Importance

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Abstract

A key escrow technique reliably notifies an encrypting principal about escrow authorities requiring access to a secret key used to encrypt information and, further, about how much of that key is required by the authorities. The technique comprises a mechanism for storing escrow instructions pertaining to the authorities' keys in a designated location accessible by the encrypting principal. For example, the designated location may comprise a licensing string of a hardware or software add-on module needed to activate a cryptographic system of a data processing system. The escrow instructions may be further stored in an escrow formation field of a certificate. Here, the certificate may be the encrypting principal's certificate, a recipient principal's certificate and/or any certificate authority's certificate needed for the encrypting principal to verify the recipient principal's certificate.

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First Claim