System and method for embedding user authentication information in encrypted data

A method for secure document transmission to a document processing device comprising the steps of:

• receiving, with an initial encrypted electronic document transmission to a document processing device, an encrypted key into a data storage associated with the document processing device, which key has first and second key portions, the second key portion being associated with source data corresponding to a source of at least the initial electronic document directed for transmission to the document processing device;
• decrypting the encrypted key in a computer having a processor operating in conjunction with associated memory;
• extracting, via the computer, the first key portion from the decrypted key;
• storing the extracted first key portion in a data storage of the document processing device associatively with the source data corresponding thereto;
• receiving at least a second encrypted electronic document into the document processing device, wherein the electronic document includes an encrypted header including the second key portion without the first key portion;
• receiving login data at the document processing device;
• extracting the second key portion from the second electronic document by decrypting, via the computer, the header of the second encrypted electronic document at the document processing device using a private key;
• identifying, at the document processing device, a user via an association of the second key portion decrypted from the header with the first key portion data in the data storage corresponding thereto and received login data;
• decrypting, via the computer, a received electronic document inclusive of identification thereof using a reconstructed symmetric key formed by combining the second key portion from the decrypted header and the first key portion retrieved from the data storage corresponding to an output of the identifying;
• commencing a document processing operation on the decrypted electronic document at the document processing device;
• and
• generating an output document from the document processing device based on the document processing operation and the decrypted electronic document.

A computer-readable medium encoded with a computer program which when executed causes a computer to perform the steps of:

• receiving, with an initial encrypted electronic document transmission to a document processing device, an encrypted key into a data storage associated with the document processing device, which key has first and second portions, the second key portion being associated with source data corresponding to a source of at least the initial electronic document directed for transmission to the document processing device;
• decrypting the encrypted key;
• extracting the first key portion from the decrypted key;
• storing the extracted first key portion in a data storage of the document processing device associatively with the source data corresponding thereto;
• receiving at least a second encrypted electronic document into the document processing device, wherein the electronic document includes an encrypted header including the second key portion without the first key portion;
• receiving login data;
• extracting the second key portion from the second electronic document by decrypting, via the computer, the header of the second encrypted electronic document at the document processing device using a private key;
• identifying a user via an association of the second key portion decrypted from the header with the first key portion data in the data storage corresponding thereto and received login data;
• decrypting, via the computer, a received electronic document inclusive of identification thereof using a reconstructed symmetric key formed by combining the second key portion from the decrypted header and the first key portion retrieved from the data storage corresponding to an output of the identifying;
• commencing a document processing operation on the decrypted electronic document;
• and
• generating an output document from the document processing device based on the document processing operation and the decrypted electronic document.