Apparatus and method for setting use restriction of mobile communication terminal

• US 20050170813A1
• Filed: 02/03/2005
• Published: 08/04/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Choi, Won Su
• Granted Patent: US 7,505,758 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/411
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/082 using revocation of authorisation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/126 Anti-theft arrangements, e.g. protection against subscriber identity module [SIM] cloning
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/71 Hardware identity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/72 Subscriber identity

Abstract

A method for restricting the use of a mobile terminal including generating a coded value corresponding to a user authentication card, and determining whether or not the mobile terminal is available for use based on the generated coded value. Further, determining whether or not the mobile terminal is available for use includes checking whether or not the generated coded value is on a registration coded value list, and checking whether or not the generated coded value is on a prohibition coded value list if the generated coded value is not on the registration coded value list. The method also includes storing the generated coded value in a temporary coded value list and setting the mobile terminal in a first lock mode when the generated coded value is not on the registration or prohibition coded value lists, transmitting a lost terminal message to a loss management server, determining, by the loss management server, if the mobile terminal has been reported lost, and setting the mobile terminal in a second lock mode if the mobile terminal has been reported lost.

Claims

1. A method for restricting a use of a mobile terminal, comprising:

generating a coded value corresponding to a user authentication card of the mobile terminal; and

determining whether or not the mobile terminal is available for use based on the generated coded value.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user authentication card includes a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module), a USIM (Universal Subscriber Identity Module), a UIM (User Identity Module) or an RUIM (Removable User Identity Module).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the coded value comprises:

masking an ESN (Electronic Serial Number) value and an IMSI (Internet Mobile Station Identity) value of the user authentication card with a serial number of the mobile terminal; and

adding the masked ESN and IMSI values and a checksum bit.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether or not the mobile terminal is available for use comprises:

checking whether or not the generated coded value is on a registration coded value list; and

checking whether or not the generated coded value is on a prohibition coded value list if the generated coded value is not on the registration coded value list.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

storing the generated coded value in a temporary coded value list and setting the mobile terminal in a first lock mode when the generated coded value is not on the registration or prohibition coded value lists;

transmitting a lost terminal message to a loss management server;

determining, by the loss management server, if the mobile terminal has been reported lost;

setting the mobile terminal in a second lock mode if the mobile terminal has been reported lost.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first lock mode only allows registration of the authentication card, and the second lock mode restricts all functions of the mobile terminal.

7. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

setting the mobile terminal in a lock mode that restricts all functions of the mobile terminal if the generated coded value is on the prohibition coded value list.

8. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

setting the mobile terminal in a normal use state if the generated coded value is on the registration coded value list; and

transmitting a message to the mobile terminal indicating the normal use state.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein determining if the mobile terminal has been lost comprises:

calculating ESN (Electronic Serial Number) and IMSI (Internet Mobile Station Identity) values of the user authentication card based on the transmitted lost terminal registration message; and

determining whether or not the mobile terminal has been lost based on the calculated ESN and IMSI values and information of the mobile terminal previously stored in a database;

10. The method of claim 5, wherein the lost terminal message includes a serial number of the mobile terminal and a coded value corresponding to the user authentication card mounted in the mobile terminal.

11. A communication system for restricting a use of a mobile terminal, comprising:

a mobile terminal configured to generate coded value corresponding to a user authentication card of the mobile terminal; and

a loss management server configured to determine whether or not the mobile terminal is available for use based on the generated coded value.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the user authentication card includes a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module), a USIM (Universal Subscriber Identity Module), a UIM (User Identity Module) or an RUIM (Removable User Identity Module).

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the coded value is generated by masking an ESN (Electronic Serial Number) value and an IMSI (Internet Mobile Station Identity) value of the user authentication card with a serial number of the mobile terminal, and adding the masked ESN and IMSI values and a checksum bit.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the loss management server determines whether or not the mobile terminal is available by checking whether or not the generated coded value is on a registration coded value list, and checking whether or not the generated coded value is on a prohibition coded value list if the generated coded value is not on the registration coded value list.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the loss management server stores the generated coded value in a temporary coded value list and sets the mobile terminal in a first lock mode when the generated coded value is not on the registration or prohibition coded value lists, determines by searching a database if the mobile terminal has been reported lost, and sets the mobile terminal in a second lock mode if the mobile terminal has been reported lost.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the first lock mode only allows registration of the authentication card, and the second lock mode restricts all functions of the mobile terminal.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the loss management server transmits a message to the mobile terminal to set the mobile terminal in a lock mode that restricts all functions of the mobile terminal if the generated coded value is on the prohibition coded value list.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the loss management server determines if the mobile terminal has been lost by calculating ESN (Electronic Serial Number) and IMSI (Internet Mobile Station Identity) values of the user authentication card, and determining whether or not the mobile terminal has been lost based on the calculated ESN and IMSI values and information of the mobile terminal previously stored in a database.