Password value based on geographic location

• US 7,000,116 B2
• Filed: 03/12/2001
• Issued: 02/14/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AirBNB Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bates, Cary Lee, Santosuosso, John Matthew, Nelson, Eric John
• Primary Examiner(s): Morse, Gregory
• Assistant Examiner(s): HO, THOMAS M
• Application Number:
  US09/804,358
• Publication Number:
  US 20020129283A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,800 Days
• Field of Search: 713/202, 713182-186
• US Class Current: 713/182
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS

Abstract

An electronic processing device having GPS card and antenna, such as a laptop or personal digital assistant, can be enable only when a geographic-specific password is entered. Geographic regions are established in the electronic processing device with a user interface and priorities can be granted to the regions. The user further stores a geographic-specific password for each of the geographic regions. When the user travels and wishes to enable the electronic processing device, the GPS card and antenna receive and process the device'"'"'s current location. When the user inputs a password, the electronic device determines if the password is appropriate for the current location. If not, access is denied.

Claims

1. An electronic processing device, comprising:

(a) a user interface to interact with a user;

(b) location detection electronics;

(c) processing electronics connected to the user interface and the location detection electronics;

(d) memory to store a plurality of geographically-unique passwords, wherein each geographically-unique password is associated with one or more of a plurality of geographic regions, the memory connected to the processing electronics;

(e) a gatekeeper to access the processing electronics when a password input on the user interface that is the same as at least one the plurality of geographically-unique passwords in memory and when the location detection electronics inputs a present location to the processing electronics that is one of the plurality of geographic regions with which the input password is associated.

2. A method to establish a geographically-unique password in an electronic processing device, comprising the steps of:

(a) invoking a user interface of the electronic processing device;

(b) entering a description of a first geographic location;

(c) creating a first geographically-unique password;

(d) associating the first geographically-unique password with the first geographic region;

(e) enabling the electronic device when the electronic device is in the first geographic region only when the first geographically-unique password is entered by the user.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of entering a description of a first geographic region further comprises:

(a) obtaining the GPS location from GPS processing electronics within the electronic processing device; and

(b) creating boundaries by extending a selected distance from the GPS location.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of entering a description of a first geographic region further comprises:

(a) delineating the boundaries of the first geographic region using a graphical user interface on a map containing the first geographic region.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of entering a description of a first geographic region further comprises entering the longitude and latitude coordinates of the boundaries of the geographic region.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of entering a description of a first geographic region further comprises entering a street address associated with a geographic region.

7. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

(a) entering a description of a second geographic region;

(b) creating a second geographically-unique password associated with the second geographic region.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

(a) assigning a priority to the first and second geographic region.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

(a) allowing the user to access the electronic processing device in the second region by entering the first geographically-unique password if the first geographic region is of higher and/or equal priority than the second geographic region and the electronic processing device is in an area of the second region overlapping an area of the first region.

10. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of creating a geographically-unique password further comprises:

(a) inspecting the geographically-unique password to determine if it is valid according to password generation rules.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of creating the first geographically-unique password and the second geographically-unique password further comprises inspecting the first and second geographically-unique passwords to determine if they are valid according to password generation rules.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the password generation rules for the first geographically-unique password are different than the password generation rules for the second geographically-unique password.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of enabling the electronic device when the electronic device is in the first geographic region only when the first geographically-unique password is entered by the user, further comprises determining the present location of the electronic device using GPS signals processed by GPS processing electronics within the electronic device.

14. A method to protect an electronic processing device from unauthorized use, comprising the steps of:

(a) invoking a user interface of the electronic processing device;

(b) entering a description of at least one geographic location by a method selected from the group of methods consisting of;

obtaining the GPS location from GPS processing electronics within the electronic processing device and creating boundaries by extending a selected distance from the GPS location, delineating the boundaries of the first geographic region using a graphical user interface on a map containing the first geographic region, entering the longitude and latitude of the boundaries of the geographic region, and entering a street address associated with a geographic region;

(c) associating at least one geographically-unique password with one of the at least one geographic regions;

(d) determining the present location of the electronic processing device using GPS signals processed by GPS processing electronics within the electronic processing device;

(e) assigning priority to the at least one geographic region;

(f) allowing the user to use the electronic processing device in the at least one geographic region by entering the at least one geographically-unique password if the at least one geographic region is the geographic region associated with the at least one geographically-unique password or if the at least one geographically-unique password is associated with a geographic region of higher or equal priority that contains the at least one geographic region.

15. An article of manufacture, comprising a data storage medium tangibly embodying a program of machine readable instructions executable by an electronic processing apparatus to perform method steps for operating the electronic processing apparatus, said method steps comprising the steps of:

(a) storing a plurality of descriptions of geographic regions;

(b) storing a plurality of geographically-unique passwords, the geographically-unique passwords being each associated with one or more of the descriptions of geographic regions;

(c) assigning a priority to each of the plurality of descriptions of geographic regions;

(d) determining the present location of the electronic processing device; and

(e) allowing a user to use the electronic processing device in the present location by entering an input password if the present location is within the description of the geographic region associated with the input password.

16. A secure electronic processing device, comprising:

(a) means to store a plurality of descriptions of geographic locations in which said secure electronic processing device may be used;

(b) means to store a plurality of geographically-unique passwords, each of said passwords associated with at least one of said geographic locations;

(c) means to determine the present location of said electronic processing device;

(d) means to determine that said present location is one of said geographic locations;

(e) means to request an input password from a user;

(f) means to enable the electronic processing device only if said input password is one of said geographically-unique passwords pertaining to said present location.

17. The secure electronic processing device of claim 16, wherein the means to determine that said present location is one of said geographic locations further comprises a GPS antenna and GPS processing electronics.