Supporting proximity based security code transfer from mobile/tablet application to access device

• US 9,104,853 B2
• Filed: 05/16/2013
• Issued: 08/11/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CA, Inc. (d/b/a CA Technologies) (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Symantec Corporation (NortonLifeLock Inc.)
• Inventors: Venkataramani, Srinath, Mathur, Mohit
• Primary Examiner(s): Song, Hosuk
• Application Number:
  US13/895,478
• Publication Number:
  US 20140344904A1
• Time in Patent Office: 817 Days
• Field of Search: 380/255, 380/258, 380/270, 713168-173, 713182-186, 726 2- 6, 726 16- 21
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/35 communicating wirelessly
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0492 by using a location-limited connection, e.g. near-field communication or limited proximity of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0853 using an additional device, e.g. smartcard, SIM or a different communication terminal cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving additional secure or trusted devices H04L9/3234
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications

Abstract

Techniques are disclosed for authenticating users to a computing application. A mobile or tablet device is used to generate a security code. Near field communication (NFC) hardware on the mobile device is used to transfer the security code from the mobile device to a computer. To transfer the one-time value, a user simply taps an NFC enabled mobile device on an NFC enabled computing device (e.g. a laptop running a web browser used to access a web service). In one embodiment, doing so triggers a connection between the two devices and an application running on the mobile device transfers the security code to an NFC receiver application running on the computer. The receiving computer may be configured to auto-fill the received security code in the appropriate form field of the application authentication interface.

Claims

1. A method for performing a two-factor authentication process, the method comprising:

detecting a mobile computing device being positioned within a specified proximity of a computing device;

establishing a connection with the mobile computing device;

receiving, over the connection, a security value;

passing the security value to a browser helper object on the computing device;

populating a login form with the security value, wherein the login form is rendered on a browser executing on the computing device, wherein the login form includes fields for a username, a password, and the security value, and wherein the browser helper object populates the field for the security value with the security value; and

posting the login form to a network application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the connection is established via a near field communications component on the mobile computing device and the computing device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is configured to generate the security value in response to being positioned within the specified proximity of the computing device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein mobile device generates the security value, at least in part, based on a shared secret stored on the mobile device.

5. A method for performing a two-factor authentication process, the method comprising:

detecting, by a mobile computing device, that the mobile computing device is positioned within a specified proximity of a computing device;

in response;

generating a security value,

establishing a connection with the computing device, and

passing, over the connection, the security value to the computing device,

wherein a browser helper object on the computing device is configured to populate a login form rendered by a browser application with the security value.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein mobile device generates the security value, at least in part, based on a shared secret stored on the mobile device.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions, which, when executed on a processor, performs an operation for performing a two-factor authentication process, the operation comprising:

detecting a mobile computing device being positioned within a specified proximity of a computing device;

establishing a connection with the mobile computing device;

receiving, over the connection, a security value;

passing the security value to a browser helper object on the computing device;

populating a login form with the security value, wherein the login form is rendered on a browser executing on the computing device, wherein the login form includes fields for a username, a password, and the security value, and wherein the browser helper object populates the field for the security value with the security value; and

posting the login form to a network application.

8. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the connection is established via a near field communications component on the mobile computing device and the computing device.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the mobile device is configured to generate the security value in response to being positioned within the specified proximity of the computing device.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein mobile device generates the security value, at least in part, based on a shared secret stored on the mobile device.

11. A system, comprising:

a near field communications (NFC) transceiver;

a processor; and

a memory hosting an application, which, when executed on the processor, performs an operation for performing a two-factor authentication process, the operation comprising;

detecting a mobile computing device being positioned within a specified proximity of a computing device,

establishing, via the NFC transceiver, a connection with the mobile computing device,

receiving, over the connection, a security value,

passing the security value to a browser helper object on the computing device,

populating a login form with the security value, wherein the login form is rendered on a browser executing on the computing device, wherein the login form includes fields for a username, a password, and the security value, and wherein the browser helper object populates the field for the security value with the security value, and

posting the login form to a network application.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the mobile device is configured to generate the security value in response to being positioned within the specified proximity of the computing device.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein mobile device generates the security value, at least in part, based on a shared secret stored on the mobile device.

14. A mobile computing device, comprising:

a near field communications (NFC) transceiver;

a processor; and

a memory hosting an application, which, when executed on the processor, performs an operation for performing a two-factor authentication process, the operation comprising

detecting, by the mobile computing device, that the mobile computing device is positioned within a specified proximity of a computing device;

in response;

generating a security value,

establishing a connection with the computing device, and

passing, over the connection, the security value to the computing device, wherein a browser helper object on the computing device is configured to populate a login form rendered by a browser application with the security value.

15. The mobile device of claim 14, wherein mobile device generates the security value, at least in part, based on a shared secret stored on the mobile device.