Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!husc6!bbn!oberon!cit-vax!lim
From: lim@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (Kian-Tat Lim)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Encryption
Summary: RSA is patented
Keywords: RSA, public key encryption
Message-ID: <7644@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu>
Date: 19 Aug 88 08:13:52 GMT
References: <7596@trwrb.UUCP> <870215@hpcilzb.HP.COM> <6149@spool.cs.wisc.edu> <786@osupyr.mast.ohio-state.edu> <6154@spool.cs.wisc.edu>
Reply-To: lim@cit-vax.UUCP (Kian-Tat Lim)
Organization: California Institute of Technology
Lines: 14

One of the things from sci.crypt that people with/requesting this source code
may be interested in is that the RSA cryptosystem is patented.  Although an
algorithm cannot be patented, MIT has patented just about every application of
the algorithm to cryptography.  This patent has been assigned to RSA Data
Security, Inc., whose address and telephone number are given in a recent
message in sci.crypt.  Any implementation of the RSA method is likely to be an
infringement of the patent, and rumor has it that the patent holders are
vigorously protecting it.

I am not a lawyer or patent attorney; the information in this article is my
personal understanding of a number of recent postings on sci.crypt.

--
Kian-Tat Lim, ktl@wagvax.caltech.edu, KTL @ CITCHEM.BITNET, GEnie: K.LIM1