the data file 19, when the data file 19 is read, the application file 18 is further activated. The case of confirming will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 (a), 4 (b) and 4 (c).
To store data, first, as shown in FIG. 4A, the protect program 21 determines whether or not the data file 19 is a new file (ST-C1), and if it is a new file, the time is acquired. The date is obtained by the means 23 and the preset allowable use time (the allowable number of use days) is set.
The expiration date is added to calculate the expiration date, and the earliest of the expiration date and the expiration date (expiration date information) of the file opened up to that point is the regular expiration date, and the information based on this expiration date is data. Encoding is performed by the encoding means 24 (ST
-C2). If the data file 19 is an existing file, the expiration date information already read is used as it is (ST-C3).

Next, the obtained expiration date information is added to the expiration date information 28 of the data file 19 to make it a storage file (ST-C4). Next, the obtained storage file is stored in the secondary storage means (not shown) or the like by using the file management means 22 of the application software main body 20 (ST-C5).

To use the data (data file 19) stored in this way, first, as in the case shown in FIG. 2B, first, as shown in FIG. 19 is read (ST-D1), and expiration date information is taken out from this data file 19 (ST-D1).
2). If the expiration date information is not stored, the data file 19 is considered to be illegally used, and the reading is stopped. Next, the time acquisition means 23 acquires the current date as date information (ST
-D3). Then, the obtained date and the expiration date defined by the expiration date information previously obtained from the data file 19, that is, the original expiration date obtained by performing the inverse operation of the encryption by the data decoding means 25. And (ST-D
4) If the obtained date is past the expiration date,
The reading of the data file is stopped and its use is restricted, that is, in this example, the data file 19 and the application file 18 are erased and their reuse is disabled (ST-D5). If the obtained date is within the expiration date, that is, if the application file 18 is used within the regular period, the data file 1 is used as in the case shown in FIG. 2B.
9 is read normally, and the application file 18 is evaluated.

Further, when the application file 18 is started up, first, as a confirmation of the start-up, first of all, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (c), the expiration date information 26 is extracted from the protect program 21 of the application file 18 (ST-E1). At this time, it is determined whether or not this expiration date information 26 is not set (ST-E2), and if it is not set, the process proceeds to ST-E5 described later. When the expiration date information 26 is set, the time acquisition means 23 acquires the current date as the date information (ST.
-E3). Then, the obtained date is compared with the expiration date set in the expiration date information 26 (ST-E4),
If the obtained date is over the expiration date, stop reading the above data file and limit its use,
That is, in this example, the data file 19 and the application file 18 are erased and their reuse is disabled (ST-E6).

If the obtained date is within the expiration date, that is, if the application file 18 is used within the regular period, the application file 18 is activated normally. Further, when the expiration date information 26 is not set, the time acquisition means 2
3, the date is acquired, and a preset allowable use time (allowable use days) is added to calculate the expiration date, and the obtained expiration date is stored in the expiration date information 26 (ST-E
5) After that, the application file 18 is activated.

In such a method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software, data (user data 27) and a program (application file 1) that have passed a certain period of time are determined by the expiration date information 28 of the data file 19.
Since 8) does not operate, it is possible to prevent the evaluation software from being used after a certain period of time. At this time,
By automatically deleting the application file 18, it is possible to more reliably prevent illegal use.
Further, even if the expiration date information is simply added to the data file, the expiration date information may be tampered with by various tools. However, in the above embodiment, the expiration date information stored in the data file 19 is not included in the expiration date information. Since the data is encrypted, it is possible to prevent the expiration date information from being tampered with by analyzing the data file such as reverse engineering.

Further, in the case of software capable of opening a plurality of files at the same time, the software uses the earliest expiration date of each of the data files opened so far as the expiration date of the new data file. It is possible to prevent an attempt to substantially extend the period of use of the data by copying the data inside. At this time, if the data file includes a setting file that is indispensable for starting the software, it is particularly effective because it is always read.
In the present embodiment, the comparison and replacement with the expiration date information of the existing data file are performed only in the case of the new data file. However, the expiration date information of other existing data files is also used for the existing data file. You may make it compare and replace with.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are views for explaining the first embodiment of the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 5 of the present invention, and FIG. Application file 3 for evaluation software
0 is a configuration diagram, and FIG. 5B is a configuration diagram of the data file 31. The embodiment is different from the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 in that the key is changed and the data file is encoded for each date corresponding to the period of use. Here, the encoding is a reversible operation using the key as a parameter for the entire data file, and any method may be used as long as it is difficult to infer the key from the operation result. Existing encryption technology or compression technology is applied. You may.

The application file 30 shown in FIG. 5A is the application software main body 32.
And a protect program 33, and the application software main body 32 is provided with a file management means 34. The protect program 33 is provided with a time acquisition means 35, a key generation means 36, a data encoding means 37, and a data decoding means 38. The time acquisition means 35 is for acquiring the date (time) information similarly to the time acquisition means 13 shown in FIG. The key creation means 36 is the time acquisition means 3
A key for encoding is calculated based on the date information obtained in 5. Here, as a key for encoding, as will be described later, it is formed so that it has the same value for dates of a certain period and is different outside the period. The data encoding means 37 encodes a data file to be stored and stores it in the data file 31, and at the same time, a verification pattern that enables verification of whether the stored data can be properly compounded or not. It is stored in 31. The data decoding means 38 is for decoding the data subjected to the coding procedure by the data coding means 37, that is, the coded data is inversely operated to restore the original form. It is a thing. On the other hand, the data file 31 stores user data 39 encoded as shown in FIG. 5 (b).

With such a configuration, the protect program 33 encodes the data by the data encoding means 37 and confirms whether the stored verification pattern is correctly restored by the data decoding means 38. This makes it possible to determine whether or not the data is within the expiration date, that is, whether or not the data is an illegally used file. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, the encoding key is changed every fixed period (every 30 days in the example in the figure) depending on the data creation date. When the encoding key is changed in this way, the encoding method also changes when the creation date is different for the same data file. Therefore, the data file can be correctly restored only within the same period as the encoded date (creation date).

Next, in the case of storing data in the user data 39 of the data file 31 using the application file 30 and the data file 31 having such a configuration, and when reading the data file 31 further, FIG. ) And (b). In order to store the data, first, as shown in FIG. 7A, the protect program 33 determines whether or not the data file 31 is a new file (ST-F1). If it is a new file, the time is acquired. Obtain date by means 13 (ST-
Along with F2), an encoding key is created from the acquired date (ST-F3). On the other hand, when the file is an existing file rather than a new file, the already read coding key is used as it is (ST-F4).

Next, a verification pattern is added to the data to be stored, and further encoding is performed using the above encoding key (ST-F5). Next, the encoded data file 31 is stored in the secondary storage (not shown) or the like by using the file management means 34 of the application file 30 (ST-F6).

Here, with respect to the process of creating the encoding key from the date, any process can be used as long as it is the same as the one created as described above for a certain period of time and different from the subsequent ones. However, a method is possible in which a date is expressed by a numerical value such that one day corresponds to 1, the integer is divided by a period (for example, the number of days), and the value is hashed. For example, when storing a new file, it is assumed that the current date is 95/1/10 and the permissible expiration date is 30 days. And 95/1/1
If the digitized value of 0 is 32882, dividing this by 30 and taking the integer part gives 1108. This value is converted again using a hash function, and h (1
108) = 104325 is obtained. The reason why the hash function is applied is that if the keys have similar numerical values, the change in the encoding result may be poor and the determination based on the pattern may be difficult.

Further, in this way, the data file 31
In order to use the data stored in
The data file 31 is read as shown in (b) (S
T-G1). Next, the time acquisition means 35 acquires the current date (ST-G2), and the key is determined based on the acquired date in the same way as the encoding (ST-G3). Next, the data is decrypted by the data decrypting means 38 using the determined key to obtain the verification pattern added previously (ST
-G4). After that, it is judged whether or not the compounded one holds a predetermined verification pattern, that is, whether or not the obtained verification pattern is a regular one (ST-
G5) If it is legitimate, the reading process is continued, and if it is not legitimate, the reading process is stopped.

For example, assuming that the current date is 95/2/1, its digitized value is 33269, and the integer part of the value obtained by dividing this by 30 is 1108.
Becomes When this value is converted by a hash function or the like, h (1108) = 104325 is obtained. This value serves as the same key as the coded 95/1/10 as described above, so that the data can be normally combined and the verification pattern can be normally restored.
Subsequent processing can be performed normally.

On the other hand, if the current date is 95/2/2, the digitized value is 33270, and this is divided by 30 to obtain the integer part, which is 1109. When this value is converted by a hash function or the like, the obtained key is h (1109) = 600455, for example. Therefore, if an attempt is made to combine the data and the verification pattern using this as a key, it cannot be correctly combined, and of course, the verification pattern cannot be correctly restored. Therefore, it is determined that the data is used during the illegal period.

In such a method for preventing unauthorized use of the evaluation software, since the key for encoding is changed by the date (creation date) by the protect program 33, if the key is not in the same period, the code is not encoded. The specified data file can be made unavailable. That is, in the conventional method in which the program file (application file) has the usage period information, the data file created as described above is saved or a copy thereof is saved, so that the program file (application file) is eventually saved. However, according to this method, even if the data file 31 is duplicated, if it is past the expiration date, it is composited based on the date information when it was activated. However, since the normal data cannot be decrypted, the obtained data is not legitimate and cannot be decrypted. As a result, the use of the data file 31, that is, the evaluation software itself outside the period of use must be restricted. I'm sorry.

Further, according to this method, there is no risk of unauthorized use even if the setting (installation) of the evaluation software is left to the user, so the evaluation software is made available to the public on the network or CD-ROM. It is possible to reduce maintenance work and the like associated with the settings on the manufacturer side by distributing the data at the manufacturer. Further, as described above, the software may use files for various settings, and the setting file is essential for starting the software. Therefore, if this method is applied to this setting file, the software itself can be operated only for a fixed period allowed after it is obtained. Furthermore, by applying the method to a plurality of software, it is possible to evaluate the passing of data between the plurality of software. Further, according to this method, since the data is encoded, even if an attempt is made to analyze it by using a data analysis tool or the like, the content thereof is difficult to analyze, and therefore, the unauthorized use of the evaluation software can be more reliably prevented. .

FIGS. 8A and 8B are views for explaining a second embodiment of the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 5 of the present invention, and FIG. Application file 4 as evaluation software
0 is a block diagram, and FIG. 8B is a block diagram of the data file 41. 5 is different from the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 in that the data created by the evaluation software can be used only for a certain period according to the embodiment shown in FIG. When one expiration date comes in / 2, if you start evaluation on 2/1, the data created there will only be usable for one day, such as when the evaluation starts near the date when the key will be changed The point is that the created data can be used only in a very short period of time.

The application file 40 shown in FIG. 8A is composed of an application software main body 42 and a protect program 43, which is similar to the application file 30 shown in FIG. 5A. On the other hand, the data file 41 shown in FIG.
The encoded user data 44 is stored, and a period type 45, which is an area for storing the period type, is provided. Here, the type of period 45
With respect to, it is assumed that no coding is performed. As the period type 45, the divided periods are alternately assigned to the type A or B in the present embodiment. This type can be determined from the date information by a method such as whether the value obtained by dividing the numerical value data of the date by the unit period by an integer is an even number or an odd number.

Further, this application file 40
The protect program 43 on the main memory.
An area (not shown) is provided in the area for holding an encoding key Ki for a file opened by execution of the software (application file 40) while the software is running. Further, the protect program 43 is provided with an area (not shown) for storing a current key, a key for a period immediately before the current key, and each period type. Based on such a configuration, in the present embodiment, when data is compounded, in addition to the key based on the corresponding date, the compounding using the key of the immediately preceding period is also attempted to evaluate. It will be available for two periods from the beginning of. By doing so, it becomes possible to perform a full evaluation within one preset period at the shortest and a full evaluation within two periods at the longest. Note that, in order to make the attempt of data combination efficient, in the present embodiment example, the period is roughly divided into two types, and a tag for identifying which key is used is provided.

That is, in the above first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9A, in the program P11 which performs the read operation in the period T11, the composite processing corresponding to the data created in the period T11 is performed. Only during the period T
Only data (for example, D11) created in 11 can be used. In the present embodiment, however, as shown in FIG. 9B, the key of the immediately preceding encoding is also calculated so that the data can be compounded based on this key.
The data created in the previous period will also be available. Further, in the case of software (application file 40) capable of opening a plurality of files at the same time, one of the keys set in the opened data file 41 that has the shortest expiration date is used for a new file. By encoding as a key, it is possible to prevent extension of the expiration date due to duplication within the software.

Next, in the case of storing data in the user data 44 of the data file 41 by using the application file 40 and the data file 41 having such a configuration, and when reading the data file 41, FIG. ) And (b). To store data, first, as shown in FIG. 10A, the protect program 33 determines whether the data file 31 is a new file (ST-H1), and if it is a new file, the time is acquired. The means 35 acquires the date and calculates the period type from the acquired date (ST-H
2) Further, an encoding key is created from the acquired date (ST-H3). However, before that, if the data file is opened in the period immediately before the period including the acquired date, the encoding key and the period type of the previous period are used. If it is an existing file, the read encoding key and period type are used (ST-H4).

Next, a verification pattern is added to the data to be stored, and coding is performed using the above coding key,
Further, the obtained period type information is added (ST-H
5). Next, the encoded data file 41 is stored in secondary storage (not shown) or the like by using the file management means 34 of the application file 40 (ST-H6). For example, when a new file is stored, the current date is 95/1/10, the allowable expiration date is 60 days at the maximum, and the minimum unit of the period is 30 days.
Then, the numerical value of 95/1/10 is 32
If it is 882, divide this by 30 and take the integer part,
It becomes 1108. This value is converted again by a hash function or the like to obtain a key h (1108) = 104325. Here, since 1108 is an even number, the period type is A.

Further, in this way, the data file 41
In order to use the data stored in
The data file 41 is read as shown in (b) (S
T-I1). Next, the time acquisition means 35 acquires the current date, and further determines the period type (ST-I
2). Then, the data type 4 is set in advance according to the determined period type.
1 is compared (ST-I3), and if they are equal, the current date acquired is used to determine the coding key (ST-I4). If they are different, the key of the immediately preceding period and the period type are calculated, respectively, and are used as the compounding key (ST-I5). Then, the data is combined by the data combining means 38 using the determined key to obtain the verification pattern added previously (ST-I6). After that, it is judged whether or not the composited one holds a predetermined verification pattern, that is, whether or not the obtained verification pattern is a normal one (ST-I7), and the normalized one is judged. If so, the reading process is continued, and if not, the reading process is stopped.

For example, if the current date is 95/2/2, the digitized value is 33269, which is divided by 30 to obtain the integer part, which is 1109. Since this value is an odd number, the period type is recognized as B. if,
When trying to open a file of period type A, the period type is different, so the key is one period before, h (1109-1)
= 104325 is used. Then, 95/1/10
Since it is possible to use the data encoded in the above, it is possible to normally perform the compounding, and thus the verification pattern is also normally restored, so that the processing can be normally performed. Here, in this example, the allowable number of days is 60 days. Also, 95/3/5 is a numerical value of 33301
And dividing by 30 and taking the integer part gives 1110,
The period type is A. In the file of period type A, the key is
For example, h (1110) = 775254. Therefore, if an attempt is made to combine the files created in 1/1 (the period type is A) using this as a key, the files cannot be properly combined, and the verification pattern cannot be restored correctly. Therefore, it is determined that the data is used during the illegal period.

In such a method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software, the same effect as that of the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 can be obtained. Furthermore, since the data created at the start of evaluation is valid until the next unit period,
It is possible to use at least the minimum unit period, so that it is possible to avoid the inconvenience that the period of use becomes extremely short and the evaluation time is not sufficiently secured. Further, since the earliest expiration date of each of the data files opened so far is adopted as the encoding key of the new data file, duplication of data between files within the software (application file 40) is adopted. It is possible to prevent an attempt to substantially extend the usage period of data by. At this time, if the data file includes a setting file indispensable for starting the software, it is particularly effective because this is always read.

In this embodiment, the data up to the previous unit period is valid, but it is set up to allow the data to go back any number of periods, such as two or three. Good. Further, although the encoding is performed on the data file other than the period type, it may be limited to a part of an arbitrary data file not including the period type. Further, regarding the protect program 43, FIG.
As shown in (a), the data encoding means 37 is included, but for software that does not require writing,
The data encoding means 37 may not be provided, and in that case, the data may be provided by encoding a part or all of the data in advance.

[0053]

As described above, the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 1 of the present invention is
Expiration date information is added to the data file created by the user, and the expiration date information is compared with the date information read from the processor. Since this method is adopted, it is possible to prevent continuous unauthorized use of the above-mentioned data file, and thereby prevent continuous unauthorized use of the evaluation software which essentially requires continuous use of data. You can

In the method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 5 of the present invention, at least a part of the data stored in the data file is encoded and stored based on the key depending on the date of creation of the data. A verification pattern that enables verification of whether or not the stored data can be properly compounded is stored in the data file, and a processor is used when the data in the data file is used when the evaluation software is used. The verification pattern is compounded based on the key that depends on the date information read from, and it is verified whether compounding of the data of the data file can be performed correctly. Restricts the use of the above data files when it is verified that compounding cannot be performed correctly Since a method in so that, it is possible to prevent the continued unauthorized use of the data file by encoding at least a portion of the data it may be difficult to perform falsification of the data.

As described above, according to the present invention, since the use period of the data file is limited, it is the same as the full-scale use in the application field of software in which data itself is important, such as a database. This is extremely effective because it is essential to use the data for a long period of time. Further, when writing essential data such as setting data in the application file (software) itself, it is possible to prevent unauthorized use of the software by restricting (unusable) use of the data. Further, not only software programs such as package programs but also electronic books, MIDI data, and the like are assumed to have a certain reading software, and the present invention is applied to those who sell the data, when the data is generally distributed for advertisement and evaluation. It can be applied, and in that case, the seller can let the user before purchase try the music and information for a certain period. In addition, it can be applied not only to evaluation but also to applications in which the trial period of data is generally limited.For example, in the software for learning materials or the prize quiz of a magazine, the correct answer is referred to by the present invention until a certain time. You can also do things that you can't do.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a first embodiment of the invention according to claim 1, (a) is a configuration diagram of an application file, and (b) is a configuration diagram of a data file.

2A and 2B are flow charts for explaining a first embodiment of the invention according to claim 1, where FIG. 2A is a flow chart for storing a data file, and FIG. 2B is a flow chart for reading a data file. FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a second embodiment of the invention according to claim 1, (a) is a configuration diagram of an application file, and (b) is a configuration diagram of a data file.

4A and 4B are flow charts for explaining a second embodiment of the invention according to claim 1, where FIG. 4A is a flow chart for storing a data file, and FIG. 4B is a flow chart for reading a data file. FIG. 3C is a flowchart for confirming the activation of the application file.

5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining a first embodiment of the invention according to claim 5, wherein FIG. 5A is a configuration diagram of an application file, and FIG. 5B is a configuration diagram of a data file.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an encoding key.

7A and 7B are flow charts for explaining a first embodiment of the invention according to claim 5, wherein FIG. 7A is a flow chart for storing a data file, and FIG. 7B is a flow chart for reading a data file. FIG.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a second embodiment of the invention according to claim 5, (a) is a configuration diagram of an application file, and (b) is a configuration diagram of a data file.

9A and 9B are diagrams showing a relation between a data file and a program being executed, FIG. 9A is a relation explanatory diagram in the case of the first embodiment of the invention described in claim 5, and FIG.
It is a relationship explanatory drawing in the case of the 1st Embodiment example in the invention described.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a second embodiment of the invention according to claim 5, (a) is a flowchart for storing a data file, and (b) is a flowchart for reading the data file. FIG.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram of a conventional application file.

[Explanation of symbols]

6, 18, 30, 40 Application file 7, 19, 31, 41 Data file 10, 20, 32, 42 Application software main body 11, 21, 33, 43 Protect program 12, 22, 34 File management means 13, 23, 35 Time acquisition means 14, 24, 37 Data encoding means 15, 25, 38 Data decoding means 16, 27, 39, 44 User data 17 End time limit information 26, 28 Use time limit information 45 Period type

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software that requires the use of a data file, comprising the step of adding expiration date information to the data file and storing the information in the data file, and using the evaluation software. The process of reading the date information from the processor is compared with the expiration date information stored in the data file and the date information read from the processor, and the date obtained from the date information indicates the expiration date specified in the expiration date information. A method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software, comprising: a process of restricting the use of the data file when it has passed. 2. The method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 1, wherein when the expiration date information is added to the data file and stored therein, the expiration date information is encrypted. 3. When adding the expiration date information to a new data file to which the expiration date information is not added, and there is a data file to which the expiration date information has already been added, 2. The method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 1, wherein the expiration date information is added and stored so that the expiration date defined by the expiration date information is the same as the earliest expiration date. 4. The process of limiting the use of the data file is a process of disabling the use of the evaluation software by deleting the program file and the data file of the evaluation software. A method for preventing unauthorized use of the evaluation software according to claim 1. 5. A method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software that requires the use of a data file, wherein at least a part of the data stored in the data file is based on a key depending on the date of creation of the data. A process of encoding and then storing the encoded data in the data file, and storing a verification pattern in the data file that enables verification of whether the stored data can be correctly compounded, When using the data of the above-mentioned data file when using the evaluation software, a process of reading date information from a processor using the evaluation software and a key depending on the read date information after reading the date information Based on the above, the above verification patterns are compounded,
The process of verifying whether the data of the data file can be compounded correctly, and the process of restricting the use of the data file when it is verified that the data of the data file cannot be compounded correctly. A method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software, characterized by comprising: 6. The date read from the processor when the data of the data file is used for verifying whether or not the data of the data file can be properly compounded. In addition to the information-dependent key, a key that depends on the date information that goes back once or a predetermined number of times is prepared, and the verification pattern is compounded based on these keys. The method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 5. 7. The process of compounding the verification pattern based on the plurality of keys performs the compounding for each key by holding the information for each key as a period type in the data file. 7. The method for preventing unauthorized use of evaluation software according to claim 6, wherein the decryption is performed in a single process based on the information for each key.