Mobile radio telephone station comprising a protection system for at least one authentication number and method of protecting an authentication number

• US 6,108,424 A
• Filed: 01/05/1998
• Issued: 08/22/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: US Philips Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: US Philips Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Pitiot, Yann
• Primary Examiner(s): Swann, Tod R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Callahan, Paul E.
• Application Number:
  US09/003,041
• Time in Patent Office: 960 Days
• Field of Search: 380/23, 380/30, 380/247, 380/248, 380/249, 380/259, 380/260, 380/264, 380/270, 380/273, 380/43, 380/278, 380/277, 380/284, 380/285, 455/410, 455/435, 455/551, 370/331, 370/350
• US Class Current: 380/270
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/04 Key management, e.g. using generic bootstrapping architecture [GBA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/069 using certificates or pre-shared keys
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

The mobile station comprises Traffic Identification Encryption means (TIE) and a memory (54) for storing at least one authentication number (A-key). According to the invention, the protection system comprises a program (61) for encrypting during operation the A-key by the TIE means, and for storing (A1) the encrypted A key, and a program (62) for decrypting, according to the TIE means, the A-key when its non-coded use is needed in the mobile station.

Claims

1. A mobile radio telephone station comprising a protection system for at least one authentication number, and storage means for storing said at least one authentication number, wherein said protection system comprises encryption means for encrypting using a manufacturer key, when the radio telephone mobile station is put into operation, said at least one authentication number shown in a decrypted form, and for storing the at least one authentication number only in its encrypted form in said storage means, and for decrypting said at least one authentication number with said manufacturer key when its decrypted use is needed in the mobile radio telephone station, said manufacturer key not being transmitted by said mobile radio telephone station.

2. The mobile radio telephone station as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one authentication number is an authentication key.

3. The mobile radio telephone station as claimed in claim 1, herein a second protected authentication number is a shared secret data.

4. A protection method of protecting an authentication number as claimed in claim 1, wherein said authentication number is encrypted by the mobile radio telephone station, then stored, and decrypted when its decrypted use is needed in the mobile radio telephone station.

5. The mobile radio telephone station as claimed in claim 1, wherein said manufacturer key is part of a program stored in a program memory of said mobile radio telephone station.

6. A wireless telephone comprising:

a data memory;

a program memory which stores a program that includes a manufacturer key; and

protection means which encrypts an authentication number of said wireless telephone to form an encrypted number using said manufacturer key, said encrypted number being stored in said data memory, said protection means decrypting said encrypted number using said manufacturer key when said authentication number is needed by said wireless telephone, wherein said manufacturer key is not transmitted by said wireless telephone.

7. The wireless telephone of claim 6, wherein said authentication number is an authentication key.

8. The wireless telephone of claim 6, wherein said data memory stores a second authentication number in an encrypted form.

9. The wireless telephone of claim 6, wherein said second authentication number is a shared secret data.

10. A method of protecting an authentication key of a wireless telephone comprising:

encrypting said authentication key using a manufacturer key included in a program memory stored in a program memory of said wireless telephone to form an encrypted key;

storing said encrypted key in a data memory of said wireless telephone; and

decrypting said encrypted key using said manufacturer key to form said authentication key when said authentication number is needed by said wireless telephone;

wherein said manufacturer key is not transmitted by said wireless telephone.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving a first random number from a base station; and

forming an identification number using an encryption program with said first random number and said authentication number.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving a first random number from a base station;

forming an identification number using an encryption program with said first random number and said authentication number;

forming a first result using said encryption program with a second random number;

transmitting said second random number to said base station to form a second result using said encryption program with said second random number;

transmitting said second result by said base station to said wireless telephone;

comparing said first result to said second result to form a comparison result;

transmitting said comparison result to said base station; and

authenticating said wireless telephone by said base station when said comparison result is correct.