Secure interface for a mobile communications device

• US 10,142,289 B1
• Filed: 03/27/2018
• Issued: 11/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OWL Cyber Defense Solutions LLC
• Original Assignee: OWL Cyber Defense Solutions LLC
• Inventors: Morlando, Salvatore
• Primary Examiner(s): Mizrahi, Diane
• Application Number:
  US15/937,767
• Time in Patent Office: 245 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0245 Filtering by information in the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/145 the attack involving the propagation of malware through the network, e.g. viruses, trojans or worms
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/663 Preventing unauthorised calls to a telephone set
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/67 by electronic means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72409 by interfacing with external accessories hands-free H04M1/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/06 including a wireless LAN interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/088 using filters or firewalls
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/122 Counter-measures against attacks; Protection against rogue devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/12 WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks]

Abstract

A secure interface for a mobile communications device has output communications circuitry operable to communicate with an external network, private network communications circuitry operable to communicate with a mobile communications device, and an input/output filter connected between the output communications circuitry and the private network communications circuitry. The input/output filter separately filters, based on programmed stored criteria, externally-received information packets from the external network via the output communications circuitry and internally-received information packets from the mobile communications device via the private network communications circuitry. The input/output filter passes the filtered externally-received information packets to an internal connection of the private network communications circuitry for transmission to the mobile communications device and passes the filtered internally-received information packets to an internal connection of the output communications circuitry for transmission to the external network.

Claims

1. A secure interface for a mobile communications device, comprising:

output communications circuitry operable to communicate output communications with an external network, the output communications including externally-received information packets and to be externally-transmitted information packets, the output communications circuitry receiving the to be externally-transmitted information packets via an internal connection and transmitting the to be externally-transmitted information packets to the external network via an external connection and receiving the externally-received information packets from the external network via the external connection and passing the externally-received information packets via the internal connection;

private network communications circuitry operable to communicate private network communications with a mobile communications device, the private network communications including internally-received information packets and to be internally-transmitted information packets, the private network communications circuitry receiving the to be internally-transmitted information packets via an internal connection and transmitting the to be internally-transmitted information packets to the mobile communications device via an external connection and receiving the internally-received information packets from the mobile communications device via the external connection and passing the internally-received information packets via the internal connection; and

an input/output filter connected between the output communications circuitry and the private network communications circuitry and configured to separately filter the externally-received information packets and the internally-received information packets to block any undesirable packets based on programmed stored criteria, to pass filtered externally-received information packets to the internal connection of the private network communications circuitry as the to be internally-transmitted information packets, and to pass filtered internally-received information packets to the internal connection of the output communications circuitry as the to be externally transmitted information packets.

2. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the output communications circuitry comprises mobile network circuitry and a communications controller.

3. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the output communications circuitry comprises Wi-Fi circuitry and a communications controller.

4. The secure interface of claim 3, wherein the communications controller stores configuration settings for the Wi-Fi circuitry.

5. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the output communications circuitry comprises mobile network circuitry, Wi-Fi circuitry, and a communications controller.

6. The secure interface of claim 5, wherein the communications controller is configured to select one of the mobile network circuitry and Wi-Fi circuitry for use.

7. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the input/output filter comprises:

an input path one-way link configured to pass information packets from an input thereof to an output thereof and to prevent any information or signals of any kind from passing from the output thereof to the input thereof; and

an output path one-way link configured to pass information packets from an input thereof to an output thereof and to prevent any information or signals of any kind from passing from the output thereof to the input thereof.

8. The secure interface of claim 7, wherein the input/output filter comprises an output server/filter having an output coupled to the input of the input path one-way link and an input coupled to the output of the output path one-way link, the output server/filter configured to forward information packets received on the input thereof to the output communications circuitry, to filter information packets received from the output communications circuitry based on first programmed stored criteria and to forward the filtered information packets on the output thereof.

9. The secure interface of claim 8, wherein the input/output filter comprises an input server/filter having an input coupled to the output of the input path one-way link and an output coupled to the input of the output path one-way link, the input server/filter configured to forward information packets received on the input thereof to the private network communications circuitry, to filter information packets received from the private network communications circuitry based on second programmed stored criteria and to forward the filtered information packets on the output thereof.

10. The secure interface of claim 9, wherein the output server/filter only receives information packets from the input server/filter via the output path one-way link.

11. The secure interface of claim 9, wherein the input server/filter only receives information packets from the output server/filter via the input path one-way link.

12. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the input/output filter comprises a firewall having a first connection to the output communications circuitry and a second connection to the private network communications circuitry, the firewall configured to filter information packets received from the output communications circuitry based on first programmed stored criteria and to forward filtered information packets to the private network communications circuitry and to filter information packets received from the private network communications circuitry based on second programmed stored criteria and to forward the filtered information packets to the output communications circuitry.

13. The secure interface of claim 1, further comprising a settings controller operable to set programmed stored criteria and settings for the output communications circuitry and for the input/output filter.

14. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the private network communications circuitry comprises circuits operable to communicate according to a secure personal network protocol.

15. The secure interface of claim 14, wherein the private network communications circuitry comprises circuits operable to communicate according to an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802 standard.

16. The secure interface of claim 15, wherein the private network communications circuitry implements encrypted communications.

17. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the mobile communications device is a smartphone and the output communications circuitry, the private network communications circuitry, and the input/output filter are mounted within a clam-shell type case that mates with the smartphone.

18. The secure interface of claim 1, wherein the output communications circuitry, the private network communications circuitry, and the input/output filter are mounted within an enclosure separate from the mobile communications device.

19. A method of providing a secure interface for a mobile communications device, comprising the steps of:

configuring a mobile communications device to disable communications with an external network and enabling communications with a private network;

communicatively connecting the mobile communications device to a private network generated by the secure interface;

communicatively connecting the secure interface to the external network;

setting criteria for inbound data packet filtering;

receiving inbound data packets via the external network;

filtering the inbound data packets to block any undesirable inbound data packets based on the criteria set for inbound data packet filtering; and

passing the filtered inbound data packets to the mobile communications device via the private network.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the steps of:

setting criteria for outbound packet filtering;

receiving outbound data packets from the mobile communications device via the private network;

filtering the outbound data packets to block any undesirable outbound data packets based on the criteria set for outbound packet filtering; and

passing filtered outbound data packets to the external network.