Secure method for remote game management

• US 7,294,057 B2
• Filed: 12/05/2000
• Issued: 11/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Original Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Inventors: Tang-Talpin, Yan-Mei, Lion, Stéphanie
• Primary Examiner(s): Pezzuto; Robert E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thomasson; Meagan
• Application Number:
  US10/168,170
• Publication Number:
  US 20030054886A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,534 Days
• Field of Search: 463 40- 43, 463/1, 463 11- 25, 463/29, 395/491, 395/800, 273/138.A, 380/251, 713/176, 713/179, 713/180
• US Class Current: 463/29
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/71 using secure communication between game devices and game servers, e.g. by encrypting game data or authenticating players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/73 Authorising game programs or game devices, e.g. checking authenticity
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/77 involving data related to game devices or game servers, e.g. configuration data, software version or amount of memory
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/80 Special adaptations for executing a specific game genre or game mode
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/401 Secure communication, e.g. using encryption or authentication
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/50 characterized by details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/532 using secure communication, e.g. by encryption, authentication

Abstract

A game management center linked to at least one remote game terminal, sends the terminals to which it is linked, a message containing a game identifier and a question. The response from a player entered via a remote game terminal is transmitted in a form blinded with the aid of a secret to the game management center so as to guarantee the anonymity of the player. If the blinded response message is received before the instant of broadcasting of the response, the game management center sends an acknowledgement of receipt to said game terminal. The response in answer to the question is subsequently broadcast to all the remote game terminals. If the player has given the right answer, the terminal must, to claim its prize, send a message containing the acknowledgement of receipt and an item proving that it is in possession of the secret used to blind the response.

Claims

1. A secure method of remote game management between a game management center and at least one remote game terminal, wherein the method is performed by said remote game terminal, the method comprising the steps of:

a) receiving from said game management center a first message containing a game identifier as well as a question;

b) constructing a response message containing the game identifier and the response of a player using said game terminal;

c) blinding the response message with a secret known only to the game terminal;

wherein said blinding step comprises;

generating a secret random number;

applying a one-way function to this secret number so as to generate a public blinding number; and

using said public blinding number to blind the response message;

d) transmitting the blinded response message to the game management center;

e) receiving from said game management center an acknowledgement of receipt when the players response sent in step d) has been taken into account by the game management center;

said method comprising an additional step of claiming a prize won by a player when the player'"'"'s response sent during step d) is the right answer to the question contained in the message received in step a), wherein said additional step comprises;

f) sending to the game management center a message claiming the prize containing at least;

the acknowledgement of receipt received from the game management center in step e); and

an item proving that said game terminal is in possession of the secret used to blind the response message in step c).

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the one-way function is a function based on a discrete logarithm defined by the following relation:

y=g²mod p

where p and g are known values, p being a prime number with a minimum of 512 bits, g being a generator of Z/pZ, Z being the set of rational integers, said mod being the modulo function and x and y being values corresponding to a parameter and result of the function, respectively.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first message received during step a) furthermore comprises:

an identifier of the game management center;

a certificate, delivered by a certification authority to the game management center, decipherable with the aid of a public key of the certification authority, yielding a public key of the game management center corresponding to the identifier of said game management center; and

a signature of part or of the whole of said message with the aid of a private key associated with the public key of the game management center.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, in which said remote game terminal contains the public key of the certification authority, wherein, during step b), the remote game terminal undertakes, before constructing the response message, the verification of the authenticity of the game management center with the aid of the certificate delivered by the certification authority.

5. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the response message constructed in step b) furthermore contains auxiliary customization data.

6. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the blinded response message is transmitted in step d) in a form enciphered with the aid of the public key of the game management center.

7. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the acknowledgement of receipt received during step e) comprises a signature, with the aid of the private key associated with the public key of the game management center, of a message formed of the concatenation of the game identifier and of the blinded response message.

8. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein any message sent by the remote game terminal to the game management center in the course of step f) is transmitted in a form enciphered with the aid of the public key of the game management center.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the item transmitted in step f) by the remote game terminal to the game management center to prove that said terminal is in possession of the secret comprises:

the public blinding number and the secret random number which were generated in step c).

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the item transmitted in step f) by the remote game terminal to the game management center to prove that said terminal is in possession of the secret comprises:

the public blinding number and

a means of proving, via a zero-knowledge protocol, that the terminal is in possession of the secret random number used to generate said public blinding number.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the zero-knowledge protocol used is the Schnorr authentication protocol.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10, wherein the messages received from the game management center by said remote game terminal within the framework of the zero-knowledge protocol are transmitted in a form enciphered with the aid of the private key associated with the public key of the game management center.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein, during step f), the remote game terminal undertakes, before sending the message claiming the prize, the verification of the validity of the acknowledgement of receipt received from the game management center during step e).

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the game identifier identifies a game session.