Data security system

Details Data security system Data security system

1997-03-27

1998-06-23

Vu, Kim Yen

Facsimile and static presentation processing

Facsimile

Image transmission accuracy verification

358406, 380 23, 399366, H04N 144

Patent

active

057711011

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a security system for data handling, for example to be applied to a photocopier, a facsimile transmitter/receiver, or a PC or network computer system.
In various security sensitive areas, for example in military procurement agencies, or in banks and professional legal offices, or in diplomatic offices, there is a risk of documents being copied illicitly, by persons with or without authorisation, and hence leading to leakage of data. Similarly, there is a risk of images being transmitted by facsimile machines without authorisation. It is a problem to control such unauthorised handling of data, and hitherto no effective solution has been found.
Equipment is available for monitoring the use of data handling equipment such as photocopiers, for example where several users of a photocopier may each be issued with an authorisation card permitting them to make a given number of copies, and the system then audits the use of the photocopier to bar a particular card once the user has consumed his or her available authorised number of copies. Likewise, certain facsimile machines may have the option of requiring a user to enter a password or code before being able to despatch information. Furthermore several computer systems, both PC and network-based, use password-authorised access to a user.
Such systems are useful in that the photocopier and/or facsimile equipment just described enables some form of audit to be kept on the volume of use of the equipment. Furthermore, the password-authorised access to a computer system ensures that only those with a "need-to-use" are given access to the computer, and it is possible for there to be various levels of authorised user such that many users may be given access to read off the data on the computer but only a few may be given access to change the data.
In an attempt to prevent unauthorised leakage of information which may be transmitted by, or stored in, data handling equipment, the present invention proposes to log not only the identity of the user but also the data which that particular user has handled.
Accordingly, one aspect of the present invention provides a data security system comprising image data handling equipment; user identification means for generating information indicative of the unique identity of a pre-authorised user; means for recording information indicative of the identity of users pre-authorised to use said image data handling equipment; means for comparing the identity-indicating information from said user identification means with the information recorded by said means for recording information indicative of pre-authorised users, for establishing pre-authorisation of the user to use the equipment; means for disabling the image data handling equipment in the absence of establishing such pre-authorisation of the user; image data receiving means; and data storage means connected to receive image data from said image data receiving means and user identification information from said user identification means, for storing in reproducible form in association with one another the image data of an image being processed and the user identification information of the user processing said image.
A second aspect of the invention provides a method of deterring unauthorised or illicit use of data comprising storing data which has been processed or accessed by the user of image data handling equipment; identifying the user of said image data; recording user identification information unique to the user of the image data handling equipment; disabling the image data handling equipment in the event of the user identification information revealing the identity of a user who is not a pre-authorised user; and recording the identification of said user along with the data used, for subsequent accessing of the user identification and data used.
A third aspect of the present invention provides a method of deterring unauthorised or illicit use of data comprising storing data which has been processed or accessed by the user of data handling eq

REFERENCES:
patent: 5444779 (1995-08-01), Daniele
patent: 5610688 (1997-03-01), Inamoto

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