DATA PROCESSING APPARATUS AND METHOD

• US 20110022847A1
• Filed: 10/01/2010
• Published: 01/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Genkey Netherlands BV
• Original Assignee: Genkey Netherlands BV
• Inventors: Johnes, Aled Wynne, Duffy, Dominic Gavan, Goodwin, Carl Christopher, Binks, Dominic Frank Julian
• Granted Patent: US 8,607,056 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/179
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1365 Matching; Classification
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/18 Eye characteristics, e.g. of the iris
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0866 involving user or device identifiers, e.g. serial number, physical or biometrical information, DNA, hand-signature or measurable physical characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3073 involving pairings, e.g. identity based encryption [IBE], bilinear mappings or bilinear pairings, e.g. Weil or Tate pairing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3231 Biological data, e.g. fingerprint, voice or retina network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using biometrical features in a packet data network H04L63/0861
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures

Abstract

Generating a cryptographic key, for example using a received external key. A system to generate a cryptographic key may include a first data store which may store an authorization key. A system may include a second data store which may store a secure key and/or a public key. A system may include an access controller, which may allow access to a secure key, for example to an access request which may be accompanied by a digital signature. A system may include a key generator, which may generate a private key, for example using a received external key, a stored authorization key and/or a mapping function. A system may include an access request signal generator which may generate a digital signature and/or which may transmit an access request, for example including a generated digital signature, to an access controller to retrieve a secure key.

Claims

1-82. -82. (canceled)

83. A system for generating a cryptographic key using a received external key, the system comprising:

a first data store for storing an authorisation key;

a second data store for storing a secure key and a public key, wherein the secure key comprises one of the cryptographic key and a number required to generate the cryptographic key, and wherein the public key is associated with an associated private key by an asymmetric encryption algorithm;

an access controller operable to allow access to the secure key stored in the second data store only to an access request accompanied by a digital signature generated using the private key corresponding to the stored public key;

a key generator operable to generate the private key using the received external key and the stored authorisation key using a mapping function; and

an access request signal generator operable to generate a digital signature using the private key and to transmit an access request, including the generated digital signature, to the access controller in order to retrieve the secure key.

84. A system according to claim 83, wherein the key generator is a first key generator, wherein the mapping function is a first mapping function, wherein the secure key comprises a number required to generate the cryptographic key, and wherein the apparatus further comprises a second key generator operable to combine the intermediate key and the secure key in accordance with a second mapping function to generate the second cryptographic key.

85. A system according to claim 83, wherein the first mapping function and the second mapping function are the same function.

86. A system according to claim 83, wherein the access controller is operable to log unsuccessful access requests and to deny all further access requests if the logged unsuccessful access requests satisfy a predetermined criterion.

87. A system according to claim 83, wherein the access request signal generator is arranged to include in the access request a third cryptographic key for symmetric encrypted communication between the key generator and the second data store.

88. A system according to claim 83, wherein the apparatus is formed from multiple devices connected to a computer network.

89. A system according to claim 83, further comprising a decrypter operable to decrypt an encrypted message using the generated cryptographic key.

90. A system according to claim 83, further comprising a digital signature generator operable to generate a digital signature using the generated cryptographic key.

91. A system according to claim 83, further comprising a key generator operable to generate the external key from data representative of an analogue source.

92. A system according to claim 91, wherein the data representative of the analogue source is biometric data representative of a feature of a human being.

93-104. -104. (canceled)