Audio-based electronic transaction authorization system and method

• US 9,911,122 B2
• Filed: 01/10/2013
• Issued: 03/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Marina Dina Sonnino Ghetler
• Original Assignee: MG Systems Consulting Services LLC
• Inventors: Ghetler, Marina Dina Sonnino
• Primary Examiner(s): Fu, Hao
• Application Number:
  US13/738,209
• Publication Number:
  US 20140195428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,881 Days
• Field of Search: 705 44, 455411, 434321
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/306 using TV related infrastructures external card used for payment with client device H04N21/4185
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/308 using the Internet of Things
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3272 using an audio code
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists

Abstract

Methods and systems for facilitating and authorizing electronic transactions with various devices and systems are disclosed. Embodiments of the present invention utilize audio messages to initiate, process and complete transactions between two or more parties, allowing users to efficiently and effectively enter into and complete financial transactions with businesses and other users. The need to utilize text-based entry as part of the verification process—an inefficient, error-prone and insecure authorization mechanism—is minimized and, in some embodiments, avoided altogether. Unlike recently developed authorization methods, embodiments of the present invention may be implemented using any number of existing devices including, analog or digital televisions, radios, smartphones, tablets computers, and other devices. Embodiments of the present invention may also be utilized to facilitate authorization for various other transactions including to access to an account, website or other locations, to accept or propose trades, to sign a legal or non-legal document, and to verify identity.

Claims

1. A method of authorizing an electronic transaction, the method comprising:

receiving, at an authorization computer system, a request for authorization from a requester;

communicating, from the authorization computer system to an audio emitting device, a request signal containing an encrypted, encoded inaudible audio request message embedded in an audio message, said request signal causing the audio emitting device to output the audio message, including the inaudible audio request message, wherein the embedded message includes at least two different portions repeated in a repetition pattern within the audio message;

wherein the outputted audio message, when detected by an audio receiving component of a receiving device physically separate from the audio emitting device, causes the receiving device to automatically perform at least the following;

extract the inaudible audio request message embedded in the audio message;

decrypt and decode the extracted inaudible audio request message and perform error detection based on the repetition pattern in the embedded message, the decrypted, decoded audio request message containing a request identifier, identifying a network address of the authorization computer system, a request type, and a requested response portion, the extracted audio request message causing a processor of the receiving device to execute a code module of the receiving device to generate an authorization request to a user based on the decoded audio request message,

based on the request type, process a request authorization from the user in order to generate an authorization response containing the request authorization and the request identifier, wherein the authorization response includes a response field based on the requested response portion in the inaudible audio request message, and

transmit the authorization response to the authorization computer system using the identified network address;

receive, at the authorization computer system, the authorization response from the receiving device; and

process the authorization response to provide authorization for the electronic transaction.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio message comprises at least one of audible and inaudible tones.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the request authorization in the authorization response indicates that the authorization is granted, the authorization is denied, or an exception.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the processing of the authorization response includes processing the request identifier received in the authorization response to identify, in a database, the electronic transaction, the method further comprises the steps of:

receiving an electronic transaction request;

generating the request identifier in response to the electronic transaction request;

storing in the database the electronic transaction request, the electronic transaction request being identifiable by the request identifier.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the processing of the authorization response further includes the step of authorizing the electronic transaction based on identifying, in the database, the electronic transaction.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of communicating the authorization response to at least one transaction processing system.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the outputted audio message is decodable only by a unique receiving device.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the unique receiving device automatically decodes the audio message based on a unique decoding key, the method further comprising the step of:

generating the audio message based on the unique decoding key, the unique receiving device having access to the unique decoding key.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the outputted audio message is decodable only by a plurality of devices.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio message is addressed to at least one of:

to a specific user, a specific device and users located within predetermined geographically limits.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the audio message contains predetermined geographical limits data.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

receiving a request for complementary data from the receiving device;

generating an encoded complementary audio message containing complementary information to the authorization request; and

communicating to the audio emitting device a complementary message containing the encoded complementary audio message, said complementary message causing the encoded complementary audio message to be outputted at the audio emitting device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the receiving device receives a complementary response from the user responsive to the complementary information, and wherein the authorization response includes the complementary response.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the authorization request comprises at least one of a logical or physical access request, an electronic fund transfer request as a payment request, a user data request, a poll request, an agreement request, an enrollment request and a hardware triggering request.

15. A method of processing an authorization request at a mobile device physically separate from the audio emitting device, the mobile device containing a processor and memory, the mobile device capable of receiving and processing encoded audio messages from an authorization computer system, the authorization computer system receiving a request for authorization from a requester, the method comprising:

receiving, from an audio emitting device'"'"'s output device, an audible encoded audio authorization request generated by the authorization computer system, the audible encoded audio authorization request containing an at least partially inaudible audio request message, said authorization request containing a request identifier identifying a network address of the authorization computer system, a request type, and a requested response portion;

recording the audible encoded audio authorization request using an audio recording component of the mobile device to process the authorization request;

extracting the inaudible audio request message embedded in the audible encoded audio authorization request;

automatically decrypting and decoding, using the processor, the audible encrypted, encoded authorization request, and performing error detection based on a repetition pattern in the embedded message, wherein the embedded message includes at least two different portions repeated in a repetition pattern within the audio message, wherein the decrypted, decoded audio request message causing the processor to execute a code module of the receiving device to provide at least a portion of the decrypted, decoded authorization request to a user based on the recorded audible encoded authorization request;

receiving a request authorization from the user;

based on the request type, generating, using the processor, an authorization response containing the request authorization and the request identifier, wherein the authorization response includes a response field based on the requested response portion in the inaudible audio request message; and

transmitting the authorization response to the authorization computer system using the identified network address to provide authorization.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the encoded audio authorization request comprises at least one of audible and inaudible tones.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of determining, using the processor, whether the encoded audio authorization request is a valid encoded audio authorization request according to at least one authorization rule stored in memory.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein at least one authorization rule is based at least on the physical location of the mobile device, the identity of the device, or the identity of the user.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the encoded audio authorization request is encoded based on a unique decoding key, said mobile device having access to the unique decoding key, and wherein the encoded audio authorization request is decoded based on the unique decoding key.

20. A system for facilitating the authorization of electronic transactions, the system comprising:

a processor;

at least one storage device coupled to the processor; and

wherein the processor is adapted to communicate with the at least one storage device to execute instructions to perform the following;

communicating to an audio emitting device a request signal containing an encoded inaudible audio request message embedded in an audio message, said request signal causing the audio emitting device to output the audio message, including the inaudible audio request message, wherein the embedded message includes at least two different portions repeated in a repetition pattern within the audio message;

receiving an authorization response from a receiving device physically separate from the audio emitting device, the authorization response containing a request authorization and a request identifier; and

processing the authorization response to provide authorization for the electronic transaction;

wherein the outputted audio message, when detected by an audio receiving component of the receiving device, causes the receiving device to automatically perform at least the following;

extract the inaudible audio request message embedded in the audio message;

automatically decrypt and decode the extracted inaudible audio request message and perform error detection based on the repetition pattern in the embedded message;

the decrypted, decoded audio request message containing the request identifier identifying a network address of the authorization computer system, a request type, and a requested response portion, the extracted audio request message causing a processor of the receiving device to execute a code module of the receiving device to generate an authorization request to a user based on the decoded audio request message; and

based on the request type, process a request authorization from the user in order generate the authorization response to transmit to the identified network address, wherein the authorization response includes a response field based on the requested response portion in the inaudible audio request message.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the audio message comprises at least one of audible and inaudible tones.

22. The system of claim 20, wherein the request authorization in the authorization response indicates that the authorization is granted, the authorization is denied, or an exception.

23. The system of claim 20, wherein the processing of the authorization response includes processing the request identifier received in the authorization response to identify, in a database, the at least one storage device, the electronic transaction, wherein the processor is further configured to perform the following:

receiving an electronic transaction request;

generating the request identifier in response to the electronic transaction request;

storing in the database the electronic transaction request, the electronic transaction request being identifiable by the request identifier.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the processing of the authorization response further includes the step of authorizing the electronic transaction based on identifying, in the database, the electronic transaction.

25. The system of claim 20, further comprising the step of communicating the authorization response to at least one transaction processing system.

26. The system of claim 20, wherein the outputted audio message is decodable only by a unique receiving device, the method further comprising the step of:

generating the audio message based on a unique decoding key, wherein the unique receiving device has access to the unique decoding key and the unique receiving device automatically decodes the audio message based on the unique decoding key.

27. The system of claim 20, wherein the audio message is addressed to at least one of:

to a specific user, a specific device and users located within predetermined geographically limits.

28. The system of claim 20, wherein the processor is further configured to perform the following:

receiving a request for complementary data from the receiving device;

generating an encoded complementary audio message containing complementary information to the authorization request; and

communicating to the audio emitting device a complementary message containing the encoded complementary audio message, said complementary message causing the encoded complementary audio message to be outputted at the audio emitting device.

29. The system of claim 28, wherein the receiving device receives a complementary response from the user responsive to the complementary information, and wherein the authorization response includes the complementary response.

30. The system of claim 20, wherein the authorization request comprises at least one of a logical or physical access request, an electronic funds transfer request as a payment request, a user data request, a poll request, an agreement request, an enrollment request and a hardware triggering request.