APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MANAGING TERMINAL USERS

• US 20100223668A1
• Filed: 08/20/2008
• Published: 09/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: Kim, Jaemyoung, Koo, Yongbon, Jung, Yungjoon
• Application Number:
  US12/738,002
• Publication Number:
  US 20100223668A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/22
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/305 by remotely controlling device operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/552 involving long-term monitoring or reporting

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method of managing terminal users that is capable of securely managing personal information and data of a user in a mobile terminal. An embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus and method of managing terminal users that monitors whether a terminal of a user is abnormally used, including whether the terminal is not used over a predetermined period of time, to collect and check data, and, when it is determined that the terminal is abnormally used as a checked result, forces the user to log out. Therefore, a login situation of the user can be accurately recognized, and the internal operation of the terminal can be secured from external users to securely manage user data and improve security.

Claims

1. An apparatus for managing terminal users, the apparatus comprising:

a monitoring information collecting module that monitors an abnormal use of a terminal, including whether the terminal is not used over a predetermined period of time by the user, and collects information; and

a control unit that checks the information collected by the monitoring information collecting module, and, when it is determined that the terminal is abnormally used, forces the user to log out.

2. The apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the monitoring information collecting module includes an input unit to which a user command is input, and the control unit forces the user to log out when a threshold time or more elapses after the final input from the user through the input unit.

3. The apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the monitoring information collecting module includes a motion detecting unit that detects a motion of the terminal, and the control unit forces the user to log out when the magnitude of the motion of the terminal detected by the motion detecting unit is equal to or larger than a threshold value.

4. The apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the monitoring information collecting module includes a virtual space manager that checks whether a threshold time or more elapses after the final access time for a user virtual space designated for the user or whether a threshold time or more elapses after the final CPU scheduling time for a user program, and reports a checked result to the control unit, and

the control unit forces the user to log out when the threshold time or more elapses after the final access time for the user virtual space designated for the user or when the threshold time or more elapses after the final CPU scheduling time for the user program.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

an authentication information receiving unit that receives user authentication information from a mobile storage device through wireless communication.

6. The apparatus of claim 1,

wherein the control unit forces the user to log out and securely deletes a user virtual space designated for the user.

7. A system for managing terminal users, the system comprising:

a mobile storage device that stores user information and includes a wireless communication module; and

a mobile terminal that receives the user information from the mobile storage device, designates a user virtual space for the corresponding user, monitors an abnormal use of the terminal, including whether the terminal is not used over a predetermined period of time by the user, collects data and checks the collected data, wherein the mobile terminal forces the user to log out and securely deletes the user virtual space designated for the user when it is determined that the terminal is abnormally used.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising:

an authentication server that includes a database on at least one user information and authentication information, and receives a user authentication request of specific user information from the mobile terminal and transmits an authentication performed result on the corresponding user information to the mobile terminal.

9. The system of claim 8,

wherein the mobile terminal includes a wireless communication module that communicates with a wireless communication module of the mobile storage device, and

the mobile terminal receives the user information that is stored in the mobile storage device and requests the authentication server to authenticate the corresponding user.

10. A method of managing terminal users, the method comprising:

a monitoring information collecting step of monitoring whether a terminal is abnormally used, including whether the terminal is not used over a predetermined period of time by the user, and collecting information; and

a logout step of checking the information collected in the monitoring information collecting step and, when it is determined that the terminal is abnormally used, forcing the user to log out.

11. The method of claim 10,

wherein the monitoring information collecting step includes a step of receiving a command input from the user, and the logout step is characterized by forcing the user to log out when a threshold time or more elapses after the final input of a user command.

12. The method of claim 10,

wherein the monitoring information collecting step includes a motion detecting step of detecting a motion of the terminal, and the logout step is characterized by forcing the user to log out when the magnitude of the motion of the terminal detected through the motion detecting step is equal to or larger than a threshold value.

13. The method of claim 10,

wherein the monitoring information collecting step includes a step of checking whether a threshold time or more elapses after the final access time for a user virtual space designated for the user, and the logout step is characterized by forcing the user to log out when the threshold time or more elapses after the final access for the user virtual space designated for the user.

14. The method of claim 10,

wherein the monitoring information collecting step includes a step of checking whether a CPU scheduling time for a user program elapses by a threshold time or more, and wherein forces the user to log out when the threshold time or more elapses after the final CPU scheduling time for the user program.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

an authentication information receiving step of receiving user information from a mobile storage device through wireless communication; and

a step of designating a user virtual space for the corresponding user on the basis of the received user information.

16. The method of claim 10,

wherein the logout step includes a step of securely deleting a user virtual space designated for the user after forcing the user to log out.