Mobile IP communication scheme incorporating individual user authentication

• US 6,973,068 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2002
• Issued: 12/06/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Ishiyama, Masahiro, Inoue, Atsushi, Fukumoto, Atsushi, Okamoto, Toshio, Tsuda, Yoshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Ngo, Ricky
• Assistant Examiner(s): DUONG, DUC T
• Application Number:
  US10/193,272
• Publication Number:
  US 20020186688A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,243 Days
• Field of Search: 370/331, 370/332, 370/333, 370/338, 370/389, 370/392, 370/400, 370/401, 370/402, 370/403, 370/404, 370/328, 455/410, 455/411, 455/432.1, 455/435.1, 455/433, 713/168, 713/170, 713/183
• US Class Current: 370/338
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/33 using certificates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3224 Transactions dependent on location of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0838 using one-time-passwords
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/00 Network arrangements or protocols for supporting network services or applications user-to-user messaging H04L51/00; network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/04 specially adapted for terminals or networks with limited capabilities; specially adapted for terminal portability
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/40 for recovering from a failure of a protocol instance or entity, e.g. service redundancy protocols, protocol state redundancy or protocol service redirection management of faults, events, alarms or notifications in data switching networks H04L41/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/04 Registration at HLR or HSS [Home Subscriber Server]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 80/04 Network layer protocols, e.g. mobile IP [Internet Protocol]

Abstract

A mobile IP communication scheme capable of authenticating an individual user who is operating the mobile computer when the mobile computer is connected to a visited site network and transmits a current location registration message to the home agent is disclosed. A user authentication to judge a properness of a user of the mobile computer is carried out according to a user input based information, and the current location of the mobile computer is registered at the mobile computer management device (home agent) when the user is judged as a proper user. The user authentication can be carried out either at the mobile computer management device according to a user input based information received from the mobile computer, or at the mobile computer according to an information entered by the user at the mobile computer.

Claims

1. A mobile computer management device located in a home network of a mobile computer for enabling the mobile computer to carry out communications while moving over inter-connected networks, the mobile computer management device comprising:

a registration unit for registering an information on a current location of the mobile computer, based on a registration message transmitted from the mobile computer, which is currently located outside the home network;

a transfer unit for transferring packets destined to the mobile computer to the current location of the mobile computer according to the information registered by the registration unit;

a user authentication unit for carrying out a user authentication, prior to a registration of the information on the current location of the mobile computer, to judge a properness of a user of the mobile computer according to a user-input-based information received from the mobile computer, and controlling the registration of the information by the registration unit according to a result of the user authentication; and

a transmission unit for transmitting, prior to the registration of the information, a challenge message that requests returning of a user authentication information to the mobile computer when a new registration message containing the information on the current location of the mobile computer is received from the mobile computer;

wherein the user authentication unit judges the properness of the user according to the user-input-based information which is contained in a response message returned from the mobile computer in response to the challenge message as the user authentication information.

2. The mobile computer management device of claim 1, wherein the transmission unit also transmits the challenge message that requests returning of the user authentication information to the mobile computer when another registration message for re-registration of an already registered current location is received from the mobile computer and a prescribed condition indicates that the user authentication is required to be executed again, prior to the re-registration by the registration unit.

3. The mobile computer management device of claim 2, wherein said another message for re-registration is received at a prescribed interval, and the challenge message is transmitted at an interval longer than the prescribed interval.

4. The mobile computer management device of claim 1, wherein the transmission unit transmits the challenge message that contains a challenge code, and the user authentication unit judges the properness of the user by checking a one-time password based on the challenge code which is returned from the mobile computer as the user-input-based information.

5. The mobile computer management device of claim 1, wherein the user authentication unit refuses subsequent registration requests from the mobile computer when the user authentication according to the user-input-based information received from the mobile computer fails for a prescribed number of times consecutively.

6. The mobile computer management device of claim 1, wherein the user authentication unit judges the properness of the user according to whether a password returned from the mobile computer as the user-input-based information coincides with a pre-registered one.