Encrypted asset encryption key parts allowing for assembly of an asset encryption key using a subset of the encrypted asset encryption key parts

A computing device comprising:

• at least one processor;
• and
• at least one memory communicatively coupled to the at least one processor;
• wherein the at least one processor is configured to:
• receive a plurality of doubly-encrypted asset encryption key parts from a plurality of corresponding part holder computing devices;
• decrypt the plurality of doubly-encrypted asset encryption key parts into singly-encrypted asset encryption key parts and metadata associated with each singly-encrypted asset encryption key part using at least one private key of at least one public/private keypair belonging to the computing device, wherein the metadata:
• indicates requirements for reconstructing an asset encryption key from at least a subset of at least one set of asset encryption key parts, wherein the requirements include a threshold number of part holders, for at least one group type of part holders, required for reconstructing the asset encryption key, and
• wherein a different threshold number of part holders is required for each different group type of part holders, and
• wherein the metadata further indicates which asset encryption key part is intended for which part holder from a plurality of part holders;
• and
• decrypt the singly-encrypted asset encryption key parts into asset encryption key parts using at least one symmetric key, from a plurality of symmetric keys, belonging to the computing device;
• and
• wherein the at least one symmetric key is encrypted by a user credential, such that the user credential is required to access the at least one symmetric key to consequently reconstruct the asset encryption key;
• reconstruct the asset encryption key from the asset encryption key parts and the metadata, wherein the asset encryption key is reconstructed from a quantity of the asset encryption key parts that is a subset of a total number of asset encryption key parts previously created from the asset encryption key.

A method for splitting an asset encryption key, the method being performed by a computing device, the method comprising:

• splitting the asset encryption key into at least one set of asset encryption key parts;
• encrypting the at least one set of asset encryption key parts into at least one set of encrypted asset encryption key parts using at least one symmetric key, from a plurality of symmetric keys, belonging to the computing device, wherein the at least one symmetric key is stored in at least one memory in the computing device,
• adding metadata to each of at least one set of encrypted asset encryption key parts, wherein the metadata:
• indicates requirements for reconstructing the asset encryption key from at least a subset of the at least one set of asset encryption key parts, wherein the requirements include a threshold number of part holders, for at least one group type of part holders, required for reconstructing the asset encryption key, and
• wherein a different threshold number of part holders is required for each different group type of part holders, and
• wherein the metadata further indicates which asset encryption key part is intended for which part holder from a plurality of part holders;
• and
• encrypting each of the at least one set of encrypted asset encryption key parts and corresponding metadata using a public key of a public/private keypair belonging to the computing device, such that each of the at least one set of encrypted asset encryption key parts is double encrypted,
• wherein the at least one symmetric key is encrypted by a user credential, such that the user credential is required to access the at least one symmetric key to consequently reconstruct the asset encryption key;
• wherein the at least the subset of the at least one set of asset encryption key parts are used to reconstruct the asset encryption key, which is used to perform an action based on at least one asset key.