System and method for mobile base station authentication

• US 10,403,067 B2
• Filed: 11/15/2018
• Issued: 09/03/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/01/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Telus Holdings 2023 Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Telus Communications Incorporated (Telus Corporation)
• Inventors: Niles, Denis
• Primary Examiner(s): Taylor, Barry W
• Application Number:
  US16/192,606
• Publication Number:
  US 20190236870A1
• Time in Patent Office: 292 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/27 with central registration
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/29 the pass containing active electronic elements, e.g. smartcards
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0853 using an additional device, e.g. smartcard, SIM or a different communication terminal cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving additional secure or trusted devices H04L9/3234
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/40 Security arrangements using identity modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/023 using mutual or relative location information between multiple location based services [LBS] targets or of distance thresholds
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed

Abstract

A system and method for increasing the security of a secure resource by determining a current location of a mobile device associated with an end user based on determining the mobile base station to which the mobile device is connected and allowing access to the resource only if an end user has access credentials to access the resource and the physical location of secure resource matches the current location of the mobile device.

Claims

1. A method of authenticating an end user'"'"'s access to a resource at a physical location using a resource access system in communication with a mobile network including a plurality of mobile base stations, the method being performed by the resource access system and comprising:

receiving a request from the end user to be permitted to access the resource;

determining whether the end user has access credentials to access the resource;

requesting and receiving information from a subscriber server for the mobile network including subscriber data associated with a mobile device associated with the end user, the subscriber data including information that identifies the mobile device with the end user;

requesting and receiving information from a backend system of the mobile network including information indicating a cellular base station identity code corresponding to a one of the plurality of mobile base stations to which the mobile device is currently connected;

mapping the subscriber data to the cellular base station identity code of the currently connected mobile base station;

verifying a current approximate location of the mobile device using the cellular base station identity code and verifying that the cellular base station identity code identifies a mobile base station near the resource; and

allowing access to the resource only if the end user has access credentials to access the resource and the physical location matches the current approximate location of the mobile device.

2. The method of claim 1 in which the access credentials further comprises a smart card and in which determining whether the end user has access credentials to access the resource further comprises the user presenting the smart card to a smart card reader at the physical location.

3. A system for providing an end user access to a secure resource, the system comprising:

a resource access system in communication with a mobile network database;

an access database connected to and accessible by the resource access system, the resource access system configured to determine whether the end user has access credentials to access the secure resource based on information stored in the access database;

in which the resource access system is configured to communicate with the mobile network database to obtain subscriber data associated with a mobile device associated with the end user in response to the resource access system receiving a request from the user to access the secure resource;

in which the resource access system is configured to communicate with a backend system of a mobile network to obtain a cellular base station identity code associated with a mobile base station to which the mobile device, is currently connected and configured to verify that the cellular base station identity code identifies a mobile base station near the secure resource; and

in which the resource access system is configured to map the subscriber data to the cellular base station identity code to verify that the mobile device is at a physical location near the secure resource.

4. The system of claim 3 in which the resource access system further comprises a smart card access system and the access database further comprises a smart card database, and in which the smart card access system maps the subscriber data associated with the mobile device with a smart card that is used to access the resource access system.