Reprogrammable security for controlling piracy and enabling interactive content

Abstract

Technologies are disclosed to transfer responsibility and control over security from player makers to content authors by enabling integration of security logic and content. An exemplary optical disk (200) carries an encrypted digital video title combined with data processing operations (225) that implement the titles security policies and decryption processes. Player devices include a processing environment (e.g., a real-time virtual machine), which plays content by interpreting its processing operations. Players also provide procedure calls to enable content code to load data from media, perform network communications, determine playback environment configurations (225), access secure non-volatile storage, submit data to CODECs for output (250), and / or perform cryptographic operations. Content can insert forensic watermarks in decoded output for tracing pirate copies. If pirates compromise a player or title, future content can be mastered with security features that, for example, block the attack, revoke pirated media, or use native code to correct player vulnerabilities.

Description

technical field [0001] This application relates generally to protecting the distribution of digital content and other data against piracy and other unauthorized use or redistribution. Background technique [0002] Various systems have been proposed to protect digital content. Most of these schemes encrypt content to protect it from unauthorized use and copying when it is stored on media or sent over untrusted communication channels. Decryption algorithms and keys are then managed by trusted tamper-resistant software or hardware modules designed to enforce access control rules (which may be fixed or configurable) that dictate how the content may be used. [0003] Content protection schemes are usually tailored for specific playback environments. For example, anti-piracy systems in software-only streaming content players designed for personal computers lack the security benefits of tamper-resistant hardware, but are often relatively easy to upgrade (e.g., if the user uninsta...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

[0033] Weak long-term security: Security systems must be robust and flexible enough to remain effective for a long time Background Art content protection systems rarely last more than a few years as part of a high-profile format over 30 years

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