DYNAMIC IDENTIFIER FOR USE IN IDENTIFICATION OF A DEVICE

• US 20090240946A1
• Filed: 12/23/2008
• Published: 09/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: BCE Incorporated
• Original Assignee: BCE Incorporated
• Inventors: O'Brien, William G., YEAP, Tet Hin
• Application Number:
  US12/343,187
• Publication Number:
  US 20090240946A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/176
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/43 wireless channels
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/79 in semiconductor storage media, e.g. directly-addressable memories
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/445 Program loading or initiating bootstrapping G06F9/4401; security arrangements for program loading or initiating G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• 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 20/3825 Use of electronic signatures
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3829 involving key management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/385 using an alias or single-use codes
• 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 20/401 Transaction verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40975 using encryption therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/425 using two different networks, one for transaction and one for security confirmation
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/84 Vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0846 using time-dependent-passwords, e.g. periodically changing passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/126 the source of the received data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 : involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 : Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/10 : Integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/47 : using near field communication [NFC] or radio frequency identification [RFID] modules

Abstract

A method for execution by a device, which comprises: generating a first signature by encrypting an identifier of the device together with first additional data; generating a second signature by encrypting the identifier of the device together with second additional data that is different from the first additional data; releasing the first signature to identify the device on a first occasion; and releasing the second signature to identify the device on a second occasion. Also, a device, which comprises: a memory storing an identifier of the device; a processing entity configured to generate a plurality of different signatures encoding the identifier and to store the signatures in the memory; and a transmit/receive entity configured to identify the device on respective occasions by releasing individual ones of the signatures.

Claims

1. A method for execution by a device, comprising:

generating a first signature by encrypting an identifier of the device together with first additional data;

generating a second signature by encrypting the identifier of the device together with second additional data that is different from the first additional data;

releasing the first signature to identify the device on a first occasion; and

releasing the second signature to identify the device on a second occasion.

2. The method defined in claim 1, wherein generating the second signature is performed after generating the first signature.

3. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising receiving a request from a network entity, wherein releasing the first signature is performed no earlier than when the request is received.

4. The method defined in claim 3, further comprising receiving a second request from the network entity, wherein releasing the second signature is performed no earlier than when the second request is received.

5. The method defined in claim 4, wherein the first and second requests are received wirelessly.

6. The method defined in claim 4, wherein the first and second requests are received non-wirelessly.

7. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising receiving a request, wherein generating the first signature is performed no earlier than when the request is received.

8. The method defined in claim 7, further comprising receiving a second request, wherein generating the second signature is performed no earlier than when the second request is received.

9. The method defined in claim 1, wherein releasing the first signature and releasing the second signature are performed by the device autonomously.

10. The method defined in claim 1, wherein releasing the first signature and releasing the second signature are performed by the device on a basis of a command sensed to be received from a user of the device.

11. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the device comprises at least one of a modem and a computer.

12. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the identifier of the device is a MAC address of the device stored in a memory of the device.

13. The method defined in claim 12, wherein the device comprises at least one of a network adapter and a network interface card identifiable using said MAC address.

14. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the device comprises a mobile telephone and wherein the identifier of the device is an electronic serial number of the mobile telephone stored in a memory of the mobile telephone.

15. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the device comprises an RFID tag and wherein the identifier of the device is an identifier of the RFID tag stored in a memory of the RFID tag.

16. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the identifier of the device is an account number stored in a memory of the device.

17. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the first and second signatures are released over a non-secure pathway.

18. The method defined in claim 17, wherein the non-secure pathway traverses the Internet.

19. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the first and second signatures are generated at respective times, and wherein the first and second additional data are related, respectively, to the times at which the first and second signatures are generated.

20. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the second additional data differs from the first additional data by an amount reflective of an output of a function to which has been input the first additional data.

21. The method defined in claim 1, wherein the first and second additional data differ by an incremental amount.

22. The method defined in claim 1, wherein encrypting the identifier of the device together with the first additional data comprises combining the identifier of the device and the first additional data into a result and encrypting the result using an encryption key.

23. The method defined in claim 22, wherein encrypting the identifier of the device together with the second additional data comprises combining the identifier of the device and the second additional data into a second result and encrypting the second result using the encryption key.

24. The method defined in claim 23, wherein the encryption key is a private key of the device and is complementary to a public key that is available to a recipient of the first and second signatures.

25. A computer-readable storage medium comprising a set of computer-readable instructions for execution by a device, wherein execution of the set of instructions by the device causes the device to execute a method that includes:

generating a first signature by encrypting an identifier of the device together with first additional data;

generating a second signature by encrypting the identifier of the device together with second additional data that is different from the first additional data;

releasing the first signature to identify the device on a first occasion; and

releasing the second signature to identify the device on a second occasion.

26. A device, comprising:

a memory storing an identifier of the device;

a processing entity configured to generate a plurality of different signatures encoding the identifier and to store the signatures in the memory; and

transmit/receive circuitry configured to identify the device on respective occasions by releasing individual ones of the signatures.

27. The device defined in claim 26, wherein to generate a first one of the signatures, the processing entity is configured to encrypt the identifier together with first additional data and wherein to generate a second one of the signatures, the processing entity is configured to encrypt the identifier together with second additional data that is different from the first additional data.