Biometric delegation and authentication of financial transactions

• US 20060163344A1
• Filed: 01/21/2005
• Published: 07/27/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Enenia Biometrics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Enenia Biometrics Incorporated
• Inventors: Nwosu, Kingsley Chukwudum
• Granted Patent: US 7,216,803 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/380
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4014 Identity check for transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/257 electronically G07C9/26 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system

Abstract

A method and system that enables a customer to delegate or authorize another individual to perform a financial transaction is provided. This system uses a smart card and a biometric scanner or reader writer, or a biometric device without a smart card. The smart card holds personal and financial accounts information about the customer including a set of biometric templates of the customer. The second smart card owner is identified as the true owner of a smart card after the second smart card passes a biometric authentication using a read write device. The first smart card owner specifies the desired transaction that is to be performed by the second smart card. The delegated or authorized transaction created by the first smart card is encrypted and stored in the second smart card and/or to a remote back-end host server.

Claims

1. A method for a first smart card owner to delegate or authorize the execution of a financial transaction to a second smart card owner at a financial institution, the delegation or authorization process comprising the steps of:

authenticating the first smart card owner as the true owner of the first smart card;

creating a delegated or authorized transaction on the first smart card owner'"'"'s account;

authenticating biometrically the second smart card owner as the true owner of the second smart card;

encrypting the delegated or authorized transaction of the first smart card owner;

storing the encrypted delegated or authorized transaction in a remote back-end host server;

storing the encrypted delegated or authorized transaction in the second smart card; and

,

executing the delegated or authorized transaction stored in the second smart card or the remote back-end host server by an authorized personnel of the financial institution.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a smart card owner'"'"'s biometric profile or personal information stored in a smart card is collected and stored in the smart card owner'"'"'s account at the financial institution by an authorized personnel of the financial institution.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein said authorized personnel'"'"'s access to a delegated or authorized transaction, or access for editing said smart card owner'"'"'s personal or account information is required to be verified via authentication by a biometric device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the live biometric feature of the smart card owner is obtained live from the smart card owner or retrieved from an existing database.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the existing database is located remotely and external to the smart card.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction is retrieved via wired or wireless communication if the database is located remotely and external to the smart card.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction is stored in a single application smart card or in a multi-application smart card and the smart card either needs formatting or the use of a predefined format structure.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more unique identification numbers are generated in the smart card of the smart card owner.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction is encrypted and stored in the smart card after successfully storing the delegated or authorized transaction in a remote back-end host server.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the functionalities of scanning biometric profiles, comparing biometric profiles and smart card operations are integrated in a single device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the functionalities of scanning biometric profiles, comparing biometric profiles and smart card operations are performed by one or more devices.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein delegated or authorized transaction entered on the second smart card is accessible only on successful authentication of the second smart card owner as the true owner of the smart card.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction at a financial institution can be performed only if the first smart card owner has an account in the financial institution in which the transaction is to be performed.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction process terminates if one of the smart cards is removed before the application on the personal computer permits the removal of the smart card.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the first smart card owner and second smart card owner each authenticate their identity before the delegated or authorized transactions are written into the second smart card.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the stored delegated or authorized transactions are encrypted using proprietary or open encryption algorithm.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction is stored in the smart card after a successful store in the remote back-end host server.

54. The method of claim 15, wherein the personal and account information, image picture, and biometric profile data of the smart card owner are stored in the back-end host server via secured wired or wireless communication.

18. A method for processing a delegated or authorized transaction by the second card owner at a financial institution, comprising the steps:

authenticating the financial institution personnel;

logging the financial institution personnel into a host application;

authenticating the second smart card owner with or without the second smart card;

reading and decrypting the delegated or authorized transactions from the second smart card or back-end host server after the second smart card owner is authenticated;

retrieving and displaying second smart card owner'"'"'s personal and account information by the host application;

retrieving and selecting appropriate delegated or authorized transactions by the host application;

executing the delegated or authorized transaction on the second smart card at the financial institution; and

updating the delegated or authorized transaction in the smart card and/or backend host server.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the financial institution personnel require authorization and access privilege to execute the delegated or authorized transactions.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the authorization and access privilege for the financial institution personnel is granted after successful biometric authentication of the financial institution personnel.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein several levels of access privileges are defined for the financial institution personnel.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein the financial institution personnel authenticates the smart card owner using the biometric profile in the smart card.

23. The method of claim 18, wherein an optional second level authentication is performed by the bank personnel using a photo image on the smart card or remote back-end host server.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein the delegated or authorized transactions are displayed on the host application.

25. The method of claim 18, wherein only the delegated or authorized transactions belonging to accounts in the financial institution of the smart card owner are displayed.

26. The method of claim 18, wherein the delegation or authorization process terminates if the smart card that is inserted in the reader writer is removed before the application prompts the removal of the smart card.

27. The method of claim 18, wherein the financial institution personnel updates the delegated or authorized transaction in the remote back-end host server and removes the transaction from the smart card after the delegated or authorized transaction is successfully preformed.

28. The method of claim 18, wherein the financial institution personnel is authenticated and authorized via stored information in a smart card or back-end host server.

29. The method of claim 18, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction is retrieved from the remote back-end host server.

30. The method of claim 18, wherein the applicable delegated or authorized transactions are retrieved via search criteria using the first smart card owner'"'"'s smart card number or personal information and validation of the live biometric data of the first smart card owner against the stored biometric data of the first smart card owner.

31. A method for a personnel of the financial institution to automatically recreate the delegated or authorized transactions in a smart card from the data stored in the remote back-end host server, comprising the steps of:

authenticating the financial institution personnel;

logging the financial institution personnel into a host application, wherein the host application resides in a computer in the financial institution;

utilizing the smart card owner'"'"'s personal information to select matching records at the financial institution, wherein one of the retrieved records selected matches the biometric profile of the first smart card owner;

retrieving the remaining data from the back-end host server; and

,

formatting and storing the retrieved data in a new smart card for the smart card owner.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the financial institution personnel require authorization and access privilege to utilize the host application.

33. The method of claim 31, wherein the authorization and access privileges is granted after successful biometric authentication of the financial institution personnel.

34. The method of claim 31, wherein several levels of access privileges are defined for the financial institution personnel.

35. The method of claim 31, wherein the financial institution personnel is biometrically authenticated and authorized via stored information in a smart card.

36. The method of claim 31, wherein the financial institution personnel is authenticated and authorized via information stored in a remote back-end host server.

37. The method of claim 31, wherein the search criteria used to retrieve the smart card owner'"'"'s related records at the financial institution is the smart card owner'"'"'s smart card number or personal information.

38. The method of claim 31, wherein one of the retrieved records is used to biometrically match the live biometric profile of the smart card owner and thereafter used to retrieve all relevant associated data in the remote back-end host server.

39. The method of claim 31, wherein upon successful upload of relevant associated data, the retrieved delegated or authorized transactions and data are formatted and written into a new smart card for the smart card owner.

40. The method of claim 31, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction processing utilizes an integrated device for biometric data collection and smart card updates.

41. The method of claim 31, wherein the delegated or authorized transaction processing utilizes more than one devices for biometric data collection and smart card updates.

42. A method for an authorized personnel from a financial institution to enroll a smart card owner at the financial institution, comprising the steps:

authenticating the financial institution personnel;

logging the financial institution personnel into a back-end host application;

retrieving the smart card owner'"'"'s personal and account information;

retrieving the smart card owner'"'"'s photo image and biometric profile templates;

formatting and encrypting the smart card owner'"'"'s personal and account information, photo image, and biometric templates;

formatting a new smart card with one or more unique identifications from the back-end host server,

storing the formatted and encrypted data of the smart card owner in the back-end host server; and

,

storing the formatted and encrypted data in a;

new smart card for the smart card owner.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the enrollment process utilizes an integrated device for obtaining the smart card owner'"'"'s biometric profile template and for storing data in the smart card of the smart card owner.

44. The method of claim 42, wherein the enrollment process utilizes two separate devices for obtaining the smart card owner'"'"'s biometric profile and for storing the data in the smart card of the smart card owner.

45. The method of claim 42, wherein the smart card owner'"'"'s personal and account information are collected and stored in the smart card by the personnel of the financial institution.

46. The method of claim 42, wherein the smart card owner'"'"'s personal information is obtained by automatic analysis of identification documents by the host application.

47. The method of claim 45, wherein the financial institution personnel'"'"'s access to the host application is verified by biometric data using a biometric device.

48. The method of claim 42, wherein the smart card owner'"'"'s image picture is obtained live from a camera, or scanned from an existing image picture or from a local or remote database.

49. The method of claim 42, wherein other biometric profile data is obtained live from the smart card owner or retrieved from an existing local or remote database.

50. The method of claim 42, wherein the personal information, account information, image picture, and other biometric profile data are formatted and encrypted using proprietary or open encryption algorithm.

51. The method of claim 50, wherein the personal and account information, image picture, and other biometric profile data of the smart card owner are stored in a single or multi-application smart card.

52. The method of claim 42, wherein one or more unique identification numbers are generated by the back-end host server for the smart card owner'"'"'s smart card.

53. The method of claim 42, wherein the personal and account information, image picture and other biometric profile data are stored in the smart card after this information is stored in a remote back-end host server.