Secure calling card and authentication process

• US 6,813,716 B1
• Filed: 04/24/2000
• Issued: 11/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Rakuten, Inc. (Rakuten Group, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kaplan, Alan Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): Barron, Gilberto
• Assistant Examiner(s): Zand, Kambiz
• Application Number:
  US09/558,236
• Time in Patent Office: 1,653 Days
• Field of Search: 713/202, 713/172, 713/182, 713/183, 380/268
• US Class Current: 726/9
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/342 Cards defining paid or billed services or quantities
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/025 by means, e.g. cards, providing billing information at the time of purchase, e.g. identification of seller or purchaser, quantity of goods delivered or to be delivered
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/122 Online card verification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3271 using challenge-response
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/47 Fraud detection or prevention means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/48 Secure or trusted billing, e.g. trusted elements or encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/00 Prepayment of wireline communication systems, wireless communication systems or telephone systems using a coded card to authorise calls from a telephone set H04M1/675
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/02 Coin-freed or check-freed systems , e.g. mobile- or card-operated phones, public telephones or booths
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/026 Constructional features
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 17/103 using SIMs (USIMs) or calling cards
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2017/12 using calling, telephone credit/debit cards
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0148 Fraud detection or prevention means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/0156 Secure and trusted billing, e.g. trusted elements, encryption, digital signature, codes or double check mechanisms to secure billing calculation and information
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/2026 Wireless network, e.g. GSM, PCS, TACS
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2215/32 Involving wireless systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/382 using authorisation codes or passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/387 using subscriber identification cards
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/24 Accounting or billing

Abstract

Service is authorized through a process that employs a randomly sequenced table lookup that is based on predetermined information that was randomly assigned. In one embodiment, a calling card is issued with a table having a plurality of entries, with each entry comprising one or more digits. When wishing to make a call, the customer enters his/her ID. That ID is communicated to the service provider, based on that ID the provider retrieves from a database a table of the information that the customer has, and proceeds to request that the customer enter information pursuant to a random selection by the service provider.

Claims

1. A method executed by a provider of authorizing provision of service to a user comprising:

a first step of interacting with said user to receive an ID from said user and with a database to receive an ordered list of characters associated with said ID that were selected by said provider;

a second step of interacting with said user to receive from said user information responsive to requests placed to said user in the course of said interacting, including the sub-steps of

generating a predetermined number of random numbers;

for each random number so generated

(a) requesting said user to provide a responsive string of characters that is related to said random number,

(b) receiving said responsive string of characters from said user, and

(c) flagging a number in said ordered list corresponding to said random number; and

a third step of authorizing said provision of service when said information received in response to said request corresponds to a subset of entries in said ordered list of characters that is associated with said requests placed to said user, provided that said service is a permitted service for a user who provides said ID.

2. The method of claim 1 where said requests are communicated over a telephone, and said responsive string of characters is communicated over said telephone.

3. A method of authorizing provision of service to a user comprising the steps of:

receiving a ID from said user;

accessing a database to retrieve N ordered lists of characters associated with said ID, where N is an integer;

generating a predetermined number of random numbers;

for each random number created in said step of generating

(a) requesting said user to provide a responsive set of characters that is related to said random number said requesting, which provides said random number, forming a challenge,

(b) receiving said responsive set of characters from said user, and

(c) flagging a number in each of said N ordered lists corresponding to said random number; and

authorizing said provision of service when the set of responsive numbers received in response to said challenges matches a corresponding set of flagged numbers in any of said N ordered lists of numbers, provided that said service is a permitted service for a user who is associated with the ordered list that matches.