Communication device, communication method, and computer program

Abstract

To prevent transmission of information to a terminal device used for unauthorized use in a technology for providing information to a terminal device to which a telephone number is assigned by using data communication.SOLUTION: A communication device includes a control unit that determines that a telephone number to be processed is not a target telephone number to which information is to be transmitted when the telephone number is a telephone number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal which is a communication device that is not capable of voice communication.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for transmitting information to legitimate users.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, the importance of identity verification has been increasing in various industries. Therefore, various techniques for performing identity verification have been proposed. For example, a technique for providing authentication information and information after authentication using data communication to a terminal device to which a telephone number is assigned has been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique using a short message service (SMS) as a specific example of data communication to a terminal device to which a telephone number is assigned.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In recent years, there have been cases where terminal devices are used for unauthorized purposes. Therefore, in the technique of providing information to a terminal device to which a telephone number is assigned, there is an increasing demand for suppressing the transmission of information to a terminal device used for unauthorized purposes.

[0005] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of suppressing the transmission of information to a terminal device used for unauthorized purposes in a technique of providing information to a terminal device to which a telephone number is assigned using data communication.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a communication device including a control unit that determines that a phone number to be processed is not a phone number of a target for transmitting information when the phone number is assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal which is a communication device incapable of making a voice call.

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is the above-described communication device, wherein when the control unit determines that it is not a phone number of a target for transmitting information, the control unit does not transmit the information associated with the phone number, and when it is not determined that it is not a phone number of a target for transmitting information, the control unit transmits the information associated with the phone number.

[0008] One aspect of the present invention is a communication method performed by a computer, the method including a step of determining that a phone number to be processed is not a phone number of a target for transmitting information when the phone number is assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal which is a communication device incapable of making a voice call.

[0009] One aspect of the present invention is a computer program for operating a computer as the above-described communication device.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, in a technique of providing information to a terminal device to which a phone number is assigned using data communication, it is possible to suppress transmission of information to a terminal device used for an illegal purpose.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, specific configuration examples of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing the system configuration of the communication system 100 of the present invention. The communication system 100 includes one or more terminal devices 10 (10_1 to 10_n: n is an integer of 1 or more), an information acquisition device 20, and a communication device 30. The terminal device 10, the information acquisition device 20, and the communication device 30 communicate via a network 40. The network 40 may be a network using wireless communication or a network using wired communication. The network 40 may be configured by combining a plurality of networks. The network 40 may be configured using a mobile communication network.

[0013] The terminal device 10 is an information processing device capable of communication. A unique telephone number is assigned to the terminal device 10. The telephone number assigned to the terminal device 10 may be, for example, an 11-digit number conforming to the number system of a mobile phone number. The terminal device 10 may be a communication device equipped with a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card to which a unique telephone number is assigned. There are roughly two types of such terminal devices 10. One is a communication device such as a mobile phone that can make a voice call using the assigned telephone number. The other is a communication device that cannot make a voice call using the assigned telephone number but can perform data communication (hereinafter referred to as a "data communication dedicated terminal"). The data communication dedicated terminal cannot make a voice call, but can perform data communication (for example, SMS) using the assigned telephone number.

[0014] The information acquisition device 20 is an information device such as a personal computer or a server device. FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram showing the functional configuration of the information acquisition device 20. The information acquisition device 20 includes a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a control unit 23.

[0015] The communication unit 21 is configured using a communication interface. The communication unit 21 performs data communication with other devices via the network 40.

[0016] The storage unit 22 is configured using a storage device such as a magnetic hard disk device or a semiconductor storage device. The storage unit 22 functions as, for example, a telephone number information storage unit 221. The telephone number information storage unit 221 stores information indicating whether a number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal for each telephone number to be confirmed.

[0017] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a specific example of the information stored in the telephone number information storage unit 221. The telephone number information storage unit 221 stores, for example, a telephone number information table. The telephone number information table has a plurality of telephone number information records. The telephone number information record includes, for example, values of a telephone number, status information, and attribute information.

[0018] The telephone number indicates the telephone number to be confirmed. The telephone number is, for example, a telephone number that was effectively existent at least when the telephone number information record was registered and was assumed to be used by a specific person (hereinafter referred to as the "assumed user").

[0019] The status information represents the usage status of a telephone number at a predetermined timing. The status information may be represented, for example, as any one of five statuses: valid, invalid, transferred, held by the carrier, or out of service. For example, a value of "1" may be held for valid, "2" for invalid, "3" for transferred, "4" for held by the carrier, and "5" for out of service. Valid indicates that the subscriber, who is the intended user of the target telephone number, is using it and is in a state where incoming and outgoing calls can be made. Invalid indicates that the target telephone number is not being used and incoming and outgoing calls cannot be made. Transferred indicates that the intended user of the target telephone number is using another telephone number, and the target telephone number itself is in a state where contact cannot be made with the intended user. For example, when a call is made to a telephone number whose status is transferred, an announcement (transfer announcement) indicating that it has been changed to another number flows through the caller's handset. Held by the carrier indicates that the subscriber, who is the intended user of the target telephone number, is using it but incoming and outgoing calls cannot be made. In the case of held by the carrier, even if a call is made to the telephone number, a transfer announcement does not flow through the caller's handset. Out of service indicates a state in which the target telephone number has been made unable to make incoming and outgoing calls due to the subscriber's circumstances. Note that the usage status does not necessarily have to be limited to the above five statuses, and other statuses may be provided, or it may be represented by fewer types of statuses. The predetermined timing may be, for example, every month, every two months, or any timing.

[0020] The attribute information represents the attribute information of a telephone number at a predetermined timing. The attribute information has a value of, for example, either "voice call" or "data communication only". "Voice call" indicates that voice calls are possible on the terminal device 10 to which the telephone number with that attribute information is assigned. "Data communication only" indicates that voice calls are not possible but data communication is possible on the terminal device 10 to which the telephone number with that attribute information is assigned.

[0021] Returning to FIG. 2, the control unit 23 will be described. The control unit 23 is configured using a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a memory. When the processor executes a program, the control unit 23 functions as a telephone number information acquisition unit 231. Note that all or part of each function of the control unit 23 may be realized using hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a PLD (Programmable Logic Device), or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). The above program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. A computer-readable recording medium is, for example, a portable medium such as a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, a CD-ROM, a semiconductor storage device (e.g., SSD: Solid State Drive), or a storage device such as a hard disk or a semiconductor storage device built into a computer system. The above program may be transmitted via a telecommunication line.

[0022] The telephone number information acquisition unit 231 acquires status information and attribute information for each telephone number stored in the telephone number information storage unit 221. Any algorithm may be applied for the acquisition of status information and the acquisition of attribute information. For example, in the acquisition of attribute information, the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-142195 may be applied. The telephone number information acquisition unit 231 records the acquired information in the telephone number information storage unit 221. The telephone number information acquisition unit 231 transmits the information recorded in the telephone number information storage unit 221 to the communication device 30 at a predetermined timing. The predetermined timing may be a specific period, the timing when information is requested from the communication device 30, or other timing.

[0023] The communication device 30 is an information device such as a personal computer or a server device. FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram showing the functional configuration of the communication device 30. The communication device 30 includes a communication unit 31, a storage unit 32, and a control unit 33.

[0024] The communication unit 31 is configured using a communication interface. The communication unit 31 performs data communication with other devices via the network 40.

[0025] The storage unit 32 is configured using a storage device such as a magnetic hard disk device or a semiconductor storage device. The storage unit 32 functions as, for example, a telephone number information storage unit 321 and a notification information storage unit 322. The telephone number information storage unit 321 stores information indicating whether a number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal is, for example, each telephone number to be confirmed. The telephone number information storage unit 321 may be configured in the same manner as the telephone number information storage unit 221.

[0026] The notification information storage unit 322 stores, in association with each other, information to be notified to the terminal device 10 and the telephone number assigned to the terminal device 10 to be notified. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a specific example of the information stored in the notification information storage unit 322. The notification information storage unit 322 stores, for example, a notification information table. The notification information table has a plurality of notification information records. The notification information record includes, for example, a telephone number and a value of notification information.

[0027] The telephone number indicates the telephone number to which the information is to be notified. The notification information indicates the information to be notified to the terminal device 10 to which the telephone number is assigned. The notification information may be, for example, information used for the authentication process of the terminal device 10. For example, when multi-factor authentication is performed on the terminal device 10, information indicating authentication information (for example, numbers of a predetermined number of digits) used in the multi-factor authentication may be registered as the notification information. The notification information may be, for example, information to be notified to the terminal device 10 according to the authentication result of the terminal device 10. For example, the information provided to the terminal device 10 determined to be used by a legitimate user through the authentication process may be the notification information.

[0028] The information stored in the notification information storage unit 322 may be provided to the communication device 30 by an information processing device used by, for example, a natural person or a legal entity who wishes to transmit information to the terminal device 10.

[0029] Returning to FIG. 4, the control unit 33 will be described. The control unit 33 is configured using a processor such as a CPU and a memory. The control unit 33 functions as an information acquisition unit 331, a notification unit 332, and a determination unit 333 when the processor executes a program. Note that all or part of each function of the control unit 33 may be realized using hardware such as an ASIC, a PLD, or an FPGA. The above program may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. A computer-readable recording medium is, for example, a portable medium such as a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, a CD-ROM, a semiconductor memory device (e.g., SSD), or a storage device such as a hard disk or a semiconductor memory device built into a computer system. The above program may be transmitted via a telecommunication line.

[0030] The information acquisition unit 331 acquires the information stored in the telephone number information storage unit 321 from the information acquisition device 20 and registers it in the telephone number information storage unit 321. The information acquisition unit 331 acquires the information stored in the notification information storage unit 322 from another information processing device and registers it in the notification information storage unit 322.

[0031] The notification unit 332 transmits the notification information associated with the telephone number to the terminal device 10 to which the telephone number registered in the notification information storage unit 322 is assigned, according to the determination result of the determination unit 333. The notification unit 332 transmits the notification information using, for example, SMS. The notification unit 332 performs a notification when the determination unit 333 determines that the device is the target device to which the information is to be transmitted. The notification unit 332 does not perform a notification when the determination unit 333 determines that the device is not the target device to which the information is to be transmitted.

[0032] The determination unit 333 determines whether the terminal device 10 to which the telephone number being processed is assigned is the device to which information is to be transmitted. When the telephone number being processed is a telephone number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal, the determination unit 333 determines that it is not the device to which information is to be transmitted. When the telephone number being processed is not a telephone number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal (for example, when it is a telephone number assigned to a terminal device 10 capable of voice calls), the determination unit 333 determines that it is the device to which information is to be transmitted. The determination unit 333 may make the determination based on the information registered in the telephone number information storage unit 321. The determination unit 333 notifies the determination result to a predetermined function or device. For example, the determination unit 333 notifies the determination result to the notification unit 332. The determination unit 333 may also notify the determination result to another information processing device that transmits information to the terminal device 10 to which the telephone number being processed is assigned.

[0033] Figure 6 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the processing of the communication device 30. First, the notification unit 332 acquires the telephone number to be processed (step S101). The notification unit 332 instructs the determination unit 333 to determine whether the terminal device 10 of the telephone number to be processed is the device to which information is to be transmitted. The determination unit 333 determines whether the telephone number (the telephone number to be processed) instructed by the notification unit 332 is a telephone number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal (step S102).

[0034] If the phone number being processed is the phone number assigned to the dedicated data communication terminal (step S102 - YES), the determination unit 333 determines that it is not the device to which the information is to be transmitted (step S103). If the phone number being processed is not the phone number assigned to the dedicated data communication terminal (step S102 - NO), the determination unit 333 determines that it is the device to which the information is to be transmitted (step S104). In this case, the notification unit 332 transmits the notification information associated with the phone number being processed to the transmission destination corresponding to the phone number being processed (step S105). For example, the notification unit 332 transmits the notification information by SMS with the phone number being processed as the destination.

[0035] According to the communication system 100 configured as described above, for the terminal device 10 with a telephone number assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal, it is determined not to transmit information. On the other hand, for the terminal device 10 with a telephone number assigned to a terminal device capable of voice calls, it is determined to transmit information. Currently, to obtain a SIM card capable of voice calls, a predetermined identity verification procedure is required. On the other hand, to obtain a SIM card that is not capable of voice calls (i.e., a SIM card used as a dedicated data communication terminal), an identity verification procedure such as that required for a SIM card capable of voice calls is not necessary. Therefore, obtaining a SIM card used as a dedicated data communication terminal is easier than obtaining a SIM card capable of voice calls. However, in the transmission and reception of information using technologies such as SMS, whether it is a SIM card capable of voice calls or a SIM card used as a dedicated data communication terminal, it is possible to receive information. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a SIM card used as a dedicated data communication terminal without requiring a predetermined identity verification procedure and obtain desired information using a protocol such as SMS. Due to such circumstances, a SIM card used as a dedicated data communication terminal may be obtained for the purpose of unauthorized use. In the communication system 100 of the present embodiment, when transmitting notification information, the determination unit 333 makes a determination according to whether the telephone number assigned to the dedicated data communication terminal is the one for which information should be transmitted. Therefore, in the technology of providing information using data communication to a terminal device assigned with a telephone number, it is possible to suppress the transmission of information to a terminal device used for the purpose of unauthorized use.

[0036] (Modification example) The determination unit 333 may further determine whether to transmit based on the status information. For example, the determination unit 333 may determine that it is a target for transmitting information when the status information is "1 (valid)" and the attribute information is "voice call". On the other hand, the determination unit 333 may determine that it is not a target for transmitting information in other cases.

[0037] The communication device 30 may be configured as a communication system using a plurality of information processing devices. For example, the notification unit 332 and the determination unit 333 may be implemented in different information processing devices. In this case, each information processing device may be directly connected by a communication cable, may be connected using an in-house network such as a LAN, or may be connected via a wide area network or a public network.

[0038] As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and designs and the like within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention are also included.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0039] 100…Communication system, 10…Terminal device, 20…Information acquisition device, 30…Communication device, 40…Network, 21…Communication unit, 22…Storage unit, 221…Telephone number information storage unit, 23…Control unit, 231…Telephone number information acquisition unit, 31…Communication unit, 32…Storage unit, 321…Telephone number information storage unit, 322…Notification information storage unit, 33…Control unit, 331…Information acquisition unit, 332…Notification unit, 333…Determination unit

Claims

1. When the telephone number to be processed is assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal, which is a communication device that cannot make a voice call but can perform data communication, the control unit determines that it is not the telephone number to which information is to be transmitted. The communication device is provided with: When the control unit determines that it is not the telephone number to which information is to be transmitted, the control unit does not transmit the information associated with the telephone number; when the control unit does not determine that it is not the telephone number to which information is to be transmitted, the control unit transmits the information associated with the telephone number.

2. The communication device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit transmits information used for authentication processing as the information associated with the telephone number.

3. A communication method performed by a computer, comprising: When the telephone number to be processed is assigned to a dedicated data communication terminal, which is a communication device that cannot make a voice call but can perform data communication, determining that it is not the telephone number to which information is to be transmitted; When it is determined that it is not the telephone number to which information is to be transmitted, not transmitting the information associated with the telephone number; when it is not determined that it is not the telephone number to which information is to be transmitted, transmitting the information associated with the telephone number.

4. A computer program for operating a computer as the communication device according to claim 1 or 2.

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