Wireless device management

• US 20040010579A1
• Filed: 02/28/2003
• Published: 01/15/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Withsecure Corporation
• Original Assignee: F-Secure Oyj
• Inventors: Freese, Esko
• Granted Patent: US 7,184,554 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/223
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3013 where the computing system is an embedded system, i.e. a combination of hardware and software dedicated to perform a certain function in mobile devices, printers, automotive or aircraft systems testing or monitoring of control systems or parts thereof G05B23/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/302 where the computing system component is a software system
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3055 Monitoring arrangements for monitoring the status of the computing system or of the computing system component, e.g. monitoring if the computing system is on, off, available, not available error or fault processing without redundancy G06F11/0703; error detection or correction by redundancy in data representation G06F11/08; error detection or correction by redundancy in operation G06F11/14; error detection or correction by redundancy in hardware G06F11/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3093 Configuration details thereof, e.g. installation, enabling, spatial arrangement of the probes

Abstract

A method of managing a wireless device (2), the method comprising installing a management agent program in a memory of the wireless device (2), the installed management agent monitoring the status of application programs installed on the device. Management instructions are sent to the mobile device (2) from a Management Centre (5) using a wireless telecommunications network (1) and, following a receipt of the management instructions at the device, the management agent processes the instructions and manages the applications accordingly. The management agent reports the results of the processing operation to the Management Centre (5) via the wireless telecommunications network (1).

Claims

1. A method of managing a wireless device, the method comprising:

installing a management agent in a memory of the wireless device, the installed management agent monitoring the status of the device and of applications installed on the device;

sending management instructions to the mobile device using a wireless telecommnunications network;

receiving the management instructions at the device, the management agent processing the instructions and managing the applications accordingly.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the management agent causes reports to be sent back to the origin of the management instructions following the processing of these instructions.

3. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the wireless device is operated by a subscriber to said wireless telecommunications network, which network is a digital cellular telecommunications network.

4. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the application programs installed on the device may in an active or inactive state, and a switch in the state of a given application is achieved by sending an appropriate management instruction from the network to the device, whereupon the management agent acts on the instruction to implement said switch.

5. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step of sending management instructions to the mobile device comprises sending these instructions from a management centre of the telecommunications network.

6. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein management instructions are sent to the wireless device from an authorised third party management centre.

7. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein an anti-virus application program is installed in the wireless device and is switched on or off by a management instruction sent from the network to the device.

8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the management agent controls the installation of applications downloaded from the network to the wireless device.

9. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the management agent controls the modification of an application or of data associated with an application following the downloading of modifications from the network.

10. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the management agent sends monitored application status information to the telecommunications network.

11. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the network is a GSM or UMTS network and said management instructions are sent from the network to the mobile device using the Short Message Service (SMS) or Unstructured Supplementary Services Data (USSD) messages.

12. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein in order to ensure a secure connection on top of an open bearer service management instructions are cryptographically signed.

13. A wireless device arranged to communicate with a wireless telecommunication network, the device comprising:

a memory storing a management agent and one or more applications;

processing means for running the management agent to monitor the status of applications installed on the device; and

receiving means for receiving management instructions, sent from the network, and for passing these to the management agent,

the management agent being arranged to process the instructions and manage the applications accordingly.

14. A device according to claim 13, wherein the device is a mobile telephone, communicator, PDA, palmtop computer, or laptop computer.