MOBILE DATA VAULT

• US 20130166920A1
• Filed: 06/01/2012
• Published: 06/27/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Perkaus & Farley, LLC
• Original Assignee: Commandhub Inc.
• Inventors: Cousins, Richard, Henderson, Linton, Matthews, Graham
• Granted Patent: US 9,146,881 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/189
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 12/1408 by using cryptography for digital transmission H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6209 to a single file or object, e.g. in a secure envelope, encrypted and accessed using a key, or with access control rules appended to the object itself
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2107 File encryption
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0822 using key encryption key
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0866 involving user or device identifiers, e.g. serial number, physical or biometrical information, DNA, hand-signature or measurable physical characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0869 involving random numbers or seeds
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3226 using a predetermined code, e.g. password, passphrase or PIN network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using passwords in a packet data network H04L63/083

Abstract

A portable electronic device is provided. The portable electronic device includes a data interface module that processes files associated with a user, the data interface module receives and validates a password from a user of the portable electronic device before the user is allowed access to files processed by the data interface module, an encryption key formed by the data interface module upon validation of the password, the encryption key further comprising the password, a hard coded private string and a serial number of the portable electronic device and a data storage area that stores files received from the data interface module the stored files are encrypted using the encryption key and where neither the encryption key or the password are stored in an unencrypted format anyplace within the portable electronic device.

Claims

1. A portable electronic device comprising:

a data interface module that processes files associated with a user, the data interface module receives and validates a password from a user of the portable electronic device before the user is allowed access to files processed by the data interface module;

an encryption key formed by the data interface module upon validation of the password, the encryption key further comprising the password, a hard coded private string and a serial number of the portable electronic device; and

a data storage area that stores files received from the data interface module the stored files are encrypted using the encryption key and where neither the encryption key or the password are stored in an unencrypted format anyplace within the portable electronic device.

2. The portable electronic device as in claim 1 further comprising a tracking module that deletes all files from the data storage area when a number of incorrectly entered passwords exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

3. The portable electronic device as in claim 1 further comprising an encryption module that constructs the encryption key using a secure hash algorithm.

4. The portable electronic device as in claim 1 wherein the data storage area further comprises an AES-256 encrypted database.

5. The portable electronic device as in claim 1 wherein the password further comprises at least eight characters including at least two non-alphanumeric characters.

6. The portable electronic device as in claim 1 further comprising a communication module that downloads files from a remote server.

8. A portable electronic device comprising:

a user interface module that processes files associated with a user, the data interface module receives and validates a password from the user of the portable electronic device before the user is allowed access to files processed by the data interface module;

an encryption key processor that forms an encryption key upon validation of the password, the encryption key further comprising the password, a hard coded private string and a serial number of the portable electronic device; and

a data storage area that stores files received from the data interface module the stored files are encrypted using the encryption key and where neither the encryption key or the password are stored in an unencrypted format anyplace within the portable electronic device.

9. The portable electronic device as in claim 8 further comprising a tracking module that deletes all files from the data storage area when a number of incorrectly entered passwords exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

10. The portable electronic device as in claim 8 further comprising a secure hash algorithm used by the encryption module to constructs the encryption key.

11. The portable electronic device as in claim 8 wherein the data storage area further comprises an AES-256 encrypted database.

12. The portable electronic device as in claim 8 wherein the password further comprises at least eight characters including at least two non-alphanumeric characters.

13. The portable electronic device as in claim 8 further comprising a password processor that authenticates a user communicating through a remote server.

14. A computer program within a non-transitory computer readable medium of a portable electronic device, the computer readable medium executing on a processor of the portable device to perform a set of steps comprising:

validating a password from the user of the portable electronic device;

forming an encryption key upon validation of the password, the encryption key further comprising the password, a hard coded private string and a serial number of the portable electronic device; and

unlocking a data storage area using the encryption key, the data storage area stores files exchanged with the remote server through the data interface module, the stored files are encrypted using the encryption key and where neither the encryption key or the password are stored in an unencrypted format anyplace within the portable electronic device.

15. The portable electronic device as in claim 14 further comprising deleting all files from the data storage area when a number of incorrectly entered passwords exceeds a predetermined threshold value.

16. The portable electronic device as in claim 14 further comprising constructing the encryption key using a secure hash algorithm.

17. The portable electronic device as in claim 14 wherein the data storage area further comprises an AES-256 encrypted database.

18. The portable electronic device as in claim 14 wherein the password further comprises at least eight characters including at least two non-alphanumeric characters.

19. The portable electronic device as in claim 14 further comprising authenticating a password processor from a remote server.

20. The portable electronic device as in claim 14 further comprising downloading files from a remote user to the data storage area through the data security system.