Patent ID: 8520855

Claim:
A method for encapsulating data, the method comprising: receiving data to encapsulate; generating a random encryption key; encrypting the data with the generated encryption key thereby generating encrypted data; generating a data key corresponding to a decryption key; splitting the generated data key at one or more levels in a hierarchical computing configuration, into a predetermined number, N, of shares of the data key wherein a predetermined threshold number, M, of shares of the data key is required to reconstruct the data key, where M is less than or equal to N, and each share at each level divisible one or more times into additional shares at the next level; identifying one or more locations within one or more network configurations to store each share of the data key; storing each share of the data key at the selected location wherein each location is configured to delete the stored share of the data key after a specified period of time; and constructing a vanishing data object that comprises the encrypted data and information sufficient to retrieve a threshold number of data key shares.