E-book Integrity Verification via Segmented E-signatures

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Solution Overview

Problem

E-books are vulnerable to falsification and lack effective copyright protection due to their characteristics, which existing technologies have not adequately addressed.

Innovation Solution

An apparatus and method that generate and verify the integrity of e-books by using hash functions and encryption techniques to create and verify e-signatures, specifically including digest values and encryption keys, to determine if an e-book has been falsified, while conforming to the EPUB standard and reducing signature overhead.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If e-signatures are applied to entire e-book data, then integrity protection is improved, but device complexity and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvee-book integrity protectionVSAvoidsignature processing complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the e-book data into multiple signature objects (metadata, content, encryption information) and applies e-signatures to each segment separately. This segmentation allows integrity verification without requiring signatures for the entire e-book, reducing processing complexity while maintaining protection effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of applying e-signatures to all e-book data (excessive action), the patent applies signatures only to critical signature objects that contain essential integrity information (partial action). This selective approach provides sufficient protection for copyright and integrity while minimizing processing overhead.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

2Reliability

If e-signatures are applied to all e-book data, then copyright protection is improved, but loss of time and processing overhead increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecopyright protectionVSAvoidsignature verification time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the e-book into distinct signature objects (metadata, content, encryption info) and applies signatures only to these segmented objects rather than the entire e-book. This reduces verification time while maintaining copyright protection through targeted signature validation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements partial action by applying e-signatures only to essential signature objects that contain copyright and integrity information, rather than applying signatures to all e-book data. This reduces processing time and overhead while maintaining adequate copyright protection.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Reliability

If comprehensive e-signature data is included in e-book, then integrity verification capability is improved, but e-book size and storage requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveintegrity verification capabilityVSAvoide-book data size
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts only the essential integrity information and signature data from the complete e-book, separating these critical elements into distinct signature objects. This extraction allows integrity verification without requiring the entire e-book data to be signed and stored, reducing overall data size.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies partial action by including e-signature data only for essential signature objects rather than all e-book content. This selective inclusion provides sufficient integrity verification capability while minimizing the increase in e-book size and storage requirements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP2819046B1Apparatus and method for verifying electronic book integrity
Publication Date: 2020.06.03 FASOO COM
  • EP2819046B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2819046B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP2819046B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

Disclosed are an apparatus and method for generating an electronic book (e-book) and an apparatus and method for verifying integrity of an e-book. An e-book including information for verifying the integrity of the e-book is generated, and the integrity of an e-book is verified from information included in the e-book to determine whether or not the e-book has been falsified. Accordingly, an e-book is generated to conform to the electronic publication (EPUB) standard and to include information for protecting the copyright of the e-book, so that the e-book market can be activated.