System and method using information based indicia for securing and authenticating transactions

• US 8,171,297 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2006
• Issued: 05/01/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kioba Processing, LLC (IP Investments Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Sint Holdings LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Lincoln, Patrick D., Shankar, Natarajan
• Primary Examiner(s): Shiferaw, Eleni
• Assistant Examiner(s): CALLAHAN, PAUL E
• Application Number:
  US11/532,188
• Publication Number:
  US 20070083753A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,055 Days
• Field of Search: 380/55, 713/175, 713/176, 713/178, 713/179, 705/60, 705/62, 726/33
• US Class Current: 713/179
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/108 Remote banking, e.g. home banking
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 17/00733 Cryptography or similar special procedures in a franking system
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/0083 Postal data, e.g. postage, address, sender, machine ID, vendor
• CPC Class Codes: G07B 2017/00927 Certificates, e.g. X.509
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3263 involving certificates, e.g. public key certificate [PKC] or attribute certificate [AC]; Public key infrastructure [PKI] arrangements network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using certificates in a packet data network H04L63/0823

Abstract

A method, system, and apparatus for authenticating transactions and records is disclosed. A method for authenticating an information-based indicium includes receiving an article bearing a first identifier, wherein the first identifier substantially prevents a single user from accumulating multiple articles bearing the same first identifier, receiving a first digital certificate that is derived in part by encoding the first identifier, and comparing the first digital certificate and the first identifier to authenticate the information-based indicium.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

requesting, using a processing device, purchase from a vendor of a product or service associated with an instrument having a first unique identifier and a second identifier independent from the first identifier;

providing to the vendor, using the processing device, the first identifier, the second identifier, a first digital certificate that is derived at least in part by encoding the first identifier and the second identifier and represents a value available for purchasing the product or service, and a second digital certificate that is derived at least in part by encoding the second identifier; and

receiving, using the processing device, verification of the purchase in response to a determination that the first digital certificate corresponds to the first identifier.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first identifier comprises a datum.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the datum is structured.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the datum is numeric.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the datum is non-numeric.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the datum is alphanumeric.

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the datum is an image.

8. The method of claim 2, wherein the datum is a bar code.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the verification results from:

comparing the first digital certificate to the first unique identifier and the second identifier; and

comparing the second digital certificate to the second identifier.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoding comprises encrypting.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the first identifier and the second identifier are encrypted with a private key of a private key-public key pair.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the first identifier and the second identifier are encrypted using a private key.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the verification further comprises:

approving the purchase if the first digital certificate matches the first identifier; and

rejecting the purchase if the first digital certificate does not match the first identifier.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the instrument comprises:

a postage stamp, an admission ticket, a coupon, a voucher, a certificate, a travel visa, a receipt, or a traveler'"'"'s check.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions that are configured to instruct a computing device, comprising instructions to:

request purchase from a vendor of a product or service associated with an instrument having a first unique identifier and a second identifier independent from the first identifier;

provide to the vendor the first identifier, the second identifier, a first digital certificate that is derived in part by encoding the first identifier and the second identifier and represents a value available for purchasing the product or service, and a second digital certificate that is derived at least in part by encoding the second identifier; and

receive a verification of the purchase in response to a determination that the first digital certificate corresponds to the first identifier.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the instrument comprises:

a postage stamp, an admission ticket, a coupon, a voucher, a certificate, a travel visa, a receipt, or a traveler'"'"'s check.

17. A system, comprising:

a transaction computing device configured to receive a first unique identifier, a second identifier independent from the first identifier, a first digital, that is derived at least in part by encoding the first identifier and the second identifier and represents a value available for purchasing a product or service, and a second digital certificate that is derived at least in part by encoding the second identifier; and

an authentication computing device configured to authenticate purchase from a vendor of the product or service associated with an instrument having the first identifier and the second identifier by comparing the first digital certificate to the first identifier.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the instrument is comprises:

a postage stamp, an admission ticket, a coupon, a voucher, a certificate, a travel visa, a receipt, or a traveler'"'"'s check.

19. A method comprising:

requesting, using a processing device, purchase from a vendor of a good or service associated with an instrument having a first unique identifier and a second identifier independent from the first identifier;

providing to the vendor, using the processing device, the first identifier, the second identifier, and a first digital certificate that is derived at least in part by encoding the first identifier and the second identifier;

providing to the vendor, using the processing device, a second digital certificate derived in part by encoding the second identifier; and

receiving, using the processing device, verification of the purchase in response to a determination that the first digital certificate corresponds to the first identifier, or the second digital certificate corresponds to the second identifier.