TWI897106B - Data protection device and portable electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

A data protection device which is applicable for a memory storing a target data, includes a plug slot, a plug, a detection component and a computing component. The plug is pluggably coupled to the plug slot and has an identification component. The detection component is disposed to correspond to the plug slot and is configured to perform detection to the plug slot. The computing component is connected to the detection component, and is configured to delete the target data when the existence of the identification component cannot be determined based on a detection result of the detection component.

Description

Data protection devices and portable electronic equipment

The present invention relates to a data protection device and a portable electronic device.

In the area of personal device data security, multi-factor authentication (MFA) may be relied upon to control data access permissions. For example, passwords, one-time passwords (OTPs), and biometric authentication codes can be used to restrict unauthorized data access. However, when the hardware itself is in a high-risk environment and the data stored on the hardware is highly confidential, additional measures may be required to ensure data security.

In view of the above, the present invention provides a data protection device and a portable electronic device.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a data protection device is suitable for use in a memory storing target data, and includes a latch slot, a latch, a detection element, and an arithmetic element. The latch is removably coupled to the latch slot and has an identification element. The detection element is configured to correspond to the latch slot and is configured to detect the latch slot. The arithmetic element is connected to the detection element and is configured to delete the target data when the detection result of the detection element cannot determine that the identification element is present.

A portable electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the data protection device and the memory as described above.

Through the above-described structure, the data protection device and portable electronic device disclosed in this application utilize a pluggable and coupled plug and socket on the data protection device. The plug has an identification element, and the socket has a detection element. When the plug is removed from the socket, the data protection device is triggered to automatically perform a data deletion operation. Consequently, when a user of the data protection device faces an emergency, they can simply remove the plug from the socket to quickly destroy or format the target data in the memory, ensuring that the target data cannot be stolen by malicious individuals.

The above description of the present disclosure and the following description of the embodiments are intended to demonstrate and explain the spirit and principles of the present invention, and to provide further explanation of the scope of the patent application of the present invention.

The following detailed description of the features and advantages of the present invention is sufficient to enable anyone skilled in the relevant art to understand the technical content of the present invention and implement it accordingly. Based on the disclosure, patent application scope, and drawings in this specification, anyone skilled in the relevant art can easily understand the relevant objectives and advantages of the present invention. The following examples are intended to further illustrate the concepts of the present invention in detail and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention in any way.

Please refer to Figure 1, which is a block diagram of a data protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 1, the data protection device 1 is suitable for a memory 2 for storing a target data, which includes a latch 11, a latch slot 12, a detection element 13 and an arithmetic element 14. The latch 11 is pluggably coupled to the latch slot 12 and has an identification element 111. The detection element 13 is configured to correspond to the latch slot 12 and is used to detect the latch slot 12. The arithmetic element 14 is connected to the detection element 13 and is used to delete the target data when it is impossible to determine the existence of the identification element 111 based on the detection result of the detection element 13.

In this example, a data protection device 1 can be used to protect data in a memory 2 in an electronic device. Specifically, the memory 2 can be installed in a laptop, a tablet, a portable hard drive, or other personal device, without limitation in this case. In other words, based on the data protection device 1 described herein, it can be appropriately modified, as understood by those skilled in the art, to adapt to the memory 2 installed in various devices, thereby protecting the target data stored in the memory 2. Furthermore, the types of memory 2 include, but are not limited to, various non-volatile memories, such as read-only memory (ROM).

The data protection device 1 may include two parts, a main body and a plug-in portion, wherein the two parts can be disassembled or coupled to each other in a plug-in manner. The plug-in portion of the data protection device 1 includes a plug 11, and the plug 11 includes an identification element 111. The main body of the data protection device 1 includes a plug slot 12, a detection element 13, and an operating element 14, and the plug slot 12, the detection element 13, and the operating element 14 can be arranged in a housing having a accommodating space. The plug 11 can structurally have a grip portion and an extension portion, wherein the grip portion is used to make it easier for the user to apply force to perform plug-in and pull-out operations, and the extension portion is used to be pluggably coupled to the plug slot 12, and the identification element 111 is arranged on the extension portion. Specifically, the identification element 111 may be an element based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, for example, may include a near-field communication (NFC) unit.

When the latch 11 is coupled to the latch slot 12, the detection element 13 corresponding to the latch slot 12 can detect the latch 11 positioned within the receiving space of the latch slot 12. Specifically, the detection element 13 can detect the identification element 111 of the latch 11 and generate a first detection result. When the latch 11 is not coupled to the latch slot 12, the detection element 13 cannot detect the identification element 111 of the latch 11 and generate a second detection result. Alternatively, when another latch is coupled to the latch slot 12, the detection element 13 cannot identify the corresponding identification element and generates a third detection result. For example, the detection element 13 may be a reader element based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology and may have a one-to-one correspondence with the identification element 111 .

The computing element 14 can be a device capable of receiving, recording, computing, storing, and outputting data, such as a microcontroller, a central processing unit, or a programmable logic controller. The computing element 14 is used to receive the detection results from the detection element 13 and perform corresponding operations based on the detection results. If the computing element 14 cannot determine the presence of the identification element 111 based on the detection results from the detection element 13, the target data stored in the memory 2 is deleted. For example, when the detection element 13 cannot detect the identification element 111 of the plug 11 (i.e., the computing element 14 receives the second detection result), or when the corresponding identification element cannot be identified (i.e., the computing element 14 receives the third detection result), the computing element 14 may format and delete the target data in the memory 2. Of course, under normal circumstances, when the detection element 13 can detect the identification element 111 of the plug 11 (i.e., the computing element 14 receives the first detection result), the computing element 14 does not delete the target data in the memory 2.

Please refer to Figure 2, which is a block diagram of a portable electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 2, portable electronic device 3 includes the data protection device 1 and memory 2 shown in Figure 1. Data protection device 1 similarly includes latch 11, latch slot 12, detection element 13, and computing element 14, and latch 11 similarly includes identification element 111. Therefore, repeated description of the related information is omitted here. In this example, data protection device 1 and memory 2 belong to the same portable electronic device 3. Portable electronic device 3 includes, but is not limited to, a laptop computer, a personal tablet, etc. Taking the portable electronic device 3 as a laptop computer as an example, the latch slot 12 can be located at one location on the laptop computer housing. When the latch 11 is coupled to the latch slot 12 , a slight gap is provided between the grip portion of the latch 11 and the laptop computer housing, so that the user can apply force to pull out the latch 11 in special circumstances.

Memory 2 can be a memory in a laptop (portable electronic device 3) used to store specific target data. Accordingly, when the computing device 14 receives the detection result from the detection device 13 and cannot determine the presence of the identification device 111 based on the detection result, the target data in memory 2 can be deleted. Alternatively, when the computing device 14 receives the detection result from the detection device 13 and cannot determine the presence of the identification device 111 based on the detection result, the computing device 14 can also delete all data in memory 2. In other words, through this configuration, the present invention provides a personal computer with data protection functionality, allowing users to format and delete confidential data in special circumstances by simply pulling out a latch, thereby preventing the confidential data from being stolen and used by malicious individuals. It should be noted that the computing element 14 can be the central processing unit of the notebook computer (portable electronic device 3) itself used to operate other functions, or it can be an independent microcontroller specifically configured in the notebook computer (portable electronic device 3) for performing data protection operations, and this invention is not limited to this.

Please refer to Figure 3, which is a block diagram of a data protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 3, the data protection device 1' of this embodiment includes not only a latch 11, a latch slot 12, a detection element 13, and an arithmetic element 14, but also a prompt element 15 connected to the arithmetic element 14. In addition to performing the functions of the aforementioned embodiments, the arithmetic element 14 of this embodiment can also record the duration of the state in which the identification element 111 cannot be determined based on the detection results. The target data will not be deleted until the state duration reaches a preset duration. The target data will be deleted only when the state duration reaches the preset duration. Furthermore, in this example, when the computing device 14 records the state duration, it can activate the prompt device 15 to output a prompt signal associated with the preset duration. Specifically, the prompt device 15 can be a display. The control process based on the state duration is described in more detail below.

In addition, the data processing device 1 of this embodiment further includes a power-on trigger switch 121 and a controller 122. The power-on trigger switch 121 is disposed in the latch slot 12 and has a first state and a second state. When the latch 11 is coupled to the latch slot 12, the power-on trigger switch 121 is in the first state. When the latch 11 is removed from the latch slot 12, the power-on trigger switch 121 is in the second state. The controller 122 is connected to the power-on trigger switch 121 and the computing element 14 and is configured to activate the computing element 14 when the computing element 14 is in the disabled state and the power-on trigger switch 121 is in the second state. For example, when the latch 11 is coupled to the latch slot 12, the power trigger switch 121 may be pressed by the latch 11, causing the circuit components therein to be in a first state (e.g., on or off). Alternatively, when the latch 11 is removed from the latch slot 12, the power trigger switch 121 may be pulled by the latch 11, causing the circuit components therein to be in a second state different from the first state (e.g., off or on). In this way, the controller 122 can determine that the computing element 14 is in the disabled state and the power trigger switch 121 is in the second state, and activate the computing element 14. The controller 122 may be embodied as a microcontroller, a central processing unit, a programmable logic controller, etc.

In this example, although the controller 122 and the computing element 14 are part of the same device, the controller 122 can be placed in a standby state for extended periods of time rather than being disabled. For example, when the data protection device 1′ is powered off, the computing element 14 can be disabled while the controller 122 is placed in a standby state. This allows the controller 122 to immediately awaken the computing element 14 when the latch 11 is withdrawn from the latch slot 12. The awakened computing element 14 can then further evaluate the detection results of the detection element 13 to perform subsequent data deletion operations. Furthermore, the prompt element 15 of the data protection device 1′ in this example is optionally configured, or the power-on trigger switch 121 and controller 122 of the data protection device 1′ are optionally configured.

Please refer to Figure 4, which is a schematic diagram of a data protection device plug according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figure 4, the plug 11 has an identification element 111, a fragile portion 112, and a grip portion 113. The reader circuit 1112 of the identification element 111 is disposed within the fragile portion 112. In this example, the identification element 111 includes a near-field communication chip 1111, a reader circuit 1112, and an antenna 1113. Specifically, the near-field communication chip 1111 is disposed at one end of the fragile portion 112 of the plug 11, the antenna 1113 is disposed at the other end of the fragile portion 112, and the reader circuit 1112 spans the fragile portion 112. However, in other embodiments, other components of the identification element 111 may be located within the fragile portion 112, such as a reader chip or a reader circuit. In this example, the fragile portion 112 is a relatively narrow local structure of the latch 11. In other embodiments, the fragile portion 112 may also be implemented as a local structure formed from other materials with lower mechanical strength, which is not a limitation in this invention. Preferably, the fragile portion 112 is designed to withstand only a predetermined torque applied to the ends of the latch 11, allowing the user to perform destructive actions such as bending or tearing the fragile portion 112 of the latch 11.

Referring to Figure 1 , when the latch 11 is coupled to the latch slot 12, the detection element 13 can read data from the NFC chip 1111 via the read line 1112 from the antenna 1113, generating a detection signal and a detection result. When the latch 11 is removed from the latch slot 12, the detection element 13 cannot read the NFC chip 1111. Furthermore, when the latch 11 is removed from the latch slot 12 and the fragile portion 112 of the latch 11 is broken, the electrical connection between the NFC chip 1111 and the antenna 1113 is severed due to the destruction of the read line 1112 and the fragile portion 112. As a result, even if the latch 11 is re-engaged with the latch slot 12, the detection element 13 will not be able to read data from the NFC chip 1111 via the antenna 1113 via the read line 1112. In other embodiments, the read line 1112 need not be located in the fragile portion 112; the NFC chip 1111 or the antenna 1113 may also be located in the fragile portion 112. Both of these arrangements can prevent the detection element 13 from recognizing the latch 11 if its fragile portion 112 is damaged.

Please refer to FIG5 in conjunction with FIG1 . FIG5 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a data protection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG5 , the operation of the computing element 14 may include step S11: determining whether a detection signal has been obtained; if not, executing step S12: deleting the target data; if so, executing step S13: determining whether the detection signal contains information identifying the component; if not, executing step S12; if so, executing step S14: taking no action.

In step S11, if computing element 14 fails to receive the detection signal from detection element 13, this indicates that detection element 13 cannot detect identification element 111 of latch 11 (the second detection result described above), meaning that latch 11 is not coupled to latch slot 12. Computing element 14 then deletes the target data. In step S13, if computing element 14 determines that the detection signal does not contain information about identification element 111, this indicates that another latch may be coupled to latch slot 12, preventing detection element 13 from identifying the corresponding identification element. Computing element 14 then deletes the target data. In addition, when the computing element 14 obtains the detection signal and determines that the detection signal contains information of the identification element 111, that is, when the computing element 14 can determine the existence of the identification element 111 based on the detection result, the target data stored in the memory can be retained (step S14).

Please refer to FIG6 in conjunction with FIG3 . FIG6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation flow of a data protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG6 , the operation flow of the computing element 14 may include step S21: determining whether the identification element exists based on the detection result of the detection element; if so, executing step S22: performing no action; if not, executing step S23: recording the duration of the state in which the existence of the identification element cannot be determined based on the detection result; step S24: determining whether the duration of the state reaches a preset time length; if not, executing step S22; if so, executing step S25: deleting the target data.

In steps S21 and S23, when the computing device 14 determines that the identification device 111 is absent based on the detection result of the detection device 13 (the second or third detection result), it may record the duration of the second or third detection result. Specifically, the "determining whether the identification device exists" in step S21 may include the "determining whether a detection signal has been obtained" in step S11 shown in Figure 5 and the "determining whether the detection signal contains information about the identification device" in step S13. Simultaneously, the computing device 14 may control the prompting device 15 to output a prompting signal associated with the preset time duration. For example, the preset time duration is 10 seconds. The computing device 14 can control the prompt device 15 to display the status time length, counting down from 10 seconds to 0. In steps S24 and S25, if the computing device 14 determines that the status time length has reached the preset time length, it deletes the target data. Furthermore, in step S24, if, before the status time length reaches the preset time length, the computing device 14 determines, based on the detection result of the detection device 13, that the identification device 111 is present, indicating that the latch 11 has re-engaged with the latch slot 12 within the preset time length after being withdrawn from the latch slot 12, the computing device 14 does not delete the target data and maintains normal operation. That is, when the computing device 14 can determine the presence of the identification device 111 based on the detection result, the target data stored in the memory can be retained (step S22). It should be noted that, referring to Figure 4, when the latch 11 is damaged, even if the latch 11 re-engages with the latch slot 12 within the preset time length, the computing device 14 still cannot determine the presence of the identification device 111 because the detection device 13 cannot read it. Therefore, the computing device 14 will still perform the operation of deleting the target data when the state time length reaches the preset time length.

Through the above-described structure, the data protection device and portable electronic device disclosed in this application utilize a pluggable and coupled plug and socket on the data protection device. The plug has an identification element, and the socket has a detection element. When the plug is removed from the socket, the data protection device is triggered to automatically perform a data deletion operation. Consequently, when a user of the data protection device faces an emergency, they can simply remove the plug from the socket to quickly destroy or format the target data in the memory, ensuring that the target data cannot be stolen by malicious individuals. In addition, the latch of the data protection device of this invention may be additionally designed with a fragile portion, and a portion of the identification element may be disposed on the fragile portion, so that the latch can be destroyed from the fragile portion after being withdrawn from the latch slot, further ensuring that confidential data can be destroyed and preventing malicious persons from exploiting it.

Although the present invention is disclosed above with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, they are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications and enhancements that do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention are within the scope of patent protection of the present invention. Please refer to the attached patent application for the scope of protection defined by the present invention.

1,1': Data protection device 11: Latch 111: Identification element 1111: Near-field communication chip 1112: Read circuit 1113: Antenna 112: Fragile portion 113: Grip 12: Latch slot 121: Power trigger 122: Controller 13: Detection element 14: Computing element 15: Alert element 2: Memory 3: Portable electronic device S11-S14, S21-S25: Steps

Figure 1 is a block diagram of a data protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a block diagram of a portable electronic device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a block diagram of a data protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a latch of a data protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 is a flowchart of the operation of a data protection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 is a flowchart of the operation of a data protection device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

1: Data protection device

11: Latch

111: Identification Component

12: Latch slot

13: Detection Components

14: Computing Elements

2: Memory

Claims (20)

A data protection device, adapted for use in a memory storing target data, comprises: a latch slot; a latch having a grip portion and an extension portion, the extension portion being removably coupled to the latch slot and having an identification element disposed on the extension portion; a detection element disposed corresponding to the latch slot and configured to detect the latch slot; and an arithmetic element connected to the detection element and configured to delete the target data if the detection result of the detection element cannot determine that the identification element is present in the extension portion. The data protection device as described in claim 1, wherein the operating component is configured to delete the target data when the detection signal from the detection component cannot be obtained. The data protection device as described in claim 1, wherein the operating element is configured to delete the target data when it is determined that the detection signal from the detection element does not include the information of the identification element. A data protection device as described in claim 1, wherein the computing element is further used to record the state time length during which it is impossible to determine the existence of the identification element based on the detection result, and the target data is not deleted before the state time length reaches a preset time length, and the target data is not deleted until the state time length reaches the preset time length. The data protection device of claim 4 further comprises: A prompt element connected to the computing element; Wherein, the computing element is further configured to activate the prompt element to output a prompt signal associated with the preset time duration when recording the state time duration. The data protection device of claim 1, wherein the identification element and the detection element are based on a wireless radio frequency identification technology. The data protection device as described in claim 1, wherein the pin has a fragile portion, a portion of the identification element is disposed on the fragile portion, and the portion of the identification element is a reading chip or a reading circuit. The data protection device as described in claim 1, wherein the operating element is used to delete all data in the memory when it is impossible to determine that the identification element exists based on the detection result. The data protection device of claim 1 further comprises: a power trigger switch disposed in the latch slot and having a first state and a second state, wherein the power trigger switch is in the first state when the latch is coupled to the latch slot and in the second state when the latch is removed from the latch slot; and a controller connected to the power trigger switch and the computing element, configured to activate the computing element when the computing element is in the disabled state and the power trigger switch is in the second state. A portable electronic device comprises the data protection device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9 and the memory. A data protection method, applicable to a memory storing target data, comprises: Detecting a latch slot with a detection element; Determining whether an identification element is present in an extended portion of a latch based on the detection result of the detection element with an arithmetic element, wherein the identification element is disposed on a latch that is pluggably coupled to the latch slot; and Deleting the target data from the memory with the arithmetic element when the detection result fails to determine whether the identification element is present. The data protection method of claim 11, wherein determining whether the identification element is present in the extended portion of the latch based on the detection result of the detection element comprises: Determining whether a detection signal is obtained from the detection element; Failure to obtain the detection signal indicates that it is impossible to determine, based on the detection result, that the identification element is present in the extended portion of the latch. The data protection method of claim 12, wherein determining whether the identification element disposed on the plug is present in the extended portion of the plug based on a detection result of the detection element further comprises: When obtaining the detection signal, determining whether the detection signal includes information about the identification element; If it is determined that the detection signal does not include information about the identification element, it indicates that it is impossible to determine, based on the detection result, that the identification element is present in the extended portion of the plug. The data protection method of claim 11, prior to deleting the target data stored in the memory, further comprises: Recording a duration during which it is impossible to determine the presence of the identification element based on the detection result; and Determining that the duration of the state has reached a preset duration. The data protection method of claim 11 further comprises: When the identification element is determined to be present based on the detection result, retaining the target data stored in the memory using the computing element. The data protection method of claim 14 further comprises: When recording the duration of the status, activating a prompt element to output a prompt signal associated with the preset duration. The data protection method of claim 14, wherein determining whether the identification element disposed on the plug is present in the extended portion of the plug based on a detection result of the detection element comprises: Determining whether a detection signal is obtained from the detection element; and When the detection signal is obtained, determining whether the detection signal includes information about the identification element; Where the detection signal cannot be obtained or it is determined that the detection signal does not include information about the identification element, it indicates that it is impossible to determine, based on the detection result, that the identification element is present in the extended portion of the plug. The data protection method of claim 11, wherein deleting the target data stored in the memory comprises: Deleting all data in the memory. The data protection method of claim 11 further comprises: Determining, using a controller, whether the computing element is in a disabled state and determining whether a power-on trigger switch is in a first state or a second state; and Actuating the computing element when the controller determines that the computing element is in the disabled state and the power-on trigger switch is in the second state. The power-on trigger switch is disposed in the latch slot, and when the latch is coupled to the latch slot, the power-on trigger switch is in the first state, and when the latch is removed from the latch slot, the power-on trigger switch is in the second state. The data protection method as described in claim 11, wherein the detection of the latch slot by the detection element is based on a wireless radio frequency identification technology.