Hackers can't interlope a Cryptolope

IBM is planning to help Web developers protect copyrighted material with the release of its new Cryptolopes encryption technology next week at Internet World in San Jose.

The company is already offering a free trial version of the technology from its InfoMarket Web site. Cryptolopes provide copyright protection for downloadable content by "enclosing" documents until a user agrees to pay a fee for their release.

To get Cryptolope material, users need to install a free helper application into their Web browsers. The helper application recognizes the "container" that encloses an encrypted document. The container gives the user details of the document's abstract, price, and rules for use. Once the user agrees to the terms, the Cryptolope helper app requests a key over the network to unlock the actual document.

With Cryptolopes, publishers on the Internet will be able to protect content that users find and download via IBM's InfoMarket search engine.

IBM has already signed up several content providers, including Miller Freeman, Eastman Kodak, and Fielding World Wide, a travel information company, all of which plan to offer content in cryptolopes through InfoMarket. IBM officials say several more vendors will announce plans to use crytolopes next week.