System for securing data on a data carrier

• US 6,883,052 B2
• Filed: 02/05/2001
• Issued: 04/19/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tomtom Global Content B.V (TomTom NV)
• Original Assignee: Tele Atlas N.V. (TomTom NV)
• Inventors: Dorenbeck, Claus, Van Essen, Robert Joannes
• Primary Examiner(s): Rinehart, Mark H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cerullo, Jeremy S.
• Application Number:
  US10/182,906
• Publication Number:
  US 20030162527A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,534 Days
• Field of Search: 710/200, 713/182, 713/200, 705/55, 705/56, 705/57, 705/58, 705/59, 455/410, 455/411
• US Class Current: 710/200
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/005 using digitally weighted transducing elements

Abstract

System for protecting data on a data carrier on which is stored an accessible medium code and data only accessible after presenting an access code, comprises: a) an apparatus incorporating, a programmed processor, a user interface, a mobile telephone incorporating a SIM-card, b) a central station incorporating a further programmed processor cooperating with a number of memories storing valid medium SIM and access codes. The processor can be connected through the telephone and a suitable communication network to the further processor in the central station whereby the SIM-code of the telephone and the medium code of the carrier are transferred to the further processor to be processed into an access code. The resulting combination of codes is compared with codes stored in memories, and in case of a valid code combination a coded access permission is sent to the processor enabling the software to read data from the data carrier.

Claims

1. System for restricting access to data on a data carrier on which a medium code is stored in an accessible manner and on which data is stored which is only accessible after presenting a access code, which system comprises:

a) a user apparatus incorporating means for reading the data carrier,

a suitably programmed processor which during operation cooperates with the means for reading the data carrier

a user interface which enables the processor to communicate with the user,

communication means providing enabling communication over a communication network

b) a remote station incorporating a further suitably programmed processor cooperating with a memory in which a number of medium codes are stored, and

communication means enabling communication over said communication network,

whereby initiated by the user the communication means of the user apparatus establishes a connection over said communication network to the communication means of the remote station, where after the medium code is transferred from the user apparatus to the remote station via said connection, in the remote station the received medium code is compared to the at least one code stored in the memory and if the received code is equal to one of the stored codes then an access enabling signal is transferred back to the user station enabling the processor to obtain access to the data carrier, characterized in that

the communication network is embodied as a mobile telephone network and the communication means are embodied as mobile telephone circuits incorporating the usual SIM code,

that the memory of the remote station comprises a number of SIM codes and

that together with the medium code the SIM code of the user apparatus mobile phone circuit are transferred to the remote station to be compared with the stored SIM codes

whereby the access enabling signal is only transferred if the received SIM code corresponds with one of the stored SIM codes.

2. System according to claim 1, characterized in that the processor comprises a processor code which preceding the first use is stored in a processor code memory in the remote station and that during start up of the operation also the processor code together with the SIM-code and the medium code is transmitted to the central station and compared with the therein stored processor code, whereafter in case of correspondence of all three codes an access code signal is sent to the processor enabling the software to read data from the data carrier.

3. System according to claim 2, characterized in that the data carrier comprises a number of data files and that the software at a suitable moment during the start up procedure through a dialog with the user determines to which files the user wants to have access, which information is transferred to the central station resulting in a special access code signal enabling the software to obtain access only to selected files.

4. System according to claim 3, characterized in that the access code signal which is received in the apparatus during first use is stored in the processor and that the processor comprises or is connected to means for detecting the removal of the data carrier, which means in case the data carrier is not removed since last operation, enables the software to obtain access to the data using the stored access code signal.

5. System according to claim 2, characterized in that the access code signal which is received in the apparatus during first use is stored in the processor and that the processor comprises or is connected to means for detecting the removal of the data carrier, which means in case the data carrier is not removed since last operation, enables the software to obtain access to the data using the stored access code signal.

6. System according to claim 1, characterized in that the data carrier comprises a number of data files and that the software at a suitable moment during the start up procedure through a dialog with the user determines to which files the user wants to have access, which information is transferred to the central station resulting in a special access code signal enabling the software to obtain access only to selected files.

7. System according to claim 6, characterized in that the access code signal which is received in the apparatus during first use is stored in the processor and that the processor comprises or is connected to means for detecting the removal of the data carrier, which means in case the data carrier is not removed since last operation, enables the software to obtain access to the data using the stored access code signal.

8. System according to claim 1, characterized in that the access code signal which is received in the apparatus during first use is stored in the processor and that the processor comprises or is connected to means for detecting the removal of the data carrier, which means in case the data carrier is not removed since last operation, enables the software to obtain access to the data using the stored access code signal.