Fine-grained Self-Shredding Data in Secure Communication Ecosystem
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Solution Overview
Problem
In electronic document collaboration, it is challenging to ensure the secure deletion of intermediate versions, edits, and comments, as they are often stored in multiple locations, posing security and privacy risks.
Innovation Solution
A document management system that uses time-limited encryption keys to render documents inaccessible by discarding encryption keys associated with intermediate versions, allowing for fine-grained self-shredding of document data, with a key management system enforcing access rules and preventing storage of unencrypted data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If electronic document collaboration is enabled with multiple participants and versions, then productivity and ease of operation are improved, but security risks and loss of information increase due to multiple copies being stored in various locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments document data into distinct versions and components, allowing selective encryption and deletion of intermediate versions while preserving the final document. Each version can be independently managed with its own encryption key, enabling fine-grained control over what can be shredded without affecting other versions or the final document.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the encryption state of document versions by using time-limited encryption keys that can be discarded. By transitioning from encrypted to decrypted state temporarily for access, then back to encrypted state with discarded keys, the system enables secure deletion of intermediate versions while maintaining productivity benefits of electronic collaboration.
2Ease of operation
If intermediate document versions are retained for collaboration and editing, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability and security deteriorate due to potential recovery of deleted data from multiple storage locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the encryption key from the document data storage, storing them in separate locations. The key manager system holds the keys separately from the encrypted document versions. When secure deletion is needed, only the key is discarded while the encrypted data remains in storage, providing reliable deletion without affecting the ability to retrieve and edit documents when keys are available.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a key manager system as an intermediary between users and document data. This mediator controls access to encrypted versions by managing encryption keys, enabling secure deletion through key discarding while maintaining the ability to access and edit documents through controlled key distribution. The intermediary ensures that deleted data cannot be recovered even if storage media persists.
3Reliability
If encryption keys are discarded to shred document data, then security is improved by preventing data recovery, but loss of information occurs when final document versions are inadvertently affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different encryption key management policies to different document versions. Intermediate versions use time-limited keys that can be discarded for secure deletion, while the final document version maintains persistent keys for long-term accessibility. This local differentiation allows selective shredding of intermediate versions without affecting the final document, achieving both security improvement and information preservation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary identification and marking of the final document version before key discarding operations. By预先 determining which version is the final authoritative version and protecting its encryption key from discarding, the system prevents accidental loss of information while enabling secure deletion of intermediate versions that are marked for shredding.
Data Source
AI summary
One embodiment provides a document management system comprising a storage system to store one or more encrypted documents, at least a first portion of a first encrypted document encrypted using a first encryption key, and an encryption key manager to manage a set of encryption keys for the documents on the storage system, the encryption key manager further to discard the first encryption key to provide secure removal of the portion of the encrypted document.