Artifact Signing Patents: Who Leads, Where the Gaps Are 2026
Artifact Signing and Verification Patents
Concentrated but not locked up. the ranked leader holds 411 records yet the top 5 combined account for only 22.3% of all 5,192 records in scope — plenty of room outside the leaders. Filings rose to a peak of 302 in 2019, then eased; the last complete three-year span (2021-2024) shows a 33% decline, from 235 to 158. 2025 and 2026 numbers will revise upward as later publications catch up with filing dates.
- 1BLACKBERRY LTD7.9%
- 2SECURITY FIRST CORP4.1%
- 3MALIKIE INNOVATIONS LTD3.8%
- 4INTEL CORP3.4%
- 5SECURITY FIRST INNOVATIONS LLC3.2%
See the full artifact signing and verification analysis in Eureka
- The complete ranking, not just the top five
- Every IPC branch with its share of the corpus
- The most-cited records, and where claim space is still thin
Common questions about this landscape
How many patents cover artifact signing and verification technology?
This landscape identifies 5,192 published patent records filed between 2015 and mid-2026 that combine code signing, transparency-log or signature-verification claims with revocation, rotation, inclusion-proof or trust-anchor mechanisms. The count reflects the specific search string used, so a broader or narrower definition of the field would produce a different total. Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the 2025 and 2026 figures are still incomplete and will rise in later data cuts.
Who are the leading patent holders in artifact signing and verification?
The assignee ranking covers the 100 companies the data endpoint returns, with the leading assignee holding 411 records and the fifth-place company at 164. Combined, the top 5 account for 22.3% of all 5,192 records in scope, which means the majority of filing activity sits outside the handful of largest holders. This is not an exhaustive list of every company active in the space, only the ranked leaders by family count.
Is patent filing in this space growing or slowing?
Filing peaked at 302 records in 2019 and has since eased; the most recent complete-year comparison, 2021 to 2024, shows a 33% decline from 235 to 158 filings. Figures for 2025 and 2026 are not yet reliable indicators of a continued slowdown because publication lag means many recent filings have not yet appeared in the record. A clearer read on the current trajectory will only be possible once those later years finish publishing.
Disclaimer. This analysis is based on Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent records and is provided for general information and reference only. Patent data carries inherent limitations — recent filings are under-counted because of publication lag, counts may be on a record or family basis, classification and applicant-name data may contain errors or duplicates, and the underlying search query defines the scope shown — so the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing here is an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Verify independently and review with qualified patent and legal professionals before acting on it.
Method: Filing trend and technology composition. Derived from a Patsnap search on Artifact Signing and Verification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish. Every share divides by all records in scope. Data: Patsnap Eureka. See the full landscape report.