METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR CONDUCTING SMART CARD TRANSACTIONS

• US 20130281055A1
• Filed: 04/24/2012
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Corporation DAON Technology
• Original Assignee: James Ahern
• Inventors: PATEFIELD-SMITH, Martin, AHERN, James
• Granted Patent: US 8,990,572 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/411
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/123 by using dedicated hardware, e.g. dongles, smart cards, cryptographic processors, global positioning systems [GPS] devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/34 involving the use of external additional devices, e.g. dongles or smart cards
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/602 Providing cryptographic facilities or services
• 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: H04L 9/32 including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system or for message authentication, e.g. authorization, entity authentication, data integrity or data verification, non-repudiation, key authentication or verification of credentials
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/7556 by SIM, e.g. smart card account in SCP, SDP or SN

Abstract

A method for conducting smart card transactions is provided that includes causing a computer to recognize communications from a mobile device as communications from a smart card reader containing a smart card, and conducting a smart card transaction in accordance with smart card security techniques with the mobile device.

Claims

1. A method for conducting smart card transactions comprising:

causing a computer to recognize communications from a mobile device as communications from a smart card reader containing a smart card; and

conducting a smart card transaction in accordance with smart card security techniques with the mobile device.

2. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 1, said causing operation comprising:

installing an interface application on a computer; and

installing an emulation application on the mobile device and initializing the emulation application, the interface and emulation applications together cause the computer and the mobile device, respectively, to communicate such that the computer recognizes the mobile device as a smart card reader containing a smart card.

3. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 1, said conducting operation comprising:

detecting a mobile device proximate a computer and determining whether the detected mobile device is activated;

capturing authentication data from a user with the detected mobile device when the detected mobile device is activated;

authenticating the user by comparing the captured authentication data against authentication data of the user stored in the mobile device; and

granting access to a resource, access being contingent upon successful authentication using smart card security techniques.

4. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 2, said initializing operation comprising:

transmitting a certificate and a digitally signed trust point public key from an application server to the mobile device; and

storing the certificate and digitally signed trust point public key in the mobile device.

5. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether target information of a user has been transmitted from a card management system to a mobile device having a mobile device smart card identifier matching a mobile device smart card identifier received at the card management system;

establishing a secure communications channel between the card management system and the mobile device when target information has not been transmitted to the mobile device; and

transmitting commands and the target information of the user to the mobile device.

6. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

capturing authentication data from a user;

comparing, by the mobile device, the captured authentication data against corresponding authentication data of the user stored in the mobile device; and

activating an enrollment data record of the user when the captured and stored authentication data match.

7. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 3, further comprising:

monitoring for the presence of mobile devices proximate the computer; and

determining that a mobile device is proximate the computer when the mobile device is within an operating range of a communication protocol of the computer.

8. A method for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 4, further comprising:

generating a public-private key pair at the mobile device; and

generating the certificate at a certificate authority and transmitting the certificate to the mobile device.

9. A system for conducting smart card transactions comprising:

a computer; and

at least one mobile device configured to communicate with said computer such that said computer recognizes said at least one mobile device as a smart card reader containing a smart card.

10. A system for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 9, said computer being further configured to:

detect said at least one mobile device when said at least one mobile device is proximate thereto; and

determine whether a detected mobile device is activated.

11. A system for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 9, said at least one mobile device being configured to conduct operations conducted by smart card readers containing smart cards.

12. A system for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 9, said at least one mobile device being configured to:

store authentication data and biographic data of a user associated with said at least one mobile device, and a mobile device smart card identifier; and

authenticate the user by comparing authentication data captured from the user against authentication data of the user stored therein.

13. A system for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 10, said computer being further configured to:

determine that said at least one mobile device is proximate thereto when said at least one mobile device is within operating range of a communications protocol of said computer; and

cease communicating with said at least one mobile device when said at least one mobile device is out of the operating range.

14. A system for conducting smart card transactions in accordance with claim 9, said at least one mobile device being further configured to:

execute security algorithms used on smart cards; and

generate and apply private keys to digitally sign documents and decrypt data.

15. A mobile device being configured to communicate with a computing device such that the computing device recognizes said mobile device as a smart card reader containing a smart card, said mobile device being a smart phone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, or a personal digital assistant.

16. A mobile device in accordance with claim 15 being further configured to:

store authentication data and biographic data of a user associated with said at least one mobile device, and store a mobile device smart card identifier; and

authenticate the user by comparing authentication data captured from the user against authentication data of the user stored therein.

17. A mobile device in accordance with claim 15, being further configured to emulate operations conducted by smart cards and by smart card readers containing smart cards.