METHOD OF ACCESSING APPLICATIONS IN A SECURE MOBILE ENVIRONMENT

• US 20110113473A1
• Filed: 05/19/2009
• Published: 05/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Inventors: Brule, Dominique, Smith, Mathew, Corda, Alexandre
• Granted Patent: US 8,949,937 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3227 using secure elements embedded in M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3552 Downloading or loading of personalisation data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3574 Multiple applications on card
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/36 using electronic wallets or electronic money safes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security

Abstract

A method of accessing in a mobile communication device (4) an application (5, 14, 26), the application (5, 14, 26) being issued by a Service Provider (2), from a trusted application, also known as wallet (12), in which mobile device (4) a secure element (7) such as a SmartMX device is comprised that comprises a service manager (8) that manages the application (5, 14, 26), comprising managing by the service manager (8) a link between the application (5, 14, 26) and an application-codec (6, 15) also being issued by the Service Provider (2), wherein the application-codec (6, 15) is designed for interfacing between the service manager (8) and the application (5, 14, 26) and for processing an access request requesting access to the application (5, 14, 26) received from the service manager (8) and triggered by the wallet (12), and, triggered by the wallet (12), accessing the application (5, 14, 26) via the service manager (8) by means of utilization of the link between the application (5, 14, 26) and the application-codec (6, 15), such that the application-codec (6, 15) linked with the respective application (5, 14, 26) performs accessing (23) the application (5, 14, 26) under control of the service manager (8).

Claims

1. A method of accessing in a mobile communication device an application, the application being issued by a Service Provider, from a trusted application, also known as wallet, in which mobile device a secure element is arranged so that it comprises a service manager that manages the application, comprising

managing by the service manager a link between the application and an assigned application-codec also being issued by the Service Provider, which application codec is installed in the secure element, wherein the application-codec comprises an interface between the service manager and the application that translates application access requests received from the service manager which are invariant in respect of specific types and/or formats of the application into type and/or format specific application access requests, processes the same on the application and returns the result of the application access requests to the service manager,

wherein the application access requests of the service manager are triggered by the wallet, wherein the service manager retrieves the application-codec assigned to the application by means of utilizing the link between the application and the application-codec, sends the application access requests to the retrieved application-codec linked with the respective application and returns the results delivered by the application-codec to the wallet.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service manager receives via a wireless communication network from a Service Provider the application and a link-indication about an application-codec to be used for accessing the application,

stores the application in an application memory of the mobile device, and

generates in the secure element a linking-record that reflects the link between the application and the assigned application-codec based on the link-indication.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein a Trusted Service Manger is provided being designed for receiving from the Service Provider the application and/or an application-codec assigned to the application and/or a link-indication about an application-codec assigned to the application, wherein the Trusted Service Manager submits the application and the link-indication to the service manager.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the Trusted Service Manager installs the application-codec in the secure element of the mobile device.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein communication between the wallet and the service manager is performed via a standardized interface of the service manager, which standardized interface is designed for applying a common protocol in a communication with a the wallet.

6. A service manager computer program product directly loadable into a secure element with an arithmetic-logic unit and a memory, comprising software code portions for performing the steps of claim 2 when said product is run on the secure element.

7. A secure element with an arithmetic-logical unit and a memory, comprising a service manager computer program product as claimed in claim 6.

8. The secure element as claimed in claim 7, being configured as a SmartMX device.

13. A trusted application of a mobile communication device constituting a graphical user interface for applications, wherein the trusted application is designed to retrieve a list of the applications installed in an application memory of the mobile communication device as well as to retrieve information about those applications by triggering a service manager computer program product according to claim 6, which is loaded into a secure element of the mobile communication device.

9. A mobile communication device for communication in a wireless communication network comprising

an application being issued by a Service Provider, and

a trusted application, also known as wallet, and

a secure element, the secure element having a service manager that manages the application,

wherein the mobile device further comprises

an application-codec that is designed for interfacing between the service manager and the application and for processing access requests requesting access to the application received from the service manager and triggered by the wallet, and

the service manager being designed for managing a link between the application and an application-codec also being issued by the Service Provider and the service manager being further designed for requesting access to the application by utilization of the linking between the application and the application-codec, such that the application-codec linked with the respective application performs accessing the application.

11. A system comprising at least one mobile device according to claim 9.

12. The system as claimed in claim 11, comprising a Trusted Service Manager which is designed for receiving from the Service Provider via a computer network the application and/or the application-codec and/or a link-indication about an application-codec assigned to the application, and for submitting the application and the link-indication to the service manager, and for installing the application-codec in the secure element of the mobile device.

10. A Service Provider for issuing an application to be stored in a mobile device, the mobile device comprising a trusted application, also known as wallet, and a secure element such as a SmartMX device, the secure element having a service manager that manages the application, wherein

the Service Provider being designed for issuing an application codec that is designed for interfacing between a service manager and the application and for processing an access request requesting access to the application received from the service manager, or for issuing a link-indication about an application-codec to be used for accessing the application.