Methods for secure enrollment and backup of personal identity credentials into electronic devices

• US 8,001,372 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2009
• Issued: 08/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Privaris, Inc.
• Inventors: Johnson, Barry W., Abdallah, David S.
• Primary Examiner(s): GERGISO, TECHANE
• Application Number:
  US12/560,254
• Publication Number:
  US 20100005315A1
• Time in Patent Office: 700 Days
• Field of Search: 713/156, 713/186, 382/115, 340/5.82
• US Class Current: 713/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/10 Human or animal bodies, e.g. vehicle occupants or pedestrians; Body parts, e.g. hands
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/06 for supporting key management in a packet data network cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key management H04L9/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0894 Escrow, recovery or storing of secret information, e.g. secret key escrow or cryptographic key storage
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/30 Public key, i.e. encryption algorithm being computationally infeasible to invert or user's encryption keys not requiring secrecy
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3231 Biological data, e.g. fingerprint, voice or retina network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using biometrical features in a packet data network H04L63/0861
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3263 involving certificates, e.g. public key certificate [PKC] or attribute certificate [AC]; Public key infrastructure [PKI] arrangements network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using certificates in a packet data network H04L63/0823

Abstract

A method and system for securely enrolling personal identity credentials into personal identification devices. The system of the invention comprises the manufacturer of the device and an enrollment authority. The manufacturer is responsible for recording serial numbers or another unique identifier for each device that it produces, along with a self-generated public key for each device. The enrollment authority is recognized by the manufacturer or another suitable institution as capable of validating an individual before enrolling him into the device. The enrollment authority maintains and operates the appropriate equipment for enrollment, and provides its approval of the enrollment. The methods described herein discuss post-manufacturing, enrollment, backup, and recovery processes for the device.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving at a personal identification device a public key before biometric data associated with enrollment is received;

sending an identifier from the personal identification device to a party based on the public key before biometric data associated with enrollment is received, the identifier being uniquely associated with the personal identification device;

receiving at the personal identification device a digital certificate from the party based on the identifier before biometric data associated with enrollment is received; and

disabling functionality within the personal identification device before biometric data associated with enrollment is received except that the personal identification device is in a wait state associated with future enrollment.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending the public key from the personal identification device to the party after the receiving the public key.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving the digital certificate from the party is based on the public key and the identifier.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifier is associated with an asymmetric key pair including a personal identification device public key and a personal identification device private key.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising producing the identifier at the personal identification device.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving at the personal identification device the identifier from the party.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the digital certificate includes the public key.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the party is a manufacturer of the personal identification device and separate from an enrollment party authorized to enable enrollment of the biometric data at the personal identification device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the party is a first party, the personal identification device being configured to enroll the biometric data from a second party different from the first party after the receiving at the personal identification device the digital certificate.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the digital certificate includes data associated with the personal identification device.

11. A method, comprising:

sending a public key to a personal identification device;

receiving an identifier from the personal identification device, the identifier being uniquely associated with the personal identification device;

producing a digital certificate based on the identifier and before enrollment of biometric data; and

sending the digital certificate to the personal identification device before enrollment of biometric data such that functionality of the personal identification device is disabled except that the personal identification device is configured to send the digital certificate to an enrollment party during future enrollment.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the producing of the digital certificate is based, at least in part, on the public key.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the receiving and the producing is performed by a first party, the method further comprising:

receiving at the first party a digital certificate uniquely associated with a second party different from the first party;

adding a public key of the first party to the digital certificate associated with the second party; and

sending the digital certificate associated with the second party from the first party to the second party.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the digital certificate includes the public key.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising producing at the party an asymmetric key pair uniquely associated with the party.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the public key is associated with a manufacturer of the personal identification device and separate from the enrollment party authorized to enable enrollment of the biometric data at the personal identification device.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the personal identification device is configured to enroll biometric data from the enrollment party after the sending the digital certificate.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the producing the digital certificate is based on data associated with the personal identification device.

19. A method, comprising:

receiving an encryption identifier at a personal identification device from a party during pre-enrollment;

receiving a digital signature at the personal identification device from the party during pre-enrollment;

the encryption identifier and the digital signature collectively configured to enable verification of the party by the personal identification device; and

disabling functionality within the personal identification device during pre-enrollment except for functionality associated with future enrollment.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein:

the encryption identifier is a public key; and

the receiving the digital signature including receiving a digital certificate including the digital signature.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein:

the encryption identifier is a public key; and

the receiving the digital signature including receiving a digital certificate including the digital signature based on the public key.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the party is a manufacturer of the personal identification device.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein the party is a first party, the personal identification device being configured to enroll biometric data from a second party different from the first party after the receiving the encryption identifier and after the receiving the digital signature.

24. The method of claim 19, wherein the digital signature includes data associated with the personal identification device.