Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Microsoft Corporation

Rushmi U. Malaviarachchi

Attila Narin

Bradley Serbus

Vinay Krishnaswamy

Steve Bourne

Marco A. Demello

John L. Manferdelli

Rushmi U Malaviarachchi

Scott C Cottrille

Charles F Rose

Blair Brewster Dillaway

John L Manferdelli

Gregory Kostal

Chandramouli Venkatesh

Kumar B Parambir

Kenneth D Ray

Marco A Demello

Craig Henry Wittenberg

Peter David Waxman

Vladimir Yarmolenko

Philip J Lafornara

Yuhui Zhong

Pierre Jacomet

Yevgeniy Eugene Rozenfeld

Christian Paquin

Abhijat A Kanade

Bradley S Serbus

Yevgeniy (Eugene) Rozenfeld

Michael David Marr

Nir Nice

Brian LaMacchia

David Benson Cross

John Eugene Neystadt

Frank Byrum

Amit Fulay

Krassimir Emilov Karamfilov

Noam Gershon Ben-Yochanan

Prashant Malik

Keith S Brintzenhofe

Max Uritsky

Li Ren

Patricia Priest

Mayur Kamat

Syed A Mehdi

Jeffrey M Brown

Umesh R Dhond

Jody A Hendrix

Conrad G Bayer

Frederic Delombaerde

Binding a security artifact to a service provider. A method includes generating a pseudonym for a security artifact. The pseudonym is an identifier of the security artifact to the service provider that is unique to the service provider in that the pseudonym is not used to identify the security artifact to other service providers. Further, the pseudonym uniquely identifies the particular security artifact to the service provider even when a user has available a number of different security artifacts to authenticate to the same service provider to access a user account for the user. The method further includes providing the pseudonym for the security artifact to the service provider. The pseudonym for the security artifact is bound with a user account at the service provider for a user associated with the security artifact.

Cryptographic device that binds an additional authentication factor to multiple identities

A publishing user publishes digital content and issues to itself a corresponding digital publisher license to allow itself to render the published digital content. The publishing user is supplied with a publishing certificate from a digital rights management (DRM) server, where the publishing certificate allows the publishing user to so publish the digital content and to so issue the publisher license.

Issuing a publisher use license off-line in a digital rights management (DRM) system

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for workflow based authorization for content access. A workflow can be triggered when a protection policy does not fully express an intended recipient's rights in protected content. A workflow processes relevant inputs to more fully express the intended recipient's rights in protected content. Workflows can provide policy item updates and authorizations decisions with respect to protected content. Through the use of workflows to make an authorization decision, access to information can become more flexible, allowing it to follow the desired flow of information throughout its lifecycle. This flexibility allows organizations to protect their information without worrying about the protection stopping the natural flow of business.

Workflow based authorization for content access

Methods, systems, and computer-readable media are disclosed for applying information protection. A particular method includes receiving a data file at a gateway coupled to a network. The data file is to be sent to a destination device that is external to the network. The method also includes selectively applying information protection to the data file at the gateway prior to sending the data file to the destination device. The information protection is selectively applied based on information associated with the destination device, information associated with the data file, and information associated with a user of the destination device.

Information protection applied by an intermediary device

One embodiment includes a method which may be practiced in a computing environment where resources are distributed. The method includes acts for obtaining policy information defining restrictions on resources distributed in the computing environment. The method includes sending a request to a server for metadata about one or more resource protection policies at the server. In response to the request, metadata about one or more resource protection polices at the server is received from the server. The metadata from the server is analyzed. Based on analyzing the metadata, one or more resource protection policies stored at the client are updated.

Distribution of information protection policies to client machines

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for a centrally accessible policy repository. Protection policies for protecting resources within an organization are stored at a central policy repository. Thus, an administrator can centrally create, maintain, and manage resource protection polices for all of the organizational units within an organization. Accordingly, resources consumed when performing these protection policy related operations is significantly reduced. Additionally, since protection policies are centrally located, there is increased likelihood of being able to consistently apply an organization's protection policies within different organizational units, even when protection policies change.

Centrally accessible policy repository

Protecting content. A recipient receives content from a publisher. Some content is managed by an access server. The access server controls the recipient's use of managed content through interaction with a trusted agent at the recipient. The content is encrypted to a content key, and the content is associated with policy information. The policy information includes the content key for decrypting the content. The policy information is encrypted to an access server key allowing the policy information to be decrypted by the access server. The content key is received from the access server. The content key is encrypted to a trusted agent key. The content key is further encrypted to additional factor(s) defining additional content protection beyond that provided by trusted agent. The content key is decrypted using the trusted agent key and the at least one additional factor. The content is decrypted using the content key.

Multi-factor content protection

The present invention extends to methods, systems, and computer program products for pre-performing operations for accessing protected content. Cryptographic user key pairs can be pre-generated and distributed in response to a variety of different events prior to provisioning client machine for accessing protected content. Usage licenses can be pre-generated and allocated prior to requests for usage licenses. Usage licenses can be pre-obtained for client machines prior to client machines access protected content. Pre-performed operations can be performed in response to detected events, such as, for example, reduced resource consumption in a Digital Rights Management system.

Pre-performing operations for accessing protected content

A licensor receives a request from a requestor including an identifier identifying the requestor and rights data associated with digital content, where the rights data lists at least one identifier and rights associated therewith. The licensor thereafter locates the identifier of the requestor in a directory, and locates in the directory based thereon an identifier of each group which the requestor is a member of. Each of the located requestor identifier and each located group identifier is compared to each identifier listed in the rights data to find a match, and a digital license to render the content is issued to the requestor with the rights associated with the matching identifier.

Publishing digital content within a defined universe such as an organization in accordance with a digital rights management (DRM) system

A digital certificate identifies an entity as having authority over the certificate to revoke same as delegated by the issuer. The certificate also has at least one revocation condition relating to possible revocation of the certificate. To authenticate the certificate, the identification of the delegated revocation authority, a location from which a revocation list is to be obtained, and any freshness requirement to be applied to the revocation list are determined from the certificate. It is then ensured that the revocation list from the location is present and that the present revocation list satisfies the freshness requirement, that the revocation list is promulgated by the delegated revocation authority identified in the certificate, and that the certificate is not identified in the revocation list as being revoked.

Revocation of a certificate and exclusion of other principals in a digital rights management (DRM) system based on a revocation list from a delegated revocation authority

In order to allow for security beyond revocation lists, a policy regarding when permissions may be granted (in the form of a rights document, e.g. a use license or a certificate) is enforced. When a request is made for a rights document, the requester submits an account certificate which includes certain metadata regarding the requester. This metadata is analyzed to determine whether it meets a specific policy before the request is granted. If the request is not granted, the cause of the rejection may be overcome, for example by updating or upgrading some system component (hardware or software) in the requesting system. In certain cases, such an update to overcome a policy-based rejection may be performed transparently to the user.

Enhancing digital rights management system security through policy enforcement

A first trusted component on a first computing device performs cryptography, evaluation, and enforcement and is tied thereto, and a first user-machine certificate associated with the first computing device is tied to a user. Correspondingly, a second trusted component on a second computing device performs cryptography, evaluation, and enforcement and is tied thereto, and a second user-machine certificate associated with the second computing device is also tied to the user. The first trusted component obtains the content for rendering on the first computing device by way of the first user-machine certificate and the license, and the second trusted component obtains the content for rendering on the second computing device by way of the second user-machine certificate and the same license.

Tying a digital license to a user and tying the user to multiple computing devices in a digital rights management (DRM) system

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Redmond, WA, United States of America

Rushmi U Malaviarachchi