Secure network browsing

• US 20050021668A1
• Filed: 01/30/2004
• Published: 01/27/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ROKE Manor Research Limited (Chemring Group PLC)
• Original Assignee: ROKE Manor Research Limited (Chemring Group PLC)
• Inventors: Bonniface, Richard Andrew, Daley, Stuart William John, Vasudevan, Baby, Day, Richard Harvey, Beesley, Richard Craig
• Granted Patent: US 7,933,971 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/217
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1416 Event detection, e.g. attack signature detection
• 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: H04L 63/168 above the transport layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

There is described a method of communicating over a public data network, for example the Internet. A user of a public PC, for example one located in an Internet café, uses the Internet browser provided on the public PC to downloaded from a remote trusted web site a secure Internet browser that then runs within the browser provided on the public PC. The user uses the secure Internet browser to browse the Internet. The secure browser has been configured so that no copy of information transmitted into the network or downloaded from the network is cached or otherwise recorded on the hard disc of the terminal. The user may thus browse the Internet without leaving a record of sensitive information (e.g. credit card details) used in the browsing session at the public terminal.

Claims

1. A method of communicating over a public data network, the method comprising;

transmitting to a remote server on the network a request for a communications application stored on the server to be downloaded to a terminal connected to the network;

receiving the communications application at the terminal;

using the communications application to communicate from the terminal over the public data network;

wherein, the communications application is configured such that user input data, input to the communications application by a user of the terminal, is transmitted into the network without a record of the data being stored at the terminal or that data received at the terminal by the communications application from the network at the request of the user is presented to the user without a record of the data being stored at the terminal.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the communications application is a Java Applet.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein, the communications application is for communicating with web sites.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the

communications application is downloaded by and runs within a further communications application provided on the terminal.

5. A method according to claim 4, wherein the further communications application is a Web Browser.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein the communications application is a Web Browser.

7. A method according to claim 1, wherein the communications application is arranged to communicate with the public data network via a Web Browser application running on a remote server.

8. A method according to claim 7 wherein the Web Browser application retrieves web pages from the network on behalf of the communications application and the communications application receives the Web Pages in a non graphical format from the Web Browser application.

9. A method according to claim 1, wherein no copy of the data transmitted into the network or the data received from the network by the application is cached at the terminal or written to permanent memory at the terminal.

10. A method according to claim 1, wherein no record of a network address visited by the application from the terminal is stored at the terminal.

11. A method according to claim 10 wherein the network address is any of an IP address, domain name or a URL.

12. A server connected to a public data network, the server storing a communications application for downloading to a terminal connected to the network for use in the method of claim 1.

17. A method according to claim 1, wherein the location of keys of the keypad on the display screen are varied in response to user selection.

18. A method according to claim 1, wherein the data is input to a communications application running at the terminal for transmission into a data network.

19. A method according to claim 18 wherein the communications application is a web browser.

13. A method of enabling a user to input data to a terminal, the method comprising:

displaying on a terminal display screen a graphical representation of a keypad for the user to select keys of the keypad to effect data input.

14. A method according to claim 13, the method further comprising:

varying at least once during a user session the location of keys of the keypad on the display screen.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein, at least once during the user session, the locations of keys within the keypad are exchanged.

16. A method according to claim 14, wherein the location of keys of the keypad on the display screen are varied randomly.

20. A computer program for performing the method of claim 14.

21. A terminal programmed with the program of claim 20.

22. A data carrier carrying the program of claim 20.

23. A terminal arranged to perform the method of claim 14.

24. A method of displaying information to a user of a terminal, the method comprising;

displaying on a screen of the terminal a display region for displaying information to the user, the display region containing a viewing portion which in response to user input is moveable within the display region to reveal information to the user and wherein information is displayed to the user substantially only in the portion of the display region in which the viewing portion is placed.