At 09:30 AM 06/21/2000 -0700, Paul Hoffman / IMC wrote:
Someone is claiming a patent on parts of S/MIME. See
<http://www.ietf.org/ietf/IPR/HALL-SMIME>.
--Paul Hoffman, Director
--Internet Mail Consortium
IBM's patent server says
(http://patent.womplex.ibm.com/details?&pn=US05126728__):
What is claimed is:
1. A data processing security device comprising:
a) memory means for storing a plurality of authorized
field protection introducer codes,
b) means for evaluating a stream of data flowing from
a source of character codes to identify
field protection introducer codes within the stream
of data, said means for evaluating being in
communication with said memory means, said evaluating
means comprising comparison
means for comparing introducer codes within the
stream of data to said authorized codes in
said memory means, and
c) means for replacing data after said field
introducer codes within said stream of data with
replacement characters if the field introducer codes
within the stream of data do not match at
least one of said authorized codes stored in said
memory means, said means for replacing
being in communication with said evaluating means.
This doesn't seem like it applies to me. I know that message security
labels have been around forever (at least as far back as X.400 1988) in the
email world. It is also very hardware oriented...
Bruce