New patents are are issued by the USPTO on Tuesdays. This week we continue the theme of blockchain (distributed ledger, smart contracts) and digital rights management broadly construed. The first of this week's Spotlight Patents is apparently assigned to the inventors (there seems to be a strong Georgia Tech connection) and addresses techniques for operating secure digital management aware applications. Assigned to Ripple (Luxembourg), the second patent addresses techniques for determining that results produced from executions of software have not been altered or falsified.
9,935,772, "Methods and systems for operating secure digital management aware applications," apparently assigned to the inventors, Madisetti et al.
Abstract
A system and method for servicing secure data object management aware applications using a cloud-based host environment and a local secure container. The cloud-based host environment creates a controlled digital object from a master digital object, and activates a tether associated with the controlled digital object. The tether includes an access permission, and optionally an operation permission (e.g., view, delete, store, edit, and copy) and a command (e.g., timeout, destroy). The controlled digital object is stored to an isolated storage of the secure container. The tether contents control access and manipulation of the controlled digital object. Certain conditions (e.g., timeout period reached, anomalous data access pattern detected), cause the controlled digital object to be destroyed and/or the tether to be inactivated. In accordance with applicable law, the cloud-based host environment utilizes the tether to detect, identify, and/or thwart unauthorized host environments in possession of the controlled digital object.
9,904,544, "System and method for determining that results produced from executions of software have not been altered or falsified," assigned to Ripple Luxembourg S.A.
Abstract
In a method for executing software, a result produced from an execution of a copy of the software by a corresponding platform can be received from each of a plurality of platforms. A number of results of execution of the software can be determined. The extent to which the results match can be compared to a threshold. The matching results can be accepted as an agreed-upon output of the software when the extent to which the results match is equal to or greater than the threshold. The software can include an implementation of at least a portion of an act associated with an agreement between at least two entities.
