Secure Electronic Keypad Entry

• US 20170235962A1
• Filed: 09/21/2016
• Published: 08/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/21/2015
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Jonathan A. Clark
• Original Assignee: Jonathan A. Clark
• Inventors: Clark, Jonathan A
• Application Number:
  US15/272,427
• Publication Number:
  US 20170235962A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/83 input devices, e.g. keyboards, mice or controllers thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/84 output devices, e.g. displays or monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0202 Market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities

Abstract

An electronic device and method for securely receiving and communicating confidential information. The device comprises a user-defined variable and programmable randomizer module that randomizes a display of at least one of a plurality of data components of a security data interface (“SDI”). Display features of the data components of the SDI, such as location, layout, movement, and/or sequence, are randomized and stored in memory, then driven by a display driver circuit (“DDC”) to generate the randomized SDI on a display device. An exemplary circular keypad SDI having digits from 0-9 has a random anchor position, continuous rotation and translational movement during or between data entry by a user to select credit card (“CC”) number via the SDI for a secure transaction that is resistant to detection and interception.

Claims

1. An electronic device for securely receiving confidential information, wherein the electronic device comprises:

a randomizer module to randomize information;

a memory for storing data components of a security data interface (SDI);

a display driver circuit (DDC); and

wherein the electronic device is configured to;

randomize a display for at least one of the data components of the SDI such that at least one of the data components of the SDI is displayed in a randomized location; and

generate the SDI for the DDC by reading the data components of the SDI according to their display locations; and

the randomizer module transforms the display device from a deterministic display of the SDI to a randomized display of the SDI for secure receipt of the confidential information.

2. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein:

the SDI is configured as a circular layout of keys in a known apriori sequence as a visual aid; and

each key is a graphical boundary that contains a unique data component of the SDI.

3. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein:

the circular layout of keys in a known apriori sequence includes at least one repeated key that is in a sequence; and

the repeated key alters a count of the total number of keys in the data components of the SDI.

4. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein:

the randomizer is configured to generate updated positions in memory for each of the data components of the SDI; and

the position in memory cause the SDI to perform at least one of the following locational changes;

translational movement, a clockwise rotational movement or counter-clockwise rotational movement.

5. The electronic device of claim 3 wherein:

the randomizer is configured to modify at least one of a size and a shape of one or more keys.

6. The electronic device of claim 3 wherein:

a change to the display of the data components of the SDI occurs in at least one of a continuous change during entry of the confidential information, or a step change after entry of a portion of the confidential information.

7. The electronic device of claim 1 further comprising:

a display device for displaying the SDI having at least one of the data components in a randomized location;

an input device to receive external information via the SDI; and

wherein;

the SDI is a virtual data keypad (VDK);

the data components of the security data interface (SDI) stored in the memory include at least one of (i) a population of data entries; and

(ii) a population of function entries; and

the external information selects one or more of the data components of the SDI as the confidential information.

8. The electronic device of claim 3 wherein:

a memory register to store parameter settings to programmably vary a degree of randomizing by the randomizing module for the display of the at least one of the data components of the SDI by one or more category of (i) a location of the SDI driven by the DDC;

(ii) a layout of data components of the SDI driven by the DDC;

(iii) a movement of the SDI by the DDC during receipt of external information on the SDI; and

(iv) a sequence of the data components of the SDI as driven by the DDC.

9. The electronic device of claim 1 further comprising:

a comparator coupled to the input device; and

wherein;

the input device receives a serial entry of single external inputs from a multiple choice format of the SDI;

the input device is a touch screen, mouse, or other selective input device;

the input device transmits the serial entry to the comparator; and

the comparator compares the serial entry of single external inputs to a security key for a match.

10. A method of securely receiving confidential information on an electronic device, the method comprising:

randomizing a display for at least one of a plurality of data components of the security data interface (SDI) such that at least one part of the SDI is displayed in a randomized location;

generating an SDI for a display driver circuit (DDC) to drive to a display device by reading the data components of the SDI according to their locations; and

transforming, via the randomizer module, a display device from a deterministic display of the SDI to a randomized display of the SDI for secure receipt of the confidential information.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

displaying the SDI with the at least one randomized data component on the display device;

receiving external information on an input device via the SDI; and

wherein;

the SDI is a virtual data keypad (VDK);

the external information selects of one or more of the data components of the SDI as the confidential information;

the SDI is configured as a circular layout of keys in a known apriori sequence as a visual aid; and

each key is a graphical boundary that contains a unique data component of the SDI.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

configuring the randomizer module to randomize the display of the at least one of the data components of the SDI for (i) a location of the SDI driven by the DDC;

(ii) a layout of data entry population (can still maintain the interrelational location) of the SDI driven by the DDC;

(iii) a movement of the SDI by the DDC during receipt of external entries on the SDI; and

(iv) a sequence of the components of the SDI as driven by the DDC.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving at an input device, a serial entry of single external inputs from a multiple choice format of the SDI;

transmitting the serial entry from the input device to the comparator;

comparing via a comparator the serial entry of single external inputs to a security key disposed in memory, for a match; and

transforming the electronic device from a locked state to an unlocked state if the serial external inputs match the security key; and

wherein;

the input device is a touch screen, mouse, or other selective input device; and

14. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

the circular layout of keys in a known apriori sequence includes at least one repeated key that is in a sequence; and

the repeated key alters a count of the total number of keys in the data components of the SDI.

15. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

the randomizer is configured to generate updated positions in memory for each of the data components of the SDI; and

the position in memory cause the SDI to perform at least one of the following locational changes;

translational movement, a clockwise rotational movement or counter-clockwise rotational movement.

16. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

the randomizer is configured to modify at least one of a size and a shape of one or more keys while retaining a same anchor location on a display of the electronic device.

17. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

a change to the display of the data components of the SDI occur in at least one of a continuous change during entry of the confidential information, or a step change after entry of a portion of the confidential information.

18. A system for securely receiving confidential information, wherein the system comprises:

a server comprising;

a randomizer module to randomize information;

a memory for storing data components of a security data interface (SDI);

a display driver circuit (DDC); and

wherein the electronic device is configured to;

randomize a display location for at least one of the data components of the SDI such that at least one part of the SDI is displayed in a randomized location;

generate an SDI for the DDC to drive by reading the data components of the SDI according to their locations.

19. The system of claim 18, further comprising:

an electronic device coupled to the server and comprising;

a display device for displaying the SDI having at least one of the data components in a randomized location;

an input device to receive external information via the SDI; and

wherein;

the SDI is a virtual data keypad (VDK); and

the data components of the security data interface (SDI) received at the electronic device include at least one of (i) a population of numeric or alphabet data entries; and

(ii) a population of function entries;

the external information selects one or more of the data components of the SDI as the confidential information; and

the randomizer transforms the display device from a deterministic display of the SDI to a randomized display of the SDI for secure receipt of the confidential information.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein:

the randomizer module is configured to randomize one or more components of (i) a location of the SDI driven by the DDC;

(ii) a layout of data entry population of the SDI driven by the DDC;

(iii) a movement of the SDI by the DDC during receipt of external information on the SDI; and

(iv) a sequence of the components of the SDI as driven by the DDC.