What is Digital Rights Management?
Digital rights management (DRM) is a technology, combined with a set of policies and procedures, to control access to digital documents. DRM can be used to restrict access from unauthorized users, prevent files from being modified and monitor the use of the files. DRM software encodes the files with access control settings specified by the owner or copyright holder.
Digital rights management software provides complete control over how a document is used, edited, copied or even printed. This keeps control of the documents in the hands of the person that created it (or, more accurately, in the hands of the computer system handling the document), instead of the person using it. While DRM is now standard in the entertainment and publishing worlds, this is by no means the limit of DRM’s utility. Any person or any company has the ability, and the right, to protect information they own with DRM. All you need is the DRM software.
FileProtect: DRM Software by CapLinked
FileProtect is CapLinked’s proprietary DRM software tool for controlling access to your most important documents. You can grant and then rescind access to anyone at any time, even after documents have been downloaded.
To use FileProtect, upload a document, or a series of documents, to your CapLinked workspace and then select the group you want to have access. Then, simply click “Enable DRM”. All downloaded files will be automatically restricted from being copied, edited, or printed. There’s also an option to set a date for access to the documents to automatically expire.
You’ll also notice there is a Revoke Access to DRM Files button. This can be used at any time. For example, if you’re working on a business deal and the group you’re working with is no longer interested, you can revoke their access immediately.
To evaluate FileProtect for your own organization’s due diligence needs, log in now for a free trial.
Digital Rights Management Software
Complete Access Control
You decide who sees what documents and when, even those that need to be downloaded or printed. Sharing information outside your company has never been easier—or safer.
No Plugins. No Updates. Ever.
Unlike other document sharing platforms, CapLinked’s digital rights management technology requires zero plugins to view PDFs and Microsoft Office files in-browser. No need to slow down your deals with frequent plugin updates or software installations. Zero plugins also means a more secure connection. You never have to worry about plugins being compromised. With FileProtect DRM technology, it all just works!
DRM Software with Comprehensive Activity Tracking
Within FileProtect, the activity tracker records all activity that occurs within the browser, including each time a file is downloaded in the browser. With real-time activity analytics, you will gain better insight into when prospects are interested and when they’re not. Follow-up with prospects and keep your deal moving forward. Optimize file activity insights to streamline your workflow and improve efficiency throughout the lifespan of your project. Digital rights management has never been easier or more secure.
Custom Integrations
Enterprise-grade security from FileProtect will safeguard documents from getting leaked and ensure you stay compliant. Don’t see a security feature you need for your digital rights management? Talk to us today to learn about our custom document security integrations.
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How Does DRM Software Work?
DRM provides two types of protection to business files, which always go hand-in-hand: copy protection and permission management.
Copy Protection
Copy protection ensures that unauthorized users cannot make copies of a file or its contents. If a user is given access to a document, DRM can prevent them from copying the file itself, or from copying portions of the file and then pasting them elsewhere, or even printing the file.
This is normally achieved with encryption. The contents of the file are scrambled so that only the software authorized to open the file can access the contents. As an example, you may be authorized to view a document on a server through your web browser, but if you try to download the document, your computer doesn’t know how to access the scrambled data it contains, so the download fails.
DRM can restrict copying and printing features within the document. If you try to highlight a paragraph in that PDF, the DRM software prevents you from using the copy command.
Digital watermarks, in addition to DRM, can provide additional document protection. With a digital watermark appearing on each page, even attempting to take a screenshot of a page becomes very risky, as the watermark includes both your email and IP addresses.
Permission Management
Permission management controls who has access to a digital file and what they can do with it. CapLinked’s FileProtect DRM software is an additional layer of security to your files. The DRM technology will protect the downloaded document from being copied, printed, and edited.
In short, here are things you need to set up when using a DRM software:
- Establishing a copyright for a piece of content, whether that be a piece of media or a financial document
- Managing the distribution of that piece of content by determining which ways it can be shared. Can it be copy-and-pasted? Can it be emailed? Can it be viewed on multiple devices?
- Controlling what the user can do with it once it’s been distributed.
Let’s take an example of an ebook from the library, which can be checked out digitally. When a user–we’ll call him John Doe–decides to check out the book he has a user number as part of his library card. That number determines how many books he can check out in a certain period of time and how long he can keep them. Identifying the user is the first and simplest task. The system reads the number, knows it’s John Doe, and accesses his records. Then comes identifying the rights: the way John Doe is allowed to download and use the ebooks. The software determines if he can download it, if he can copy it, or is it encrypted. Can he take a paragraph of the book to use in a research paper? Can he take a screen capture of a diagram, chart, or image? Usage rights don’t just cover permissions, but also any obligations: does John Doe have to pay for the right to use the book?
DRM Functional Architecture
When you put all of the features and tools in a DRM software together, you get three main phases in a DRM’s lifecycle, beginning with the document creation to the deletion of that document.
- Document creation: DRM permissions and restrictions are applied to a new document when it is saved, and digital rights are validated and approved by the owner.
- Document distribution and maintenance: Access to the file is given to the relevant people, with restrictions on how it can be shared. The DRM, for example, may prohibit copying and pasting the document, emailing it, or viewing it from multiple devices.
- Document usage: The DRM enforces the rights associated with the file, limiting access to viewing the file and modifying it. When access is terminated, the user can no longer open the document.
For a company that is creating files for public consumption, these three phases can remain static. After all, if someone buys a song or rents a movie, once the purchase is completed, the transaction doesn’t need to be revisited by either party. That’s hardly true for companies sharing financial documents with an accounting firm, or an investment bank managing a merger.
For most businesses, documents are ever-changing, requiring modifications to the content and to permissions granted to users. Consequently, the DRM software you choose needs to give you the ability to make changes whenever needed, as well as to track multiple versions of the same document.
Use Cases of a DRM Software
You most likely encountered DRM the first time you bought and downloaded a song, a movie or an e-book. In these cases, the DRM is designed to ensure that no one accesses the media unless they have paid for it. Movie rentals take this a step further by limiting the period of time, or the number of times, you have access to the file once it’s been downloaded. In the entertainment industry, the purpose of DRM-protected files usually boils down to preventing piracy.
Most businesses don’t rent movies or sell e-books. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the types of files that are DRM-protected today. Any document that needs to be shared securely can be a good candidate for DRM.
There are many reasons why a company would want to use DRM software to protect files: for example, they can prevent a sensitive email from being copied or forwarded; a movie studio can put DRM on their Blu-Rays to prevent them from being copied; a publisher can use DRM to stop copying or printing of an e-book.
Digital Rights Management (DRM) isn’t new. It’s been in place since the days of floppy disks, though it has evolved significantly since then. While DRM is now standard in the entertainment and publishing worlds, this is by no means the limit of DRM’s utility. Any person or any company has the ability, and the right, to protect information they own with DRM. All you need is the DRM software.
In business, it’s the nature of the information in the file that determines if DRM should be used, not the number of people accessing it. Just a few examples include the following:
- Medical records
- Financial reports
- Budget proposals
- Lease details
- Court documents
- Confidentiality agreements
- Audit reports
- Computer log files
- Strategic plans
- R&D schematics
- Merger and acquisition documents
Learn More About Digital Rights Management Software
What does CapLinked's DRM software do?
Digital Rights Management (DRM) allows the virtual data room administrators to add an extra layer of control when users download data. DRM requires users to input their CapLinked credentials to access downloaded documents and enables administrators to revoke access to those downloaded documents.
Why is Digital Rights Management important?
Incorporating Digital Rights Management in your company's system is important because it gives you complete access control over confidential and sensitive documents. With CapLinked's FileProtect feature, you can revoke document access at anytime, prevent data leaks, and collaborate with confidence.
How does DRM work?
A DRM software facilitates the content distribution system by establishing a copyright, managing the distribution, and controlling what the user can do with the document.
What documents should I put under the DRM software?
You should put any confidential documents under the DRM system. This includes PDFs, financial reports, supply chain files, IPs, workflows, and even sensitive emails.
Can a DRM technology handle PDFs?
Yes. Caplinked's FileProtect will support the distribution of your PDFs.
Is DRM the same as licensing?
No, digital rights management (DRM) enables the technology and tool set to restrict access and secure the distribution and of copyrighted data.
Is copyright law covered under CapLinked's DRM?
No, copyright law is not covered under CapLinked's DRM. See terms of use for further detail on service rules and user content.
Can CapLinked's DRM feature encrypt my confidential documents?
Yes. CapLinked's FileProtect feature provides 256-bit SSL encryption to your assets. 256-bit encryption is used for sensitive and important data such as financial, military, and government-owned data.
Does DRM require a plug-in to use on CapLinked?
No plug-ins are needed to use DRM on the CapLinked browser.