Method and system for conducting financial and non-financial transactions using a wireless device

• US 8,725,632 B2
• Filed: 06/06/2006
• Issued: 05/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Citicorp Credit Services Incorporated (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Citicorp Development Center Incorporated (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Inventors: Tompkins, Peter, Vos, Jennifer, Ahuja, Arun
• Primary Examiner(s): BORISSOV, IGOR N
• Application Number:
  US11/447,261
• Publication Number:
  US 20070053518A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,898 Days
• Field of Search: 705/39, 705/30, 705/40, 705/42, 705/44, 705/26.1, 705/34, 705/64, 455/411, 455/414.1, 455/414.3, 455/466, 715/741
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/322 Aspects of commerce using mobile devices [M-devices]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3265 characterised by personalisation for use
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3552 Downloading or loading of personalisation data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72406 by software upgrading or downloading
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/60 Subscription-based services using application servers or record carriers, e.g. SIM application toolkits
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 60/00 Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for conducting transactions, such as standard banking transactions, using a wireless device, such as a cellular telephone, personal digital assistant, and other web-enabled wireless devices utilizing software downloaded to the wireless device. The software provides a user with interface screens on the display of the wireless device for facilitating information requests to a service provider having access to at least one account of the user.

Claims

1. A method for facilitating wireless transactions with a service provider using a wireless device comprising:

accepting registration information from a user via a computer software application process executing on a host server, said registration information consisting at least in part of a user'"'"'s wireless mobile device number and wherein the service provider maintains financial account data for the user in a data server;

verifying the registration information from the user by another computer software application process executing on the host server;

transmitting, by a wireless device server of a wireless carrier, an initiation short message service (“

SMS”

) message to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device requiring the user to confirm service set-up and initiate installation of software on the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device by entering the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device number, said SMS message being transmitted via radio frequency signal to an antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through a network supporting the wireless mobile device using a communication encryption protocol;

receiving, by the wireless device server, a wireless mobile device number entered on the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device and transmitted via radio frequency signal from the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network;

confirming, by the wireless device server, a match between the received wireless mobile device number and the mobile device number of the wireless mobile device to which the SMS message was transmitted;

transmitting, by the wireless device server, installation instructions to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device consisting at least in part of a designated uniform resource locator (“

URL”

) at which to download the software to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device, wherein said download of the software to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device is initiated within a predetermined period of time;

downloading the software to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device from the wireless device server of the wireless carrier in a two part download sequence in response to verification of the registration information by a further computer software application process executing on the wireless device server within said predetermined period of time, wherein the software download includes;

(i) in a first part of a said two part download sequence, downloading to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device from the wireless device server an interface application for navigating the user through a transaction using the wireless mobile device; and

(ii) thereafter, in a second part of the two part download sequence, only after detecting the downloaded interface application running for a first time on the wireless mobile device by the wireless device server, downloading to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device from the wireless device server a protocol application for facilitating the transfer of data between the wireless mobile device and the host server;

authenticating the user using the interface application executing on the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device in response to a request for access and user identification data entered on the wireless mobile device and transmitted via radio frequency signal from the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network;

generating and transmitting wirelessly via radio frequency signal from the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network using the interface application on the wireless mobile device, a request for access to user financial account data to the wireless device server

formatting and transmitting, by the wireless device server, said request for access to user financial account data to the host server; and

transmitting, by the host server, the requested financial account data to the user'"'"'s mobile wireless device via the wireless device server, said financial account data being transmitted via radio frequency signal to the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network supporting the wireless mobile device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the registration information includes at least one user account recognized by the service provider.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising establishing user identification data after verification of the registration information.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein transmitting the SMS message to a the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device further comprises transmitting the SMS message to the user'"'"'s wireless device with instructions requiring the user to confirm service set-up and initiate installation of software on the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device embedded in the SMS message.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein the user identification data includes a user identifier and an associated access code.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the software download to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device includes the download of a software icon viewable on a display of the user'"'"'s wireless device.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising providing the user with at least one interface screen on the display of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device after the user selects the software icon.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising accepting the user financial account data requests at the host server via the wireless mobile device initiated from the at least one interface screen.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the user financial account data requests are provided to the host server as formatted by the protocol application.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the protocol application utilizes at least the OFX format.

11. A system for facilitating wireless transactions with a service provider using a wireless device comprising:

a host server programmed to;

accept registration information from a user, said registration information consisting at least in part of a user'"'"'s wireless mobile device number, and wherein the service provider maintains financial account data for the user in a data server; and

verify the registration information from the user;

a wireless device server programmed to;

transmit an initiation short message service (“

SMS”

) message to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device requiring the user to confirm service set-up and initiate installation of software on the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device by entering the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device number, said SMS message being transmitted via radio frequency signal to the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through a network supporting the wireless mobile device using a communication encryption protocol;

receive a wireless mobile device number entered on the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device and transmitted via radio frequency signal from the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network;

confirm a match between the received wireless mobile device number and the mobile device number of the wireless mobile device to which the SMS message was transmitted;

transmits installation instructions to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device consisting at least in part of a designated uniform resource locator (“

URL”

) at which to download the software to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device, wherein said download of the software to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device is initiated within a predetermined period of time; and

download software to a user'"'"'s wireless mobile device from the wireless device server in a two part download sequence within said predetermined period of time in response to verification of the registration information, wherein the software download includes;

(i) an interface application for navigating the user through a transaction using the wireless mobile device downloaded in a first part of said two part download sequence to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device from the wireless device server; and

(ii) a protocol application for facilitating the transfer of data between the wireless device and the host server downloaded thereafter in a second part of the two part download sequence to the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device from the wireless device server only after detecting the downloaded interface application running for a first time on the wireless mobile device by the wireless device server;

said user'"'"'s wireless mobile device being programmed to;

authenticate the user in response to a request for access entered on the wireless mobile device and user identification data entered on the wireless mobile device and transmitted via radio frequency signal from the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network; and

generate and transmit wirelessly, via radio frequency signal from the antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network using the interface application on the wireless mobile device, a request for access to user financial account data to the wireless device server;

said wireless device server being further programmed to;

format and transmit said request for access to user financial account data to the host server; and

said host server being further programmed to;

transmit the requested financial account data to the user'"'"'s mobile wireless device via the wireless device server, said financial account data being transmitted via radio frequency signal to an antenna of the user'"'"'s wireless mobile device through said network supporting the wireless mobile device.