Crypto-box® is a USB stick with encrypted and decrypted security keys that allow software use. It is impossible to make illegal copies of protected software, and it is easier to check licenses. The system uses the Advanced Encryption Standard, and the name Crypto-box was previously used for an open source project.
Crypto-box® is the name of a product manufactured by Marx Software Security, plus the associated security system. The product is a USB stick that contains encrypted and decrypted security keys that allow the use of the software. The system requires the key to be physically in place for the software to function. The name Crypto-box was previously used for an open source project along the same lines.
The principle of Crypto-box® is a combination of encryption built into the software and decryption via a physical USB stick. In fact, the USB stick acts as the key needed to unlock the software. Software developers can encrypt their application and provide the USB stick to customers.
The main advantage of Crypto-box® is that it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to make illegal copies of the software it protects. The design of the USB stick means that the stick itself cannot be copied. This means that even if someone copies your software, it will effectively be useless to them.
Another advantage of the system is that it is easier to check licenses. Many software applications are sold with a license for use on one machine at any one time, but can legitimately be copied to multiple machines, such as a home desktop PC and notebook computer. With Crypto-box, the need to have the USB stick in the machine makes it physically impossible to run the software on two machines at the same time. Where the software is licensed for use within a business, the system can be customized so that a single USB stick can allow the software to run on a corporate network.
The Crypto-box® system uses the Advanced Encryption Standard. This is a highly secure encryption system that is not only the standard system for US federal government agencies, but it is the first publicly available system approved for use with classified documents. AES uses three separate keys, which are 128, 192, and 256 bits long, respectively. Every extra bit makes encryption twice as difficult to crack through simple guesswork.
The name Crypto-box was once used for an open source project designed to allow an external hard drive or second PC to store data used on a primary PC. The project’s software acts as a barrier between the two devices and allows for an extra layer of security and encryption to prevent unauthorized access. This project was renamed CryptoNAS in 2007 due to trademark issues.
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