Patent ID: 7991995
Filing Date: 2011-08-02
Classification: G06F,G06Q

Abstract:
1. A method used by a protection center of sending protection information for protected software to a class of user devices having common properties comprising the steps of: signing a message including said protection information to be sent, the common properties, and an expiration time for said protection information; sending the signed protection information from a protection center to a class of user devices, such that the protection information identifies the protected software without revealing information about a user to whom the protected software was sold; verifying the signed protection information using a verification key; receiving said signed message by a supervising program on each user device; at each user device, using the protection information to detect and prevent infringing use of the protected software by verifying, using the supervising program, that the message has been signed by said protection center using a verification key on said user device, that said common properties correspond to one or more of a set of actual properties of the user device and a set of properties listed in the supervising program, and that the expiration time is greater than a current time, where the protection information facilitates the detection and prevention of infringing use of the protected software without requiring modification of the protected software; and upon successful verification, accepting the message by the user device.