Apple Inc.

Simon Patience

Michael R Smith

Michael F Culbert

Byron Bay Han

Eric J Albert

A computing device may determine to execute a secured function. The computing may obtain a biometric of the user of the computing device utilizing one or more biometric sensors associated with the computing device, determine that the biometric matches the biometric of a user authorized to utilize the secured function, and execute the secured function. Whenever during execution of the secured function the computing device determines that the biometric sensor no longer detects the biometric of the user, the computing device may cease execution of the secured function.

Continual authorization for secured functions

A digital rights management ('DRM') system is described that seeks to restrict the use and execution of certain computer program code to those hardware systems or platforms authorized by the provider of the protected software. To this end, certain computer programs (or portions thereof) are provided to authorized users in an encrypted format. When a 'protected' program is to be executed, it is retrieved and stored in its encrypted format in operating system memory where it is accessible to operating system level routines (e.g., a file read operation). It is also decrypted and placed in another memory such that only the process executing the protected program has ready access to it.

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Los Altos Hills, CA, United States of America

Simon Patience