Data Block Level Decryption for Granular Access Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing computer systems lack the ability to restrict access to information within a data file once unauthorized access has been gained, allowing malicious actors to access all data within the file even if password protection is bypassed.
Innovation Solution
Implementing data block level encryption by segmenting data files into blocks, associating them with reference tags and access keys, encrypting each block, and storing them in memory with location information, requiring knowledge of access keys and block locations to access the file.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If data files are password protected using existing approaches, then file-level security is improved, but once a bad actor bypasses password protection, they can access all information within the data file
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments a data file into multiple data blocks, where each block is encrypted with a different access key. This segmentation allows the system to limit access to only specific portions of the data file even if password protection is bypassed, resolving the contradiction by maintaining security reliability while enabling fine-grained access control without requiring complete file encryption/decryption operations
2Adaptability or versatility
If data files are segmented into encrypted data blocks with distributed storage, then access control granularity is improved, but system complexity for managing keys and locations increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a data information table as an intermediary structure that stores the mapping between data blocks, their locations in memory, and their associated access keys. This intermediary component simplifies the management complexity by centralizing the metadata information, allowing the system to achieve fine-grained access control granularity without requiring complex distributed management of keys and locations across multiple systems
Data Source
AI summary
An information security system that includes a data control engine configured to receive a data request identifying a first reference tag that is associated with a data file. The data control engine is further configured to identify a first set of encrypted data blocks that are linked with the reference tag and location information for the first set of encrypted data blocks from a data information table. The data control engine is further configured to extract the first set of data blocks from a memory based on the location information. The data control engine is further configured to identify access keys associated with the first set of encrypted data blocks from the data information table and to decrypt the first set of encrypted data blocks using the identified access keys. The data control engine is further configured to reconstruct the data file using the decrypted first set of data blocks.