Secure peer-to-peer money transfer

• US 20030200162A1
• Filed: 04/18/2002
• Published: 10/23/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/18/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Challener, David Carroll
• Application Number:
  US10/063,397
• Publication Number:
  US 20030200162A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes

Abstract

Direct money transfer between users of a computer aided transaction service such as an auction is accomplished by the use of a common money transfer agent, with which both parties will have established accounts. Security of such transactions is assured by embedding encryption characteristics into data strings exchanged and in which the identities of the parties and details of the transaction are reflected.

Claims

1. A method comprising the steps of:

ascertaining that a buyer and a seller engaging in a transaction through a computer network maintain accounts at a common monetary transfer service;

identifying the buyer and transaction details to the monetary transfer service by a data sequence which includes a character string derived from a buyer account identification by the addition of encrypting characteristics;

identifying the seller and transaction details to the monetary transfer service by a data sequence which includes a character string derived from a seller account identification by the addition of encrypting characteristics; and

effecting at the monetary transfer service a debit transaction to the buyer'"'"'s account and a credit transaction to the seller'"'"'s account.

2. Apparatus comprising:

a buyer'"'"'s station from which a buyer transmits through a computer network to a monetary transfer service a data string identifying an account maintained by the buyer with the monetary transfer service and the details of a transaction with a seller;

a first program module executing on the buyer'"'"'s station which embeds in a transmitted data string a character string derived from a buyer account identification by the addition of encrypting characteristics;

a seller'"'"'s station from which a seller transmits through a computer network to the monetary transfer service a data string identifying an account maintained by the seller with the monetary transfer service and the details of a transaction with the buyer;

a second program module executing on the seller'"'"'s station which embeds in a transmitted data string a character string derived from a seller account identification by the addition of encrypting characteristics;

a monetary transfer service station at which transmissions from buyers and sellers are received; and

a third program module executing on the monetary transfer service station which identifies from the transmitted data strings the buyer, seller and transaction details and which effects a debit transaction to the buyer'"'"'s account and a credit transaction to the seller'"'"'s account.

3. Apparatus comprising:

a computer readable medium; and

a program module stored on said medium accessibly to a computer system;

said program module, when executing on a computer system,

ascertaining that a user of the computer system is one of buyer and a seller engaging in a transaction through a computer network and maintaining an account at a monetary transfer service common to the other of the buyer and seller;

identifying the user and transaction details to the monetary transfer service by a data sequence which includes a character string derived from a user account identification by the addition of encrypting characteristics; and

in the event that the other of the buyer and seller transmits to the monetary transfer service data identifying the other and transaction details by a data sequence which includes a character string derived from the other'"'"'s account identification by the addition of encrypting characteristics, effecting at the monetary transfer service a debit transaction to the buyer'"'"'s account and a credit transaction to the seller'"'"'s account.