Systems and methods for authenticating a user based on a biometric model associated with the user

• US 9,832,191 B2
• Filed: 11/02/2015
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jakobsson, Bjorn Markus
• Primary Examiner(s): Smithers, Matthew
• Application Number:
  US14/929,647
• Publication Number:
  US 20160119337A1
• Time in Patent Office: 757 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2103 Challenge-response
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/11 Hand-related biometrics; Hand pose recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/67 by interactive indications to the user
• 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 63/102 Entity profiles
• 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: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/069 using certificates or pre-shared keys
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/68 Gesture-dependent or behaviour-dependent

Abstract

Systems and methods as provided herein may create a biometric model associated with a user. The created biometric model may be used to generate challenges that are presented to the user for authentication purposes. A user response to the challenge may be compared to an expected response, and if the user response matches within a predetermined error of the expected response, the user may be authenticated. The systems and methods may further generate challenges that are adaptively designed to address weaknesses or errors in the created model such that the model is more closely associated with a user and the user is more likely to be the only person capable of successfully responding to the generated challenges.

Claims

1. A system for authenticating through a touch-screen interface, comprising:

a screen configured to be biometrically engaged by a user;

one or more sensors configured to detect biometric engagements on the screen; and

one or more hardware processors configured to;

prompt the user to perform a movement challenge on the screen using a hand of the user, the challenge being based on a biometric model, the biometric model being unique to an authorized user and comprising information pertaining to movement capabilities of one or more parts of a hand;

receive, from the one or more sensors, data corresponding to one or more engagements with the screen from the hand of the user; and

grant access to an account of the authorized user in response to a determination that the data received from the one or more sensors is congruent with the biometric model within a predetermined degree of accuracy.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more sensors are further configured to monitor characteristics of an environment surrounding the system.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the biometric model is based on one or more of:

an anatomy distance, an angular measurement, and a combination thereof.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the biometric model includes one or more of:

a distance from a joint of a finger of the user, a length of a finger of the user, a range of motion of a finger of the user, and a combination thereof.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to prompt the user to perform additional challenges.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the one or more sensors comprises one or more of:

a touch sensor, a pressure sensor, an electromagnetic sensor, an optical sensor, and a combination thereof.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the challenge is configured to determine an unknown value in the biometric model.

8. An authenticating system comprising:

a screen configured to biometrically engage a user;

one or more sensors configured to detect a biometric engagement on the screen; and

one or more hardware processors configured to read instructions from a coupled non- transitory memory to cause the system to perform operations comprising;

determine a challenge for obtaining values of a biometric model, the challenge comprising movement of one or more parts of a hand;

prompt the user to perform the challenge on the screen using a hand of the user, receive, from the one or more sensors, data corresponding to a performance of the challenge through one or more engagements with the screen from the hand of the user;

determine values of the biometric model based on the received data; and

grant access to an account in response to a determination that the values of the biometric model match values of a stored biometric model within a predetermined degree of accuracy.

9. The authenticating system of claim 8, wherein the determined values are associated with one or more of:

an anatomy distance, an angular measurement, and a combination thereof.

10. The authenticating system of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise:

generate a second challenge;

receive a response to the second challenge; and

determine a second value of the biometric model based on the response.

11. The authenticating system of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

determine that the second value is an error; and

generate a third challenge to address the error.

12. An authenticating system comprising:

a non-transitory memory storing a biometric model for a user; and

one or more hardware processors coupled to the non-transitory memory and configured to read instructions from the non-transitory memory to cause the system to perform operations comprising;

receiving sensor data;

based on the received sensor data, determining one or more of;

a first measurement of a structure of a hand, a second measurement of a range of motion of at least a portion of the hand, and a combination thereof;

determining the received sensor data is consistent with the biometric model for the user; and

providing access to an account associated with the one or more of the first measurement, the second measurement, and the combination thereof.

13. The authenticating system of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a challenge for identifying the one or more of the first measurement, the second measurement, and the combination thereof; and

prompting the user to perform the challenge.

14. The authenticating system of claim 13, wherein the received sensor data is in response to the user performing the challenge.

15. The authenticating system of claim 12, wherein the sensor data is provided by one or more of:

a touch sensor, a pressure sensor, an electromagnetic sensor, an optical sensor, and a combination thereof.

16. The authenticating system of claim 12, wherein the one or more of the first measurement, second measurement, and a combination thereof are values associated with a second biometric model.

17. The authenticating system of claim 16, wherein providing access to the account comprises matching the second biometric model with the biometric model stored in the non-transitory memory.

18. The authenticating system of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying the account by the matching of the second biometric model with the biometric model stored in the non-transitory memory.

19. The authenticating system of claim 17, wherein the matching comprises determining whether values of the second biometric model are within a predetermine threshold of values of the biometric model stored in the non-transitory memory.

20. The authenticating system of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying the account by a user-provided identifier.