PERSONAL AUTHENTICATIONS ON COMPUTING DEVICES

• US 20130312087A1
• Filed: 05/15/2012
• Published: 11/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Latzina, Markus
• Granted Patent: US 9,053,293 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/19
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1014 to tokens
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/629 to features or functions of an application
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/284 Lexical analysis, e.g. tokenisation or collocates

Abstract

A computer device receives a personal authentication statement from a user seeking to access concealed computer objects or applications on the computer device. A parser syntactically parses the personal authentication statement to extract a user-authentication token and a computer objects-authentication token. The computer objects-authentication token can identify one or more concealed computer objects on the computer device. The computer device reveals the one or more concealed computer objects to the user upon authentication of the user and verification that the authenticated user is authorized to access the concealed computer objects.

Claims

1. A computer device, comprising:

a computer-user interface configured to receive a string of characters as a personal authentication statement input by a user; and

a parser configured to parse a user-authentication token and a computer objects-authentication token from the personal authentication statement input by the user,

wherein the computer objects-authentication token identifies at least one concealed computer object, and

wherein the computer device is configured to reveal at least one concealed computer object upon authentication of the user and verification that the authenticated user is authorized to access the at least one concealed computer object.

2. The computer device of claim 1, further comprising a user-authenticator configured to authenticate the user contingent on the parsed user-authentication token.

3. The computer device of claim 1, further comprising an object-authenticator configured to identify at least one concealed computer object contingent on the parsed computer objects-identifying token.

4. The computer device of claim 1, wherein the computer-user interface is configured to display an authentication dialog window to receive the personal authentication statement input by the user.

5. The computer device of claim 4, wherein the computer-user interface is configured to display the authentication dialog window to receive the personal authentication statement input by the user in response to a signal from the user to display the authentication dialog window, and wherein the signal is one of a button- or switch-activated, a touch-activated, a gesture-activated and a voice-activated signal from the user.

6. The computer device of claim 4, wherein the computer-user interface is configured to display the authentication dialog window having an input data field with a first portion for receiving the user-authentication token and a second portion for receiving the computer objects-authentication token, and to display the input data field as a contiguous region with an invisible delimiter between the first portion for receiving the user-authentication token and the second portion for receiving the computer objects-authentication token, respectively.

7. The computer device of claim 1, wherein the parser is configured to identify a delimiter separating the user-authentication token and the computer objects-authentication token in the personal authentication statement input by the user.

8. The computer device of claim 1, wherein the computer device is configured to reveal at least one concealed computer object by displaying access to the least one concealed computer object on the computer-user interface to the authenticated user.

9. A method, comprising:

in a microprocessor-based computer device,

receiving a string of characters as a personal authentication statement input at a computer-user interface by a user;

parsing a user-authentication token and a computer objects-authentication token from the personal authentication statement;

authenticating the user contingent on the parsed user-authentication token;

identifying at least one concealed computer object contingent on the parsed computer objects-authentication token; and

upon verifying that the authenticated user is authorized to access the identified at least one concealed computer object,

revealing the identified at least one concealed computer object to the user.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein receiving a string of characters as a personal authentication statement input at a computer-user interface by a user includes displaying an authentication dialog window configured to receive the personal authentication statement input by the user.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein displaying the authentication dialog window configured to receive the personal authentication statement input by the user includes displaying the authentication dialog window in response to receiving instructions from the user to display the authentication dialog window.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein receiving instructions from the user to display the authentication dialog window includes receiving one of a button- or switch-activated, a touch-activated, a gesture-activated or a voice-activated signal from the user.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein displaying the authentication dialog window configured to receive the personal authentication statement from the user includes:

displaying an input data field having a first portion for receiving the user-authentication token and a second portion for receiving the computer objects-authentication token; and

displaying the input data field as a contiguous region with an invisible delimiter between the first portion for receiving the user user-authentication token and the second portion for receiving the computer objects-authentication token, respectively.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein parsing the user-authentication token and the computer objects-authentication token from the personal authentication statement includes lexical analysis the personal authentication statement.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein parsing the user-authentication token and the computer objects-authentication token from the personal authentication statement includes identifying a delimiter separating the user-authentication token and the computer objects-authentication token in the personal authentication statement input by the user.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein revealing the at least one concealed computer object upon authentication of the user includes displaying access to the least one concealed computer object on the computer-user interface to the authenticated user.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein identifying at least one concealed computer object contingent on the parsed computer objects-authentication token includes identifying a set of concealed computer objects contingent on the parsed computer objects-authentication token, and wherein revealing the at least one concealed computer object upon authentication of the user includes displaying access to the set of concealed computer objects on the computer-user interface to the authenticated user.

18. A non-transitory computer readable medium, comprising:

instructions capable of being executed on a microprocessor,

which instructions when executed allow a computer device to process a string of characters as a personal authentication statement input by a user at a computer-user interface;

parse a user-authentication token and a computer objects-authentication token from the personal authentication statement input by the user; and

reveal at least one concealed computer object upon authentication of the user and verification that the authenticated user is authorized to access the identified at least one concealed computer object.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions when executed on the microprocessor cause the computer-user interface to:

display an authentication dialog window to receive the personal authentication statement input by the user, wherein the authentication dialog window has an input data field having a first portion for receiving the user authentication token and a second portion for receiving the computer objects-authentication token; and

wherein the input data field is displayed as a contiguous region with an invisible delimiter between the first portion for receiving the user-authentication token and the second portion for receiving the computer objects-authentication token, respectively.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions when executed on the microprocessor cause the computer-user interface to:

reveal the at least one concealed computer object upon authentication of the user by displaying access to the least one concealed computer object on the computer-user interface to the authenticated user.