Discouraging Software Piracy Using Software Aging

Most people consider frequent software updates a nuisance. However, we show how this common phenomenon can be turned into a feature that protects against software piracy. We define a protocol for “drop-in” upgrades of software that renders a large class of software piracy more traceable. A novel feature of our approach is a software aging technique by which we force the updates to occur, or else the software becomes decreasingly useful over time.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2001
• Where: CCS
• Authors: Markus Jakobsson, Michael K. Reiter
• Keywords: CCS 2001, Frequent Software, Security Privacy, Software Aging Technique, Software Piracy