Apparatus and method for authenticating the dispatch and contents of documents
DC CAFCFirst Claim
1. Apparatus for authenticating that certain information has been transmitted from a sender via a dispatcher to a recipient, the apparatus comprising:
- means for providing a set A comprising a plurality of information elements a1, . . . , an, where said information element a1 is originated from the sender and comprising the contents of the information being electronically transmitted to said recipient, and said one or more information elements a2, . . . , an comprising dispatch-related information and comprise at least the following elements;
a2—
a time indication associated with said dispatch; and
a3—
information describing the destination of said dispatch, and wherein at least said information element a2 is provided in a manner that is resistant to or indicative of tampering by either of said sender and said recipient; and
an authenticator functioning as a non-interested third party with respect to the sender and the receiver and having (1) means for associating said dispatch-related information with said element a1 by generating authentication-information comprising a representation of at least said elements a1, a2 and a3, said representation comprising a set of one or more elements, each comprising a representation of one or more elements of said set A; and
(2) means for securing at least part of said authentication-information against tampering of said sender and recipient;
wherein at least one of the means for associating and for securing comprises means for generating a new set B, said set B comprising one or more information elements b1, . . . bm, each element bi comprising a representation of a subset Si, said representation being expressive as a function Fi of the elements of said subset Si, where said subset Si comprises a digital representation of at least one element of said set A, and where said functions Fi can be different.
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Abstract
Apparatus and method for authenticating that a sender has sent certain information via a dispatcher to a recipient is disclosed. The method includes the steps of: (a) providing a set A comprising a plurality of information elements a1, . . . an, said information element a1 comprising the contents of said dispatched information, and said one or more information elements a2, . . . an comprising dispatch-related information and comprise at least the following elements: a2—a time indication associated with said dispatch; and a3—information describing the destination of said dispatch, and wherein at least one of said information elements is provided in a manner that is resistant or indicative of tamper attempts by said sender, (b) associating said dispatch-related information with said element at by generating authentication-information, in particular comprising a representation of at least said elements a1, a2 and a3, said representation comprising a set of one or more elements, each comprising a representation of one or more elements of said set A; (c) securing at least part of said authentication-information against undetected tamper attempts of at least said sender. The dispatch relates either to transmission or to manual delivery. The apparatus implements the operations of the method.
192 Citations
89 Claims
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1. Apparatus for authenticating that certain information has been transmitted from a sender via a dispatcher to a recipient, the apparatus comprising:
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means for providing a set A comprising a plurality of information elements a1, . . . , an, where said information element a1 is originated from the sender and comprising the contents of the information being electronically transmitted to said recipient, and said one or more information elements a2, . . . , an comprising dispatch-related information and comprise at least the following elements;
a2—
a time indication associated with said dispatch; and
a3—
information describing the destination of said dispatch,and wherein at least said information element a2 is provided in a manner that is resistant to or indicative of tampering by either of said sender and said recipient; and an authenticator functioning as a non-interested third party with respect to the sender and the receiver and having (1) means for associating said dispatch-related information with said element a1 by generating authentication-information comprising a representation of at least said elements a1, a2 and a3, said representation comprising a set of one or more elements, each comprising a representation of one or more elements of said set A; and
(2) means for securing at least part of said authentication-information against tampering of said sender and recipient;
wherein at least one of the means for associating and for securing comprises means for generating a new set B, said set B comprising one or more information elements b1, . . . bm, each element bi comprising a representation of a subset Si, said representation being expressive as a function Fi of the elements of said subset Si, where said subset Si comprises a digital representation of at least one element of said set A, and where said functions Fi can be different. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
means for generating a new information element bi′
comprising a representation of said set Si′
which is expressive as said function Fi of the elements of said set Si′
; and
means for comparing a representation of said element bi′
with a representation of said element bi to determine if they match.
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25. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said function Fi comprises one or more functions.
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26. Apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said digital signature is generated according to a scheme selected from the group consisting of secret-key (symmetric) cryptosystems and public-key cryptosystems.
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27. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said new set B comprises an element generated according to a Time Stamping Service scheme.
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28. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the means for associating is combined with the means for securing.
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29. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said apparatus is associated with a party other than said sender, or is resistant to or indicative of tampering by at least said sender.
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30. A method for authenticating that certain information has been transmitted from a sender via a dispatcher to a recipient, comprising the steps of:
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providing a set A comprising a plurality of information elements a1, . . . , an, where said information element a1 is originated from the sender and comprising the contents of the information being electronically transmitted to said recipient, and said one or more information elements a2, . . . , an comprising dispatch-related information and comprise at least the following elements;
a2—
a time indication associated with said dispatch; and
a3—
information describing the destination of said dispatch,and wherein at least said information element a2 is provided in a manner that is resistant to or indicative of tampering by either of said sender and said recipient; associating, by an authenticator functioning as a non-interested third party with respect to the sender and the recipient, said dispatch-related information with said element a1 by generating authentication-information comprising a representation of at least said elements a1, a2 and a3, said representation comprising a set of one or more elements, each comprising a representation of one or more elements of said set A; and
securing, by said authenticator, at least part of said authentication-information against tampering of said sender and recipient;
wherein at least one of the steps of associating and securing comprises the step of generating a new set B, said set B comprising one or more information elements b1, . . . , bm, each element bi comprising a representation of a subset Si, said representation being expressive as a function Fi of the elements of said subset Si, where said subset Si comprises a digital representation of at least one element of said set A, and where said A functions Fi can be different. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59)
generating a new information element bi′
comprising a representation of said set Si′
which is expressive as said function Fi of the elements of said set Si′
; and
comparing a representation of said element bi′
with a representation of said element bi to determine if they match.
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55. A method according to claim 30, wherein said function Fi comprises one or more functions.
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56. A method according to claim 48, wherein said digital signature is generated according to a scheme selected from the group consisting of secret-key (symmetric) cryptosystems and public-key cryptosystems.
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57. A method according to claim 30, wherein said new set B comprises an element generated according to a Time Stamping Service scheme.
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58. A method according to claim 30, wherein the step of associating is combined with the step of securing.
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59. A method according to claim 30, wherein the activities described by said steps are being performed by an authenticator, said authenticator being associated with a party other than said sender.
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60. A method of authenticating a dispatch and contents of the dispatch transmitted from a sender to a recipient, comprising the steps of:
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receiving content data representative of the contents of the dispatch originated from the sender and being electrically transmitted to said recipient, and a destination of the dispatch;
providing an indicia relating to a time of transmission of the dispatch, said time related indicia being provided in a manner resistant to or indicative of tampering by either of the sender and the recipient;
associating, by an authenticator functioning as a non-interested third party with respect to the sender and the recipient, the content data with dispatch record data which includes at least said time related indicia and an indicia relating to the destination of the dispatch, to generate authentication data which authenticate the dispatch and the contents of the dispatch; and
securing, by said authenticator, at least part of the authentication data against tampering of the sender and the recipient;
wherein at least one of the steps of associating and securing utilizes mathematical association methods for a selected portion of a combination of the content data and the dispatched record data. - View Dependent Claims (61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70)
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71. An authenticator for authenticating a dispatch and contents of the dispatch transmitted by or for a sender-from a transmitting system to a receiving system for a recipient via an electronic communication network, comprising:
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an input unit coupled to the communication network or to the transmitting system for receiving content data representative of the contents of the dispatch being electronically transmitted to said receiving system, and a destination of the dispatch;
means for providing an indicia relating to a time of transmission of the dispatch, said time related indicia being provided in a manner resistant to or indicative of tampering by either of the sender and the recipient;
a processor for associating the content data with dispatching record data which includes at least said time related indicia and an indicia relating to the destination of the dispatcher and the contents of the dispatch; and
means for securing at least part of the authentication data against tampering of the sender and the recipient, the authenticator functioning as a non-interested third party with respect to the sender and the recipient;
wherein the processor utilizes mathematical association methods for a selected portion of a combination of the content data and the dispatch record data to generate the authentication data. - View Dependent Claims (72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81)
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82. An information dispatch system in an electronic communication network comprising;
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a source transmitting system coupled to the electronic communicating network for sending a dispatch from a sender to a recipient;
a destination receiving system coupled to the electronic communication network for receiving the dispatch for the recipient; and
an authenticator functioning as a non-interested third party with respect to the sender and the recipient for authenticating the dispatch and contents of the dispatch transmitted from the source transmitting system to the destination receiving system, including;
(1) an input unit coupled to the communication network or to the source transmitting system for receiving content data representative of the contents of the dispatch being electronically transmitted to said destination receiving system, and a destination of the dispatch;
(2) means for providing an indicia relating to a time of transmission of the dispatch, said time related indicia being provided in a manner resistant to or indicative of tampering by either of the sender and the recipient;
(3) a processor for associating the content data with dispatch record data which includes at least said time related indicia and an indicia relating to the destination of the dispatch, to generate authentication data which authenticate the dispatch and the contents of the dispatch; and
(4) means for securing at least part of the authentication data against tampering of the sender and the recipient;
wherein the processor is combined with the means for securing. - View Dependent Claims (83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89)
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Specification