System and method for electronic authorization of batch checks

• US 7,519,560 B2
• Filed: 05/24/2002
• Issued: 04/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/24/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Original Assignee: JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. (JP Morgan Chase & Co)
• Inventors: Roland, Matthew, McRae, Xuan (Sunny), Lam, Duc
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell; James
• Assistant Examiner(s): Badii; Behrang
• Application Number:
  US10/155,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20030220886A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,517 Days
• Field of Search: 705/64, 705/75, 705/40, 705/34, 705/39, 713/187, 713/193, 713/176, 380/51, 380/55
• US Class Current: 705/64
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/023 the neutral party being a clearing house
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/042 characterized in that the payment protocol involves at least one cheque
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3825 Use of electronic signatures
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3829 involving key management

Abstract

A method of effecting payment. A system for effecting payment. Instructions to send a set of financial instruments to a set of recipients are received at a first system from an agent. A digital signature of the agent is created using a private key associated with the agent is added to the instructions. The agent is associated with a first entity. The instructions are transmitted to a second system. The second system in the instructions are verified using a public key corresponding to a private key associated with the agent. A set of financial instructions is created electronically and digital signatures created using a second private key are added to the financial instruments. The financial instruments from among the set of financial instruments are sent to respective recipients according to the instruments. According to one embodiment of the invention, the financial instruments are encrypted using public keys of respective recipients. According to another embodiment of the invention, terms are presented to the system administrator indicating that the entity shall be responsible for transactions effected by the agent before authorization is provided to the agent to effect creation of the checks with the digital signatures using the private key of the entity.

Claims

1. A method of effecting payment comprising:

receiving from an agent at a first system instructions to send a set of checks to a set of recipients;

adding to the instructions a digital signature of the agent created using a private key associated with the agent, the agent being associated with a first entity;

transmitting the instructions to a second system;

verifying the instructions at the second system using a public key corresponding to the private key associated with the agent;

determining whether the agent has authority to send a set of checks with a digital signature that binds the entity;

determining whether checks among the set of checks are below a particular threshold;

creating the set of checks electronically;

obtaining a signature from another agent for checks among the set in response to attributes of the checks;

adding to the checks the digital signature that binds the entity; and

sending checks from among the set of checks to respective recipients according to the instructions.

2. The method of claim 1, including requiring additional authorization before sending at least a check among the set of checks.

3. The method of claim 1, including encrypting checks in the set of check before sending to the recipients, wherein such encrypting is performed using public keys of respective recipients.

4. The method of claim 1, including,

encrypting the checks using a dynamically generated session key;

encrypting the session key using public keys of respective recipients; and

attaching the encrypted session key to the encrypted checks that are sent to respective recipients.

5. The method of claim 1, including applying fraud detection upon receipt of checks among the set.

6. The method of claim 5, such fraud detection including verifying whether information in respective checks match information stored as such checks were created.

7. The method of claim 1, including receiving an electronic endorsement of checks from respective recipients and settling payment in response to the endorsement.

8. The method of claim 1, including using a private key to generate the digital signature that binds the entity, wherein the private key comprises a private key assigned to the entity for which the recipients have access to a corresponding public key.

9. The method of claim 1, including using a private key to generate the digital signature that binds the entity, wherein the private key comprises a private key assigned to the system for which the recipients have access to a corresponding public key.

10. A payment system comprising:

a first system associated with a first entity, the first system including,

a resource to receive from an agent instructions to send a set of checks to a set of recipients,

a resource to hold a private key associated with an agent, and

a resource to add a digital signature of the agent to the instructions using the private key associated with the agent; and

a second system operative to communicate with the first system, the second system including,

a resource to verify the instructions using a public key corresponding to the private key associated with the agent,

a resource to create the set of checks electronically including digital signatures created using a second private key, and

a resource to forward checks from among the set of checks to respective recipients according to the instructions.

11. The system of claim 10, including

a database including addresses and payment information for recipients among the recipients;

association between (a) address information available to the entity for the recipients and (b) address and payment information in the database; and

a resource for forwarding the checks to the recipients according respective payment information in the database based on a selection by the entity of the address information available to the entity for the respective recipients.

12. The system of claim 10, including a resource that effects a discount in payment to at least a recipient in exchange for earlier payment by the entity after approval of an invoice from the recipient.

13. The system of claim 10, including

a resource that defines an invoice based input from the entity;

and

a resource that receives the invoice from at least a recipient among the recipients;

wherein at least a portion of payment in the set of checks is in response to the invoice.

14. The system of claim 10, including routing checks to agents associated with the entity for approval based on human resource data received from a human resource system.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the second private key comprises a private key assigned to the entity for which the recipients have access to a corresponding public key.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein the second private key comprises a private key assigned to the system for which the recipients have access to a corresponding public key.

17. The system of claim 10, including a resource that encrypts the checks using public keys of respective recipients.

18. The system of claim 10, including a resource that

encrypts the checks using a dynamically generated session key;

encrypts the session key using public keys of respective recipients; and

attaches the encrypted session key to the encrypted checks that are sent to respective recipients.