System and method for enabling bulk retrieval of certificates

• US 8,904,170 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2012
• Issued: 12/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2004
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Brown, Michael Stephen, Adams, Neil Patrick, Tapuska, David Francis, Little, Herbert Anthony
• Primary Examiner(s): Gelagay, Shewaye
• Application Number:
  US13/613,069
• Publication Number:
  US 20130013917A1
• Time in Patent Office: 810 Days
• US Class Current: 713/156
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/80 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/4523 using lightweight directory access protocol [LDAP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/041 Key generation or derivation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/0433 Key management protocols
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching

Abstract

A system and method for searching and retrieving certificates, which may be used in the processing of encoded messages. In one embodiment, a certificate synchronization application is programmed to perform certificate searches by querying one or more certificate servers for all of the certificates on those certificate servers. If all of the certificates on a certificate server cannot be successfully retrieved using a single search query, due to a search quota on the certificate server being exceeded for example, the search is re-performed through multiple queries, each corresponding to a narrower subsearch. Embodiments described herein enable large amounts of certificates to be automatically searched for and retrieved from certificate servers, thereby minimizing the need for users to manually search for individual certificates.

Claims

1. A method for searching and retrieving certificates comprising:

at a mobile device, requesting a search for a plurality of certificates on a certificate server remote from the mobile device, wherein at least one query is submitted to the certificate server to request retrieval of the plurality of certificates;

receiving an indication at the mobile device that some but not all of the plurality of certificates are located for retrieval due to a quota on the number of search results being exceeded at the certificate server;

in response to the receiving, the mobile device requesting a further search on the certificate server by

dividing the search into a plurality of subsearches,

requesting the subsearches on the certificate server, wherein at least one query is submitted from the mobile device to the certificate server for each subsearch, wherein the certificate server provides for retrieval of at least a subset of the plurality of certificates based on results of the subsearches,

downloading the at least a subset of the plurality of certificates to the mobile device; and

generating a list of certificates identifying one or more certificates downloaded to the mobile device, wherein the one or more certificates downloaded to the mobile device comprise the at least a subset of the plurality of certificates.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the list of certificates in one or more certificate stores on the mobile device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said method is performed by a certificate synchronization application executing and residing on the mobile device.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying the list of certificates;

and receiving user selections of one or more selected certificates identified in the list.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising filtering out duplicate downloaded certificates prior to storing the at least a subset of certificates in the one or more certificate stores on the mobile device.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more certificate servers comprises one or more Lightweight Directory Access Protocol servers.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of subsearches comprises a search for certificates issued to names beginning with one of a plurality of prefixes.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of prefixes includes only alphabetic characters.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of subsearches corresponds to a letter of the alphabet.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of subsearches corresponds to two or more letters of the alphabet.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising a plurality of instructions, which, when executed by a processor of a mobile device, cause the processor to perform a method of searching and retrieving certificates comprising:

requesting a search for a plurality of certificates on a certificate server remote from the mobile device, wherein at least one query is submitted to the certificate server to request retrieval of the plurality of certificates;

receiving an indication at the mobile device that some but not all of the plurality of certificates are located for retrieval due to a quota on the number of search results being exceeded at the certificate server;

in response to the receiving, requesting a further search on the certificate server by dividing the search into a plurality of subsearches,

requesting the subsearches on the certificate server, wherein at least one query is submitted from the mobile device to the certificate server for each subsearch, wherein the certificate server provides for retrieval of at least a subset of the plurality of certificates based on results of the subsearches,

downloading the at least a subset of the plurality of certificates to the mobile device;

generating a list of certificates identifying one or more certificates downloaded to the mobile device, wherein the one or more certificates downloaded to the mobile device comprise the at least a subset of the plurality of certificates.

12. A mobile device, the mobile device comprising a memory, a communication subsystem and a processor, the processor configured to:

request, via the communication subsystem, a search for a plurality of certificates on a certificate server remote from the mobile device, wherein at least one query is submitted to the certificate server to request retrieval of the plurality of certificates;

receive an indication at the mobile device, that some but not all of the plurality of certificates are located for retrieval due to a quota on the number of search results being exceeded at the certificate server;

in response to receiving the indication that some but not all of the plurality of certificates are located for retrieval due to the quota on the number of search results being exceeded at the certificate server, request a further search on the certificate server by dividing the search into a plurality of subsearches,

requesting the subsearches on the certificate server, wherein at least one query is submitted from the mobile device to the certificate server for each subsearch, wherein the certificate server provides for retrieval of at least a subset of the plurality of certificates based on results of the subsearches,

downloading the at least a subset of the plurality of certificates to the memory of the mobile device;

generate a list of certificates identifying one or more certificates downloaded to the mobile device, wherein the one or more certificates downloaded to the mobile device comprise the at least a subset of the plurality of certificates.

13. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to store the list of certificates transmitted to the mobile device in one or more certificate stores on the mobile device.

14. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to display the list of certificates;

and receive user selections of one or more selected certificates identified in the list.

15. The mobile device of claim 13, wherein the processor is further configured to filter out duplicate downloaded certificates prior to storing the at least a subset of certificates in the one or more certificate stores on the mobile device.

16. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the one or more certificate servers comprises one or more Lightweight Directory Access Protocol servers.

17. The mobile device of claim 12, each of the plurality of subsearches comprises a search for certificates issued to names beginning with one of a plurality of prefixes.

18. The mobile device of claim 17, wherein each of the plurality of prefixes includes only alphabetic characters.

19. The mobile device of claim 18, wherein each of the plurality of subsearches corresponds to a letter of the alphabet.

20. The mobile device of claim 18, wherein each of the plurality of subsearches corresponds to two or more letters of the alphabet.