Control of secure elements through point-of-sale device

• US 8,655,310 B1
• Filed: 04/08/2008
• Issued: 02/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Original Assignee: Sprint Communications Company LP (Deutsche Telekom AG)
• Inventors: Katzer, Robin D., Ng, Sei Y., Stone, M. Jeffrey, Zhu, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Miah, Liton
• Application Number:
  US12/099,771
• Time in Patent Office: 2,142 Days
• Field of Search: 455/410, 455/411, 705 16- 18
• US Class Current: 455/410
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6009 Personal information, e.g. profiles or personal directories being only provided to authorised persons
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6027 Fraud preventions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/6081 Service authorization mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/18 wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/04 including near field communication means, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/38 Graded-service arrangements, i.e. some subscribers prevented from establishing certain connections queuing arrangements H04Q3/64
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A method of preventing identity theft is provided. The method comprises reading confidential information from a mobile terminal that is not in communication with the public wireless communication network and determining if the mobile terminal has been reported lost. When the mobile terminal is determined to have been reported lost, the release of the confidential information by the mobile terminal is disabled.

Claims

1. A method of preventing identity theft, comprising:

reading confidential information from a mobile terminal that is not in communication with the public wireless communication network;

determining if the mobile terminal that is not in communication with the public wireless communication network has been reported lost; and

disabling the release of the confidential information by the mobile terminal that is not in communication with the public wireless communication network when the mobile terminal is determined to have been reported lost by sending instructions to the mobile terminal without using the public wireless communication network, wherein the instructions are transmitted to the mobile terminal using near field communications technology, and wherein the mobile terminal executes the instructions to disable the release of the confidential information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the confidential information is payment information associated with at least one of a credit card, a gas card, a debit card, and a transit card.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the confidential information is personal identification information associated with at least one of an employee badge and a hotel key.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising enabling the release of confidential information by the mobile terminal when the mobile terminal is reported as recovered.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile terminal is one of a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant, a laptop computer, and a tablet computer.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructions are sent to a secure element storing the confidential information in the mobile terminal.

7. A system for securing confidential information stored in a mobile terminal, comprising:

a secure element management computer;

a secure element management application that, when executed on the secure element management computer, receives a request to determine if the mobile terminal is reported lost and provides at least one instruction for disabling release of the confidential information by the mobile terminal when the mobile terminal is determined to be reported lost; and

a point-of-sale device, in communication with the secure element management computer, that sends the request to determine if the mobile terminal is reported lost to the secure element management computer in response to reading at least some of the confidential information stored in the mobile terminal to complete a payment transaction, that receives the at least one instruction for disabling release of the confidential information by the mobile terminal, and that transmits to the mobile terminal via near field communications technology the at least one instruction for disabling release of the confidential information by the mobile terminal, wherein the mobile terminal executes the at least one instruction to disable the release of the confidential information, whereby the mobile terminal which has been reported as lost is disabled from releasing confidential information stored in the mobile terminal.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the secure element management application further receives a plurality of reports of lost mobile terminals, stores the reports, and determines that the mobile terminal is lost by examining the stored reports.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the secure element management application sends instructions to the mobile terminal to enable the release of the confidential information by the mobile terminal after receiving notification that the mobile terminal has been recovered.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the confidential information is at least one of credit card information, debit card information, and transit card information.

11. A method of controlling secure elements, comprising:

receiving a report that a mobile terminal containing a secure element is lost;

while the mobile terminal is inaccessible to the wireless radio access network, receiving a first release of confidential information stored in the secure element of the mobile terminal;

receiving, in response to receiving the report, a message containing instructions that are directed to disable a second release of confidential information stored in the secure element of the mobile terminal that is inaccessible to the wireless radio access network; and

transmitting, in response to receiving the message, to the mobile terminal that is inaccessible to the wireless radio access network the instructions directed to disable the second release of confidential information without using the wireless radio access network, wherein the instructions are transmitted to the mobile terminal using near field communications technology, and wherein the mobile terminal executes the instructions to disable the second release of confidential information.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving a report that the mobile terminal containing the secure element is recovered; and

sending a message to the mobile terminal containing instructions that are directed to enable the release of confidential information stored in the secure element of the mobile terminal.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising sending the report that the mobile terminal containing a secure element is lost to at least one issuer of an electronic payment account, wherein the message containing instructions that are directed to disable the second release of confidential information stored in the secure element of the mobile terminal is sent by the at least one issuer of the electronic payment account associated with the release of confidential information stored in the secure element of the mobile terminal.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the confidential information comprises at least one of credit card account information, debit card account information, and transit card account information.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the instructions that are directed to disable the second release of confidential information are instructions to erase at least portions of a secure element memory area of the mobile terminal.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the instructions that are directed to disable the second release of confidential information further are directed to lock the mobile terminal, wherein the mobile terminal when locked is unable to complete phone calls, to access the Internet, and to execute applications.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the confidential information is one of a hotel electronic key entry, vehicle electronic key entry, and employee badge electronic identity.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising, in response to receiving the release of confidential information, determining whether the mobile terminal is reported lost.