Authentication system and method

• US 20090307767A1
• Filed: 06/02/2009
• Published: 12/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Semba, Satoshi
• Application Number:
  US12/457,168
• Publication Number:
  US 20090307767A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/18
• 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

Abstract

An authentication system includes a user terminal to perform authentication based on a password corresponding to a seed number generated in accordance with a predefined rule. The system further includes a password issuance apparatus to issue the password in response to reception of a request message including the seed number.

Claims

1. An authentication system, comprising:

a user terminal to perform authentication based on a password corresponding to a seed number generated in accordance with a predefined rule; and

a password issuance apparatus to issue the password in response to reception of a request message including the seed number.

2. The authentication system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a transmission device to transmit the request message to the password issuance apparatus.

3. The authentication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein, when the user terminal is connected with the password issuance apparatus via a network, the user terminal transmits the password inputted thereto and the seed number to the password issuance apparatus;

and

the password issuance apparatus performs the authentication based on the password and the seed number and transmits secret information in accordance with a result of the authentication.

4. The authentication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the password issuance apparatus stores different reception address for each transmission device and issues the password when the request message transmitted by the transmission device is addressed to a reception address corresponding to the transmission device.

5. The authentication system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the password issuance apparatus issues the password in response to the request message from the transmission device subject that an enable flag and/or an issuance counter corresponding to the transmission device satisfy respective predetermined conditions.

6. The authentication system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the seed number is a pseudo random number generated based on at least one of current time of day, remaining capacity of a secondary storage unit, a serial number of the secondary storage unit, number of clock cycles since the user terminal has been turned on.

7. A user terminal, comprising:

a processing unit to generate a seed number in accordance with a predefined rule and generate a first password corresponding to the seed number;

a display unit to display the seed number generated by the processing unit; and

an input unit to allow a second password to be inputted;

wherein the processing unit performs authentication by determining whether the first and second passwords match.

8. The user terminal as claimed in claim 7, further comprising a communication unit to communicate with a password issuance apparatus via a network,

wherein, when the user terminal can communicate with the password issuance apparatus, the user terminal transmits the second password inputted to the input unit and the seed number generated by the processing unit to the password issuance apparatus, and receives secret information subject to a successful authentication performed by the password issuance apparatus.

9. A password issuance apparatus, comprising:

a communication unit to receive a request message including a seed number generated by a user terminal in accordance with a predefined rule; and

a processing unit to issue a password for authentication by the user terminal based on at least the seed number.

10. The password issuance apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein when the password issuance apparatus can communicate with the user terminal via the network, the password issuance apparatus receives the inputted password and seed number from the user terminal;

and

the processing unit performs authentication based on the received password and seed number and transmits secret information subject to a successful authentication.

11. The password issuance apparatus as claimed in claim 9, further comprising a user information database to register a transmission apparatus,

wherein when a particular transmission apparatus is registered in the user information database, the processing unit issues a password in response to a request message from the particular transmission apparatus.

12. The password issuance apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the user information database registers different reception address for each transmission device;

and

when the request message transmitted by the transmission device is addressed to a reception address corresponding to the transmission device, the processing unit issues the password.

13. The password issuance apparatus as claimed in claim 11, wherein the user information database registers an enable flag and/or an issuance counter for each transmission device, and

the processing unit issues the password in response to the request message from the transmission device subject that an enable flag and/or an issuance counter corresponding to the transmission device satisfy respective predetermined conditions.

14. A method for authentication, the method comprising:

generating a seed number in accordance with a predefined rule;

issuing a password in response to reception of a request message including the seed number; and

performing authentication based on the issued password.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, further comprising:

when a user terminal is connected to a password issuance apparatus via a network, transmitting the inputted password and the seed number to the password issuance apparatus; and

performing the authentication based on the password and the seed number and transmitting secret information in accordance with a result of the authentication.