Method and system to detect human interaction with a computer

• US 7,770,209 B2
• Filed: 09/19/2006
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Billingsley, Eric N., Monier, Louis M.
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN BA, HOANG VU A
• Application Number:
  US11/533,250
• Publication Number:
  US 20070074154A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,414 Days
• Field of Search: 726/2, 713/178, 713/182, 382/100, 725/11, 705/500
• US Class Current: 726/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/36 by graphic or iconic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2119 Authenticating web pages, e.g. with suspicious links
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2151 Time stamp
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: G09C 5/00 Ciphering apparatus or methods not provided for in the preceding groups, e.g. involving the concealment or deformation of graphic data such as designs, written or printed messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3234 involving additional secure or trusted devices, e.g. TPM, smartcard, USB or software token network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using an additional device in a packet data network H04L63/0853
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3297 involving time stamps, e.g. generation of time stamps

Abstract

A system is provided to monitor a user'"'"'s interaction with a computer. The system may comprise a reference string generator to generate a random reference string, an image generator to generate an image including the random reference string, a communications module to communicate the image to a client computer for display to a user and to receive user input data and a comparator to compare the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer. The image including the random reference string may be generated such that each character in the random reference string is off-centered.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

generating a random reference string;

generating reference data, the reference data including the random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

generating an image including the random reference string, the generating comprising off-centering each character in the random reference string;

communicating the image to a computer for display to a user;

receiving user input data; and

comparing by one or more processor the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.

2. The method of claim 1, in which the random reference string includes a plurality of numerical digits.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the image including the random reference string comprises:

generating an image modification random number; and

including a reference number in the image dependent upon the image modification random number.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

encrypting the reference data; and

communicating the encrypted reference data to the computer.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the communicating of the encrypted reference data to the computer is via the Internet in at least one of group, the group comprising a web form, a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) and a cookie.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the communicating of the encrypted reference data to the computer is during a registration process, the user input data being required to correspond to the reference string in order to effect registration.

7. The method of claim 4, further comprising Base64 encoding the encrypted reference data prior to the communicating of the encrypted reference data to the computer.

8. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

obtaining the time stamp from the encrypted reference data;

comparing the obtained time stamp with a reference time range; and

selectively authenticating the human interaction if the time stamp is within the reference time range.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

incrementing a count associated with the reference data each time the reference data is received during the reference time range; and

selectively rejecting the human interaction if the count exceeds a reference count.

10. A computer system comprising:

a reference string generator to generate a random reference string;

a random reference data generator to generate reference data, the reference data including the random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

an image generator to generate an image including the random reference string, such that each character in the random reference string is off-centered;

a communications module to communicate the image to a client computer for display to a user and to receive user input data; and

a comparator to compare the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.

11. A machine-readable medium having instruction data to cause a machine to:

generate a random reference string;

generate reference data, the reference data including the random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

generate an image including the random reference string, such that each character in the random reference string is off-centered;

communicate the image to a client computer for display to a user and to receive user input data; and

compare the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.

12. An apparatus comprising:

means for generating a random reference string;

means for generating reference data, the reference data including the random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

means for generating an image including the random reference string, the generating comprising off-centering each character in the random reference string;

means for communicating the image to a computer for display to a user;

means for receiving user input data; and

means for comparing the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.

13. A method comprising:

receiving a request;

generating random reference data, the random reference data being uniquely associated with the request, the random reference data including a random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

generating an image including the random reference string, the reference string being included in the image in a random fashion;

communicating the image to a computer for display to a user;

receiving user input data; and

comparing by one or more processor the random reference string from the random reference data and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the including of the random reference data in the image in a random fashion comprises off-centering each character in the random reference string.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the random reference string includes a plurality of numerical digits.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the generating of the image including the random reference string includes:

generating an image modification random number; and

including a reference number in the image dependent upon the image modification random number.

17. A system computer comprising:

a communications module to receive a request;

a random reference data generator to generate random reference data, the random reference data being uniquely associated with the request, the random reference data including a random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

an image generator to generate an image including the random reference string, the random reference string being included in the image in a random fashion, the image to be communicated to a computer for display to a user and of the communications module to receive user input data associated with the image; and

a comparator to compare the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.

18. A machine-readable medium having instruction data to cause a machine to:

receive a request;

generate random reference data, the random reference data being uniquely associated with the request, the random reference data including a random reference string, a time stamp, and a checksum, the checksum being generated utilizing the random reference string and the time stamp;

generate an image including the random reference string, the random reference string being included in the image in a random fashion;

communicate the image to a computer for display to a user;

receive user input data; and

compare the random reference string and the user input data to detect human interaction with the computer.