Systems, methods and devices for trusted transactions

• US 8,538,011 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2006
• Issued: 09/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wistaria Trading Inc.
• Original Assignee: Blue Spike, Inc.
• Inventors: Moskowitz, Scott A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shiferaw, Eleni
• Assistant Examiner(s): CALLAHAN, PAUL E
• Application Number:
  US11/512,701
• Publication Number:
  US 20070028113A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,576 Days
• Field of Search: 380/231, 380/28, 705 51- 54, 705/64, 705/77, 713/176, 713/172, 726/28, 726/30, 726/31
• US Class Current: 380/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/266 Arrangements to supply power to external peripherals either directly from the computer or under computer control, e.g. supply of power through the communication port, computer controlled power-strips
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/1014 to tokens
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/12 Protecting executable software
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/582 Pseudo-random number generators
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/588 Random number generators, i.e. based on natural stochastic processes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/085 involving remote charge determination or related payment systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/38215 Use of certificates or encrypted proofs of transaction rights
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3823 combining multiple encryption tools for a transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3829 involving key management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/401 Transaction verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 2220/00 Business processing using cryptography postage metering system using cryptography G06Q2250/05
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0609 Buyer or seller confidence or verification
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/42 Anonymization, e.g. involving pseudonyms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/603 Digital right managament [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/608 Watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 : applying security measures for digital rights management data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for commerce, e.g. marketing, shopping, billing, auctions or e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/102 : applying security measure for e-commerce data processing systems or methods, specially adapted for e-commerce G06Q30/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 : wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 : for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/12 : Applying verification of the received information cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for data integrity or data verification H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0618 : Block ciphers, i.e. encrypting groups of characters of a plain text message using fixed encryption transformation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/0643 : Hash functions, e.g. MD5, SHA, HMAC or f9 MAC
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/14 : using a plurality of keys or algorithms
• 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 9/3228 : One-time or temporary data, i.e. information which is sent for every authentication or authorization, e.g. one-time-password, one-time-token or one-time-key
• 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 9/3297 : involving time stamps, e.g. generation of time stamps

Abstract

The invention discloses a system for enhancing trust in transactions, most particularly in remote transactions between a plurality of transactional parties, for instance a seller and buyer(s) of goods and/or services over a public computer network such as the internet. Trust is disclosed to be a multivalent commodity, in that the trust that is to be enhanced relates to information about the subject matter of the transactions (e.g., the suitability of the goods and services sold), the bona fides of the supplier of the goods and services, the appropriateness of a pricing structure for a particular transaction or series of transactions, a quantum of additional transactional value that may be imparted to the transactional relationship, security of information exchange, etc. An important contributor to trust for such aspects of the transaction is disclosed to be the use of highly-secure steganographic computer processing means for data identification, authentication, and transmission, such that confidence in the transaction components is enhanced. By providing an integrated multivalent system for enhancing trust across a variety of categories (for a variety of transaction species, including those in which the need for trust is greater on the part of one party than of another, as well as those in which both require substantial trust enhancement), the invention reduces barriers to forming and optimizing transactional relationships.

Claims

1. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection, and

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device;

an analog to digital converter; and

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphering said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection;

wherein the device is manufactured as a device selected from the group consisting of a smart card and a microchip.

2. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection,

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device; and

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphering said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection; and

wherein the input of input data is controlled by predetermined information selected from the group consisting of a pass phrase, a password, biometric data, and a personal entropy query.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the device identification code stored in the device is upgradeable.

4. The device of claim 2, wherein the steganographic cipher comprises:

a number generator selected from the group consisting of a pseudo-random number generator and a random number generator;

a predetermined key generation algorithm selected from the group consisting of a hash function and a special one-way function;

a predetermined message information selected from the group consisting of a digital signature, a time stamp, a digital watermark, and function-dependent data;

a predetermination of an information carrier signal'"'"'s characteristics selected from the group consisting of a perceptual characteristic and a signal feature.

5. The device of claim 2, wherein the device identification code stored in the device is predetermined.

6. The device of claim 2, wherein said device is configured to require verification of an identification of a device holder by at least one of a pass phrase, a password, biometric data, and a personal entropy query.

7. The device of claim 2, wherein the device converts at least one value-added information metrics selected from the group consisting of a price, a selection, and a service into humanly perceptible information.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the humanly perceptible information relates to at least one of a present value cost to a party, at least one term for use, a level of confidence over the transaction, a level of confidence over transmission security, and a data integrity metric of the value-added information.

9. The device of claim 2, wherein the device is manufactured as a device selected from the group consisting of a smart card, a microchip, and a software application.

10. The device of claim 2, wherein the device is tamper-resistant.

11. The device of claim 2, wherein the device ceases to function if at least one function of the device is altered by an unauthorized party.

12. The device of claim 9, wherein the software application is subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization or creating unique instances of individual copies of the application.

13. The device of claim 2, wherein the device is securely linked to at least one of a means for payment and a transmission channel for private key exchange and approval.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the key approval is selected from the group consisting of identification, authentication, and authorization.

15. The device of claim 2, wherein the device transacts according to at least one predetermination of at least an identity of a vendor, a plurality of conditions of an information transfer, a payment, and an identity of a separate but similar device.

16. The device of claim 2, wherein the device further comprises:

an internal memory.

17. A trusted transaction device for transmitting authentic value-added information data between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a display;

a device identifier stored in the device;

hardware or software programmed to steganographically cipher information input and output;

hardware or software programmed to store or retrieve value-added information;

a transducer, including an analog to digital converter, for converting at least one of biometric data and entropic data of a person to a digital format thereby forming personal data;

wherein the transaction device is configured, so that the hardware or software programmed to steganographically cipher information, steganographically ciphers said personal data thereby forming steganographically ciphered personal data and the transaction device is configured to transmit said steganographically ciphered personal data in association with said authentic value-added information in order to enhance trust in a transaction.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein said device is configured to use said display to display cryptographically verifiable identification or authentication information associated with said value-added information data in a manner such that the identification or the authentication information is comprehensible by a person, to thereby add trust to a transaction.

19. The device of claim 17, wherein the device identifier stored in the device is upgradeable.

20. The device of claim 17, wherein the device identifier stored in the device is serialized.

21. The device of claim 17, further comprising a processor for associating the device identifier with the value-added information.

22. The device of claim 17, wherein said hardware or software programmed to cipher information comprises a processor.

23. The device of claim 17,

wherein said device comprises a processor and memory

for storing and retrieving trusted transaction value-adding component data.

24. The device of claim 23, further comprising:

an authentication device designed to provide information relating to an identification of an item.

25. The device of claim 23, wherein information is processed in real time.

26. The device of claim 17, further comprising hardware or software programmed to interact with other similarly functional devices.

37. The device of claim 17 embodied in a smart card.

38. The device of claim 17 embodied in a smart phone.

39. The device of claim 17 wherein said cipher is a steganographic cipher.

40. The device of claim 17 wherein said personal data is biological entropic data.

41. The device of claim 40 wherein said biological entropic data is body movement data.

27. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection,

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device;

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

an analog to digital converter; and

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphering said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection;

wherein said device is embodied in a smart phone.

28. The device of claim 27 further comprising image capture device for storing images as digital data.

29. The device of claim 27 wherein said device is designed to transmit smart phone identity in a watermark.

30. The device of claim 27 wherein said smart phone is designed to prompt a telephone call recipient for recipient identity information.

31. The device of claim 30 wherein said smart phone is designed to verify said recipient identity information with a certification authority in response to receipt of said recipient identity information.

32. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection,

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device;

an analog to digital converter; and

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphering said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection;

further comprising;

an image capture device for storing images as digital data,

wherein said device is configured so that said steganographic cipher can steganographically cipher the digital data of an image.

33. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection,

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device;

an analog to digital converter; and

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphering said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection;

wherein said device is embodied in a smart card.

34. The smart card of claim 33 comprising an image capture device for storing images as digital data, wherein said device is configured so that said steganographic cipher can steganographically cipher the digital data of an image.

35. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection,

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device;

an analog to digital converter; and

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphering said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection;

wherein the device is configured to steganographically cipher both value-added information and at least one value-added component associated with the value-added information.

36. A device for conducting trusted transactions between at least two parties, comprising:

a steganographic cipher;

a controller for receiving input data or outputting output data; and

at least one input/output connection,

wherein the device has a device identification code stored in the device;

a steganographically ciphered software application;

wherein said steganographically ciphered software application has been subject to a steganographic cipher for serialization;

wherein said device is configured to steganographically cipher both value-added information and at least one value-added component associated with said value-added information;

wherein said steganographic cipher receives said output data, steganographically ciphers said output data using a key, to define steganographically ciphered output data, and transmits said steganographically ciphered output data to said at least one input/output connection.

42. The device of claim 36 embodied in at least one of a smart card and a smart phone.