There are many systems that can lock your software or document,
allowing you to control access to that file. But the problem
arises with assuming that this will stop all theft. A well
thought out, thorough protection system can deter theft, but it
cannot stop it 100%.
An \”unbreakable\” protection system simply does not, and will
never exist. If someone really wants your information, they can
get it, even if it takes years of work.
SO WHAT\’S THE POINT? WHY USE ANY PROTECTION AT ALL?
There is no 100% security guarantee in anything, but that\’s no
reason to totally ignore protecting your intellectual property
– A thief can easily kick in your front door and rob your
house, but you still lock the door. Locking the door is not 100%
effective security, but we still do it. Why? Because it deters
most potential theft and those who are more determined will have
to work a bit to get in.
WHO SHOULD USE PROTECTION?
The big question here is, HOW VALUABLE IS YOUR INFORMATION TO
YOU? Sensitive, proprietary or private information demands some
sort of protection, otherwise transmitting over the net is not
an option.
If your information is not free, then it\’s obviously of some
importance. So, how much damage would it do to you if it were
made freely available? What type of impact would it have on your
sales and could you (or would you) absorb that without thinking
twice?
Is a $14 Ebook worth paying for another service to protect it?
Probably not, but it depends on the situation and target market.
What about a $2,000 report? Does the price change the
perspective?
Businesses protect their property. If you believe your
information or software to be of a unique or proprietary nature,
you should protect that information using some means, no matter
how small.
Companies like Microsoft lose hundreds of millions of dollars
due to software theft and fraud, yet they continue to implement
protection measures in their software. I would guess that
without any protection whatsoever the losses would be in the
billions.
WHAT SHOULD YOU EXPECT?
Like I said, there is no 100% way to prevent every possible
incident, but you can make it very difficult and less likely to
happen. At best what you should hope is to provide just enough
security to close obvious security flaws and discourage would-be
thieves. But not so much security that it discourages honest
users and customers.
PROTECTION OPTIONS
Here are some common protection schemes:
No Protection: Just distribute your information and hope for the
best.
- Pros: No special process to access file which means less
support issues.
- Cons: File can be passed around, copied, distributed and/or
sold without authorization from the owner. Can\’t prevent access
after chargeback or refund.
—
General Password Protection: Simply requiring a predetermined
password to install or register the file.
- Pros: Simple for customer or end user.
- Cons: File and password can be passed around, copied,
distributed and/or sold without authorization from the owner.
Can\’t prevent access after chargeback or refund.
—
PC-Unique Password Protection: Generates a unique password based
on the user\’s computer.
- Pros: Can\’t pass around the file since it is basically locked
to one machine.
- Cons: Requires an extra step for registration; Customer cannot
move file to another PC; If their PC crashes they will need
another unique password; Can\’t prevent access after chargeback
or refund.
—
Delayed Registration: This requires a user to enter a second
registration number a specific number of days after they first
register the file. For example, after 90 days of use, they must
enter a new registration number that they receive from you.
- Pros: It allows control over chargeback and refunds. The file
will be disabled after the second registration period because
you will not provide the second key to reactivate the file.
- Cons: Requires an extra step for registration; A user can
request refund or chargeback AFTER the second registration
period.
—
Post-Purchase Activation: Requires activation by online server.
After user purchases they are entered into an online customer
database. They then install and register the file by entering
their name/email or some data. The server confirms the purchase
and then activates the software.This method is become more and
more common with big name software.
- Pros: Can prevent unauthorized distribution of file since the
file must be activated by the online server.
- Cons: User must be online to register file; Can\’t move file to
a different PC; Can\’t prevent access after chargeback or refund.
—
Active Password Protection: Each time user attempts to access
file it checks an online server to confirm the usage rights and
permissions for the user.
- Pros: Prevents distribution or copying of file; File Owner can
revoke access to file after chargeback or refund; Access
permissions can be changed and applied in real-time.
- Cons: must be connected to the net to register and/or access
file; User may not be able to move file to another PC; User
registration can be somewhat cumbersome and difficult for some
customers.
—
EVALUATING PROTECTION SERVICES
When looking to protect your digital information any protection
system or service that you consider should have a few basic
security bases covered.
For software and executables:
1. When opening the file, a protection system must not save or
copy an unprotected version of the file to the windows TEMP
directory or anywhere on your PC for that matter.
2. The system should automatically prevent password sharing and
access by unauthorized parties. This will prevent the document
from being passed around or distributed illegally since it can\’t
be opened unless you are authorized.
3. It should have some method to revoke or cancel access for
refunded or fraudulent users.
For PDF documents, providing adequate protection requires a bit
more security as their are many more ways to obtain a protection
free copy of the document.
Any PDF protection system must cover the three bases above, as
well as:
* It must prevent emailing of file and exporting or extracting
pages from file.
* It must prevent copying file and text to the clipboard
* It must prevent redistilling of the file and printing to PDF
* It must prevent unlimited, uncontrolled printing of file
* It must watermark all printed pages
* If using Adobe Reader, the company providing the protection
service must be an authorized Adobe DRM provider.
WHAT ABOUT COST? IS IT WORTH IT?
Is $300 a year too much to protect your copyrights? Definitely
not. Protection costs money, but if your business is making
money then it\’s a cost of doing business.
Is it for you? I don\’t know. Selling a few low priced
applications a month probably won\’t warrant any sort of
protection, but if you generate a substantial income from your
software or the information distributed is of a critical nature
to your business, then you need to protect your intellectual
\”capital\” at some level.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Personally, I believe that some level of protection should be
implemented on any piece of software or document that is of any
value to you. You should never mass distribute a file in an
unprotected format. Otherwise you will be scrambling when you
find someone misusing it… if you find them!
It\’s easy to listen to those that say \”don\’t worry about it\” (a
common reply to the document protection topic) until someone is
actually stealing from you. Then all you can do is worry about
it, but it\’s too late really. The damage is done. You can\’t take
something back once it\’s out there unprotected. No amount of
legal threatening is going to phase someone in Prague who just
doesn\’t care about your copyrights.
About the author:
File Secure Pro allows authors to securely distribute, monitor
and control usage of their intellectual property. If you
distribute important information online, File Secure Pro can
help you monitor and control use of your Intellectual Property.
For more information, please see our site at
http://www.protectyourfile.com/