AUTHENTICATION METHOD FOR AN ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT AND VERIFICATION METHOD OF A DOCUMENT THUS AUTHENTICATED

• US 20080250247A1
• Filed: 02/12/2008
• Published: 10/09/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations SAS (Airbus SE)
• Original Assignee: Airbus France
• Inventors: Bastien, Olivier, Touzeau, Julien
• Granted Patent: US 8,756,428 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/178
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/68 Special signature format, e.g. XML format
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3297 involving time stamps, e.g. generation of time stamps

Abstract

This invention relates to an authentication method for an electronic document (100), in particular a file designed to be on-board an aircraft, comprising:

• • the generation (110) of a digital signature of said electronic document using a private key (107) corresponding to a public key certified by a certifying authority;
  • a time stamp request (126) of said electronic document made to a time stamping authority (125) to obtain a time-stamp (127);
  • a request (136) to obtain the statute of the certificate of said public key (137), following on from said time stamp request;
  • the addition (140) to said electronic document of the digital signature, the time-stamp and the statute of said certificate to create an authenticated electronic document (150).

Claims

1. Authentication method of an electronic document (100), in particular a file designed to be on-board an aircraft, characterised in that it comprises:

the generation (110) of a digital signature of said electronic document using a private key (107) corresponding to a public key certified by a certifying authority;

a time stamp request (126) of said electronic document made to a time stamping authority (125) to obtain a time-stamp (127) signed by this authority;

a request to obtain (136) the statute of the certificate of said public key (137), following on from said time stamp request;

the addition (140) to said electronic document of the digital signature, the time-stamp and the statute of said certificate to create an authenticated electronic document (150).

2. Authentication method according to claim 1, characterised in that the document comprises a file and that the signature of the document is obtained by encoding a digital fingerprint of said file with said private key.

3. Authentication method according to claim 1, characterised in that the document is of the XML type and that the signature of the document is provided in the XMLDsig format.

4. Authentication method according to claim 1, characterised in that said document comprises a plurality of files and that the digital signature of the document is obtained by:

the generation of an individual digital fingerprint for each of said files;

the generation of a collective digital fingerprint for all of said files from their individual digital fingerprints;

the encoding of the collective digital fingerprint from said private key.

5. Authentication method according to claim 3, characterised in that the document complies with the format of the ARINC 665 standard.

6. Authentication method according to one of the previous claims, characterised in that said certificate of the public key complies with the format of the X.509 standard.

7. Authentication method according to claim 6, characterised in that the request to obtain the statute of the certificate of the public key is transmitted to an OCSP server.

8. Verification method for the validity of an electronic document authenticated by an authentication method according to one of the previous claims, characterised in that it comprises:

a verification step (210) of the digital signature of said electronic document;

a verification step (220) of the time-stamp signed by the time stamping authority;

a verification step (230) of the statute of the certificate of the public key;

a step for determining (240) the validity of the electronic document, wherein the document is declared to be valid if the previous verifications are positive.

9. Verification method according to claim 8, characterised in that where the document comprises several files, the verification steps of said digital signature and of said time-stamp use a collective digital fingerprint of said files, wherein said digital fingerprint is obtained by means of individual digital fingerprints of each of these files.