Abstract: The present invention was made in order to provide a technology capable of safely ciphering compressed and encoded image data irrespective of lines or media and carrying out a correct decoding operation without any shifts in the frames of ciphered moving pictures.Further, so as to prevent giving any means of encoding from comparison of image ciphered data and so as to generate totally different ciphered image data from the same data compressed images, a processing is executed not on an ECB mode but on such modes as CBC, CFB, OFB or the like. Moreover, as an initial vector, information different for frames included in a header, that is, time information from the start of an image or a frame sequential number, is used. In this way, even if compressed images within adjacent frames are accidentally the same, totally different ciphered data can be obtained.

Abstract: The present invention provides a data content utilizing device having data storing section for storing information obtained by encoding data contents and content identification information specifying the data contents, a utilization permitting device for generating utilization permission information used to decode data contents desired by a user and information converting section for loading data contents requested by the user from the data storing section and decoding the data contents only in the case where utilization permission information is generated by the utilization permitting device.

Abstract: A software charging system includes a utilization permitting device for giving permission to use a software storing medium storing ciphered programs or data (software); and an authorization center capable of communicating with the utilization permitting device for setting a utilizable amount, totalling utilization amounts and charging a user. The utilization permitting device includes: a utilization permission processing part having a clock for obtaining date and time data, and having a date and time data storing unit for storing obtained date and time data until obtaining next data and time data; and a utilization amount managing part for calculating a software utilization amount of an end user. A software utilization amount is managed based on the number of days at the utilization permission processing part.

Abstract: In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a transformation pattern generating mechanism comprising: a key input section for inputting a key for encryption; a transformation pattern generating section for generating a transformation pattern for transformation of input data; and an output section for outputting the generated transformation pattern; wherein, when a number sequence corresponding to a predetermined transformation pattern is input as the key to the key input section, said transformation pattern generating section generates and outputs the predetermined transformation pattern corresponding to the number sequence.

Abstract: Moving-picture data in a frame is encoded without depending on another frame of moving-picture data, and moving-picture data in a frame is encoded depending on another frame of moving-picture data. Whether each frame of moving-picture data is a frame which was encoded without depending on another frame of moving-picture data or which was encoded depending on another frame of moving-picture data is determined. The frame of moving-picture data was thus determined as having been encoded without depending on another frame of moving-picture data. The enciphered moving-picture data includes the frame of moving-picture data and the frame of moving-picture data which was determined as being the frame which was encoded depending on another frame of moving-picture data.