Patent ID: 7266688

Claim:
A method for providing security of information in a computer system, said method comprising: receiving data to be made secure, said data received in user space, the user space defined by an operating system; executing an encode system call for encoding the data, said encode system call configured to: a) move the data from the user space into a kernel space and maintain the data in the kernel space, the kernel space defined by said operating system; b) encrypt the data using an encryption key maintained at the kernel space for a process, such that the encrypted data is in a form that is usable by the process executing in the kernel space, wherein the encrypted data is maintained in the kernel space for the duration of the process requesting the data; c) clear said user space of said data upon moving the data to the kernel space; and d) copy said encrypted data from said kernel space to said user space; executing a decode system call for decoding the data, the decode system call configured to: e) decrypt the data using a decryption key maintained at the kernel space for the process upon a request for the data; and f) move the decrypted data from kernel space to user space, the encrypted data remaining in the kernel space until processing of the decrypted data ends and is then removed from kernel space.