STRONG AUTHENTICATION TOKEN GENERATING ONE-TIME PASSWORDS AND SIGNATURES UPON SERVER CREDENTIAL VERIFICATION

• US 20090235339A1
• Filed: 03/11/2008
• Published: 09/17/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Onespan North America Incorporated (OneSpan, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Vasco Data Security Incorporated (OneSpan, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hoornaert, Frank, Mennes, Frederik
• Granted Patent: US 8,302,167 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/5
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/33 using certificates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/34 involving the use of external additional devices, e.g. dongles or smart cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2103 Challenge-response
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0838 using one-time-passwords
• 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: H04L 9/3228 One-time or temporary data, i.e. information which is sent for every authentication or authorization, e.g. one-time-password, one-time-token or one-time-key
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3234 involving additional secure or trusted devices, e.g. TPM, smartcard, USB or software token network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using an additional device in a packet data network H04L63/0853
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3273 for mutual authentication network architectures or network communication protocols for achieving mutual authentication in a packet data network H04L63/0869

Abstract

The invention defines a strong authentication token that remedies a vulnerability to a certain type of social engineering attacks, by authenticating the server or messages purporting to come from the server prior to generating a one-time password or transaction signature; and, in the case of the generation of a transaction signature, signing not only transaction values but also transaction context information and, prior to generating said transaction signature, presenting said transaction values and transaction context information to the user for the user to review and approve using trustworthy output and input means. It furthermore offers this authentication and review functionality without sacrificing user convenience or cost efficiency, by judiciously coding the transaction data to be signed, thus reducing the transmission size of information that has to be exchanged over the token'"'"'s trustworthy interfaces

Claims

1. An apparatus for generating security values for use in interactions with a server, said apparatus comprising trustworthy means to communicate information to a user, a data input interface for receiving server credential information, a processor for performing a verification of said server credential, and a processor for generating security values conditional on said verification, said generating of security values being performed using a first secret shared between said apparatus and said server and said verification of said server credential information being performed using a second secret shared between said apparatus and said server.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said security values and said server credential information have a size of less than 64 bits.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said verification of said server credential information uses at least one dynamic value.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, further comprising a clock, wherein said at least one dynamic value includes a time value provided by said clock.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said generating of security values involves data related to said server credential information.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said server credential information includes at least one value and at least context information related to a transaction to be approved by a user, and said trusted means to communicate information is adapted to communicate said at least one value and at least context information related to a transaction to said user, and said apparatus is adapted to detect said user'"'"'s approval of said transaction, wherein said generating of security values is also conditional on said approval.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said at least one value and at least context information are formatted using a compact encoding scheme.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said server credential information comprises at least a cryptogram generated to authenticate the source of said server credential information using a symmetric algorithm and at least part of said at least one value and at least context information and a key shared between said apparatus and said server.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the lifetime of said key is limited.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said key is generated by said apparatus using data related to the generating of a security value.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said key is generated by said apparatus using data related to the verification of server credential information.

30. The apparatus of claim 1 or claim 12, further adapted to execute a remote management instruction included in said server credential information conditional on said verification.

31. The apparatus of any of claims 1 to 5 or any of claims 12 to 17, wherein said data input interface comprises one or more buttons or keys.

32. The apparatus of any of claims 1 to 5 or any of claims 12 to 17, wherein said data input interface comprises a plurality of photosensitive elements.

33. The apparatus of any of claims 1, 6, 12, or 18, wherein said generating of security values includes the use of a counter value.

34. The apparatus of any of claims 1, 6, 12, or 18, further comprising a clock, wherein said generating of security values includes the use of a time value.

35. The apparatus of any of claims 1, 6, 12, or 18, wherein said generating of security values includes the use of a challenge.

12. An apparatus for producing and communicating to a user security values for use in interactions with a server, said apparatus comprising trustworthy means to communicate information to a user, a data input interface for receiving server credential information, and an interface to cooperate with a removable security device in order to generate security values conditional on verification of said server credential information, said generating of security values being performed using a first secret shared between said removable security device and said server and said verification of said server credential information being performed using a second secret shared between said removable security device or said apparatus and said server.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, further adapted to signal the occurrence of an unsuccessful verification of said server credential information to said user.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said security values and said server credential information have a size of less than 64 bits.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said verification of said server credential information uses at least one dynamic value.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising a clock, wherein said at least one dynamic value includes a time value provided by said clock.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein said generating of security values involves data related to said server credential information.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein said server credential information includes at least one value and at least context information related to a transaction to be approved by a user, and said means to communicate information is adapted to communicate said at least one value and at least context information related to a transaction to said user, and said apparatus is adapted to detect said user'"'"'s approval of said transaction, wherein said generating of security values is also conditional on said approval.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein said at least one value and at least context information are formatted using a compact encoding scheme.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein said server credential information comprises at least a part of a cryptogram generated to authenticate the source of said server credential information using a symmetric algorithm and at least part of said at least one value and at least context information and a key shared between said apparatus or said removable security device and said server.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the lifetime of said key is limited.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, further adapted to verify said at least a part of a cryptogram using said key.

23. The apparatus of claim 20 or claim 22, wherein said key is generated using data related to the generating of a security value.

24. The apparatus of claim 20 or claim 22, wherein said key is generated using data related to the verification of server credential information.

25. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein said removable security device is a smart card.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein said removable security device verifies said server credential information.

27. The apparatus of claim 25, said second secret being shared between said apparatus and said server, and to instruct said removable security device to generate a cryptogram using a dynamic value and said first secret, and to receive from said removable security device said cryptogram, and to produce said security values using said received cryptogram.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein said server credential information includes at least one value and at least context information related to a transaction to be approved by a user, and said means to communicate information is adapted to communicate said at least one value and at least context information related to a transaction to said user, and said apparatus is adapted to detect said user'"'"'s approval of said transaction, wherein said generating of security values is also conditional on said approval, and wherein said apparatus is adapted to generate a signature key using said cryptogram received from said removable security device and to generate said security values using said signature key and said at least one value and at least context information.

29. The apparatus of claim 27, further adapted to generate said second secret using data received from said removable security device.

36. The apparatus of claim 7 or claim 19, further comprising a memory storing data constants, wherein said compact encoding scheme includes the usage of references to said data constants.

37. The apparatus of claim 7 or claim 19, wherein said at least one value and at least context information formatted using a compact encoding scheme are expanded prior to being used in said generating of security values.

38. The apparatus of claim 8 or claim 20, wherein said at least one value and at least context information is encrypted by said server and decrypted by said apparatus using a symmetric cryptographic algorithm and said key.

39. The apparatus of claim 9 or claim 21, wherein said lifetime is limited by a time-out value.

40. The apparatus of claim 9 or claim 21, wherein said lifetime is limited by a counter value.

41. The apparatus of claim 9 or claim 21, wherein said lifetime is limited by an event.