Systems and methods for protecting content when using a general purpose user interface application
Systems and methods which prevent or limit access to protected content (e.g., value bearing indicia (VBI)) by a general purpose user interface application (e.g., web browser) are shown. Embodiments implement techniques to avoid displaying protected content by a general purpose user interface application, or displaying protected content during a time in which a user does not have access to particular functions of the general purpose user interface application, to protect the content from various operations, such as repeated printing, electronic copying, etc. Data presentation formatting control in the form of style sheets may be utilized to control access to content. Additionally or alternatively, executable code or an executable object may be implemented within a page or other content to control access to content. Similarly, separate areas, such as windows or pages, may be utilized to control access to content.
1. A system comprising:
a memory; and
one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory and configured to:
display, via a user interface application executed by the one or more processors, unprotected content within a page displayed by the user interface application to a user of the user interface application, wherein the unprotected content corresponds to executable code for accessing protected content from a remote server;
receive, via the user interface application, a print command for printing the protected content, wherein the print command is initiated by the user activating a button included within the page that is configured to facilitate printing of the protected content; and
control printing, via the user interface application in response to the print command, of the protected content, wherein the one or more processors configured to control printing are configured to:
execute the executable code to replace at least a portion of the unprotected content with the protected content within the page displayed by the user interface application; and
immediately invoke printing functionality after replacing the at least a portion of the unprotected content with the protected content causing the protected content to be output to a printer and the protected content to be replaced with unprotected content within the user interface application.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the protected content comprises postage indicia data.
3. The system of claim 2 , wherein a digital signature is associated with the postage indicia data, the digital signature being stored for subsequent validation of the postage indicia data, and wherein the printing functionality prints a graphical representation of the postage indicia data, wherein the graphical representation of the postage indicia data comprises a representation of the postage indicia data and a representation of the digital signature.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors configured to replace the at least a portion of the unprotected content are configured to replace a source of the at least a portion of the unprotected content with a source of the protected content to thereby obtain the protected content from the remote server.
5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the protected content is displayed within the page displayed by the user interface application in response to replacing the at least a portion of the unprotected content with the protected content, wherein the unprotected content is displayed within the page displayed by the user interface application in response to the replacing the protected content with the unprotected content, and wherein a duration in which the protected content is displayed within the page displayed by the user interface application corresponds to an amount of time to output the protected content to the printer.
6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the user interface application comprises a web browser application, and wherein the executable code is configured to execute a native print functionality of the web browser application after replacing the at least a portion of the unprotected content with the protected content to output the protected content from the web browser application to the printer.