Systems and methods for application identification

• US 9,794,233 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2016
• Issued: 10/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sonic IP Incorporated (Endeavor Group Holdings Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Sonic IP Incorporated (Endeavor Group Holdings Inc.)
• Inventors: Grab, Eric William, Soroushian, Kourosh, Lin, Tung, Chan, Francis Yee-Dug, Wallin, Evan, Amidei, William David
• Primary Examiner(s): Zand, Kambiz
• Assistant Examiner(s): Getachew, Abiy
• Application Number:
  US15/018,721
• Publication Number:
  US 20160156602A1
• Time in Patent Office: 617 Days
• Field of Search: 713155
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/12 Protecting executable software
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/06 for supporting key management in a packet data network cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key management H04L9/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0876 based on the identity of the terminal or configuration, e.g. MAC address, hardware or software configuration or device fingerprint
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0884 by delegation of authentication, e.g. a proxy authenticates an entity to be authenticated on behalf of this entity vis-à-vis an authentication entity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/168 above the transport layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70

Abstract

Systems and methods for application identification in accordance with embodiments of the invention are disclosed. In one embodiment, a user device includes a processor and memory configured to store an application, a session manager, an application identifier, and at least one shared library, and the processor is configured by the session manager to communicate the application identifier and the application identifier data to an authentication server and permit the execution of the application in response to authentication of the application by the authentication server.

Claims

1. A user device, comprising:

a processor; and

memory configured to store;

an application comprising at least one file;

a session manager; and

an application identifier;

wherein the processor is configured by the session manager, the session manager being stored within the memory of the user device to;

retrieve encrypted provisioning data containing an application identifier associated with the application;

generate application identifier data that represents information about at least one aspect of the application that remains static throughout all instances where the application is deployed, where the application identifier data comprises information that can be used to authenticate the at least one file, and where the information that can be used to authenticate the at least one file comprises at least one hash of at least a part of at least one of the at least one files;

send the encrypted provisioning data and the application identifier data to an authentication server, the authentication server being independent of the user device;

receive authentication of the application from the authentication server; and

authorize the execution of the application.

2. The user device of claim 1, wherein the provisioning data is encrypted with a provisioning data key and the authentication server holds the provisioning data key.

3. The user device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

send information describing the application to the authentication server using the user device; and

receive confirmation from the authentication server that the information matches information stored on the authentication server that is associated with the application using the user device.

4. The user device of claim 1, wherein:

the information describing the application includes an application version, wherein the processor is further configured to force an update of the application.

5. The user device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

retrieve a product identifier that identifies a type of user device;

send the product identifier that identifies the type of user device to the authentication server with the encrypted provisioning data; and

receive confirmation from the authentication server that the application is compatible with the user device.

6. A method for authenticating an application executing on a user device configured to communicate with an authentication server, the method comprising:

generating, using a user device, application identifier data for an application that comprises at least one file stored on the user device, where the application identifier data represents information about at least one aspect of the application that remains static throughout all instances where the application is deployed, where the application identifier data comprises information that can be used to authenticate the at least one file, and where the information that can be used to authenticate the at least one file comprises at least one hash of at least a part of at least one of the at least one files;

communicate, using the user device, an application identifier stored on the user device and the application identifier data to the authentication server, the authentication server being independent of the user device; and

permit, using the user device, the execution of the application in response to authentication of the application by the authentication server.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein a session manager is statically compiled into the application.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein a session manager and shared libraries are part of a common application platform stored in a memory of the user device.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the application identifier is contained in encrypted provisioning data stored in a memory of the user device, where the provisioning data is encrypted so that its content is not accessible to the user device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the provisioning data is encrypted with cryptographic information associated with the application identifier.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the encrypted provisioning data is embedded in the application.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the application identifier data comprises at least one piece of data selected from the group consisting of:

application name, application version, and application vendor.

13. The method of claim 6, further comprising retrieving a product identifier stored in a memory of the user device, where the product identifier is associated with the execution platform of the user device.