Keyboard security device and keyboard security method

Abstract

A keyboard safety device includes: a keyboard control module for outputting typing information when the keyboard is used; an audio signal control module for outputting a first raw audio signal when a microphone module is activated; an intelligent learning module for generating an additional audio signal based on the typing information received from the keyboard control module and the first raw audio signal received from the audio signal control module; and outputting the additional audio signal; and a sound mixing module for mixing a second raw audio signal received from the audio signal control module and the additional audio signal received from the intelligent learning module in response to a trigger signal to generate a mixed audio signal; and outputting the mixed audio signal. The first raw audio signal corresponds to the typing information.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to an information security technology, and more particularly to a keyboard security device and a keyboard security method. [Previous Technology]

[0002] Modern electronic devices (such as desktop computers or laptops) are usually equipped with a variety of input and output devices (such as keyboards and microphones) to support a variety of application scenarios (such as video conferencing).

[0003] When participating in video conferences, for immediacy and convenience, participants may use a keyboard while the microphone is on (i.e., typing while speaking). However, this usage scenario poses potential security risks. Specifically, by intercepting or stealing audio recorded by the microphone, third parties (such as malicious individuals or programs) could very likely use the typing sound to crack sensitive information (such as passwords or other private information) entered by the user.

[0004] Therefore, how to improve the security of using the keyboard when the microphone is on is an issue worth solving. [Summary of the Invention]

[0005] In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this disclosure proposes a keyboard security device and a keyboard security method to improve the security of using the keyboard when the microphone is turned on.

[0006] The embodiments disclosed herein provide a keyboard security device, comprising: a keyboard control module, signal-connected to a keyboard, for outputting typing information when the keyboard is used; an audio signal control module, signal-connected to a microphone module, for outputting a first raw audio signal when the microphone module is turned on; and an intelligent learning module, signal-connected to the keyboard control module and the audio signal control module, for: based on the typing information received from the keyboard control module and the audio signal control module, for... The system receives a first original audio signal, generates an additional audio signal, and outputs the additional audio signal; and a mixing audio module, signal-connected to the audio signal control module and the intelligent learning module, for: in response to a trigger signal, mixing a second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module and the additional audio signal (received from the intelligent learning module) to generate a mixed audio signal; and outputting the mixed audio signal, wherein: the first original audio signal corresponds to the typing information.

[0007] The embodiments disclosed herein provide another keyboard security device suitable for an environment having a keyboard, a keyboard control module, a microphone module, and an audio signal control module. The keyboard control module is signal-connected to the keyboard. When the keyboard is used, the keyboard control module outputs typing information. The audio signal control module is signal-connected to the microphone module. When the microphone module is turned on, the audio signal control module outputs a raw audio signal corresponding to the typing information. The keyboard security device includes: an intelligent learning module signal-connected to the keyboard control module and the audio signal control module, wherein... The intelligent learning module is trained based on the first typing information output by the keyboard control module and the first original audio signal output by the audio signal control module. The trained intelligent learning module generates and outputs an additional audio signal based on the second typing information output by the keyboard control module. A mixing audio module is signal-connected to the audio signal control module and the intelligent learning module, used to mix the second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module and the additional audio signal received from the intelligent learning module to generate a mixed audio signal, wherein the second original audio signal corresponds to the second typing information; and the mixed audio signal is output.

[0008] The embodiments disclosed herein also provide a keyboard security method, comprising: a keyboard security method applicable to an environment having a keyboard, a keyboard control module, a microphone module, and an audio signal control module, wherein a keyboard control module is signal-connected to the keyboard and used to output typing information, the audio signal control module is signal-connected to the microphone module, and the keyboard security method comprises: when the microphone module is turned on, obtaining a first original audio signal through the audio signal control module; generating an additional audio signal based on the typing information and the first original audio signal; in response to a trigger signal, mixing the additional audio signal and a second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module to generate a mixed audio signal; and outputting the mixed audio signal, wherein: the first original audio signal corresponds to the typing information.

[0009] Based on the above, the keyboard security device and keyboard security method disclosed herein can improve the security of using the keyboard when the microphone is turned on, that is, reduce (or even eliminate) the potential risk that third parties will use typing sounds to crack the sensitive information entered by the user.

Implementation Method

[0011] This disclosure provides a keyboard security device and method to solve the problems mentioned in the background art. To make the features and advantages of this disclosure more apparent and understandable, specific embodiments of the invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following description contains specific information relating to exemplary embodiments of the invention. The drawings and accompanying detailed description in this disclosure are merely exemplary embodiments. However, this disclosure is not limited to these exemplary embodiments. Other variations and embodiments of this disclosure will occur to those skilled in the art. Unless otherwise stated, the same or corresponding elements in the drawings may be indicated by the same or corresponding reference numerals. Furthermore, the drawings and illustrations in this disclosure are generally not drawn to scale and are not intended to correspond to actual relative dimensions.

[0012] The following disclosure provides many different embodiments or examples to implement the different features of this invention. The following disclosure describes specific examples of the various components and their arrangements to simplify the explanation. Of course, these specific examples are not intended to be limiting. For example, if the disclosed embodiment describes a first feature formed on or above a second feature, it means that it may include embodiments in which the first feature and the second feature are in direct contact, or it may include embodiments in which an additional feature is formed between the first feature and the second feature, so that the first feature and the second feature may not be in direct contact.

[0013] It is worth noting that additional operation steps may be performed before, between, or after the method, and in other embodiments of the method, some operation steps may be replaced or omitted.

[0014] Figure 1 is a block diagram of a keyboard security device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. A keyboard security device 10 includes a keyboard control module (or element, unit, etc.) 110, an audio signal control module 120, an intelligent learning module 130, and a mixed sound module 140. For example, the keyboard security device 10 may be a portable device (e.g., a laptop or tablet computer) or a desktop computer, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. It should be noted that Figure 1 discloses one embodiment of the keyboard security device of the present invention, but the scope of the embodiments of the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the keyboard security device of the present invention may not include a keyboard control module and an audio signal control module itself, but may connect to an external keyboard control module and an audio signal control module to complete the solution of the present invention.

[0015] The keyboard control module 110 is signal-connected to a keyboard 110A. When the keyboard 110A is used (e.g., a key is pressed or released), the keyboard control module 110 outputs typing information. For example, the keyboard 110A may be an external keyboard or a built-in keyboard. The keyboard control module 110 may be a keyboard controller, but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0016] The audio signal control module 120 is signal-connected to a microphone module 120A. When the microphone module 120A is turned on, the audio signal control module 120 outputs a first raw audio signal. The first raw audio signal corresponds to the typing information. For example, the microphone module 120A may be an external microphone or a built-in microphone, and may be used to collect / record sounds including, but not limited to, speech, multiple people talking, and keyboard typing sounds (as shown in the fan shape). The audio signal control module 120 may be a digital signal processor (DSP), and may convert the analog signals collected by the microphone module 120A into digital signals, but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0017] As described above, the intelligent learning module 130 is signal-connected to the keyboard control module 110 and the audio signal control module 120. The intelligent learning module 130 receives (or inputs) the typing information from the keyboard control module 110 and receives the first original audio signal from the audio signal control module 120. Based on the typing information and the first original audio signal, the intelligent learning module 130 generates an additional audio signal and outputs the additional audio signal. That is, the intelligent learning module 130 can record / learn the typing sounds corresponding to keystrokes. The intelligent learning module 130 can be trained based on the typing information output by the keyboard control module 110 and the original audio signal output by the audio signal control module 120. The trained intelligent learning module 130 can then generate and output an additional audio signal based on new typing information output by the keyboard control module.

[0018] The audio signal control module 120 further outputs a second original audio signal. For example, the first original audio signal may be a previous audio signal, and the second original audio signal may be a current audio signal, but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0019] The mixing audio module 140 is signal-connected to the audio signal control module 120 and the intelligent learning module 130. The mixing audio module 140 receives the second original audio signal from the audio signal control module 120 and the additional audio signal from the intelligent learning module 130. In response to a trigger signal, the mixing audio module 140 mixes the second original audio signal and the additional audio signal to generate a mixed audio signal and outputs the mixed audio signal. For example, the mixed audio signal may be output to a recording module or a video module (e.g., software), but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0020] In other words, the additional audio signal generated by the intelligent learning module 130 can serve as a simulated / fake typing sound (rather than a pre-recorded sound), reducing (or even eliminating) regularity, thereby hiding the true length and duration of the input information (e.g., password). Based on the above, the keyboard security device disclosed herein can appropriately mix the original audio, thereby improving the security of using the keyboard with the microphone on, i.e., reducing (or even eliminating) the potential risk of third parties using typing sounds to crack sensitive information entered by the user.

[0021] In some embodiments, the typing information may include a key press (make code) event and a key release (or reset) (break code) event (of the keys in the keyboard 110A), but this disclosure is not limited thereto. Specifically, the typing information may indicate or record events: press key "A", release key "A", press key "B", release key "B", press key "C", press key "A", release key "A", release key "C", ...

[0022] In some embodiments, the intelligent learning module 130 may include a typing feature analysis module 1302 and a random signal generation module 1304, as shown in FIG2. FIG2 is a block diagram of an intelligent learning module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The typing feature analysis module 1302 can be used to receive typing information from the keyboard control module 110. The typing feature analysis module 1302 can be used to analyze the typing information to generate a typing feature. The random signal generation module 1304 is signal-connected to the audio signal control module 120 and the typing feature analysis module 1302. The random signal generation module 1304 can be used to receive the typing feature from the typing feature analysis module 1302 and to receive the first original audio signal from the audio signal control module 120. Based on the typing characteristics and the first original audio signal, the random signal generation module 1304 can be used to generate the additional audio signal and output the additional audio signal to the mixing sound module 140. For example, the random signal generation module 1304 may be a random pseudo-type sound generator, but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0023] In some embodiments, the intelligent learning module 130 may further include a storage module (not shown in the figures). The storage module may be signal-connected to the random signal generation module 1304. The storage module may be used to store the typing features (generated by the typing feature analysis module 1302). For example, the storage module may be non-volatile memory (NVM), but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0024] In some embodiments, the typing features may include at least one of the following: typing speed, simultaneous pressing of a plurality of keys, frequency of use of a first key (in the keyboard 110A), frequency of use of each key, duration of pressing a second key, and duration of pressing each key, but this disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, through the typing information, the intelligent learning module 130 can learn typing behaviors, including but not limited to the speed of typing passwords, the habit of generating uppercase English letters (e.g., pressing Caps Lock first, or pressing Shift and letters simultaneously), and the habit of correcting misspelled words (e.g., pressing the arrow keys first, going back to the incorrect text and then selecting the word, or directly deleting the incorrect text and then retyping the correct word).

[0025] In some embodiments, in response to the trigger signal, the intelligent learning module 130 may generate the additional audio signal based on the typing information and the first original audio signal.

[0026] In some embodiments, the trigger signal is generated when a password input area on a human-computer interface is triggered. For example, the trigger signal is generated by clicking a password input area with a mouse cursor, or by selecting the password input area with a specific key (such as the Tab key), but this disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0027] In some embodiments, the intelligent learning module 130 may be trained using one or more of any well-known AI learning algorithms or machine learning algorithms, which may include neural networks (e.g., artificial neural networks, deep neural networks, convolutional neural networks (CNN), recurrent neural networks (RNN), autoencoders, reinforcement learning, etc.), fuzzy logic, artificial intelligence (AI), deep learning algorithms, deep structured learning hierarchical learning algorithms, support vector machines (SVM) (e.g., linear SVM, nonlinear SVM, SVM regression), decision tree learning (e.g., classification and regression trees (CART)), dimensionality reduction algorithms (e.g., projection, manifold learning, principal component analysis, etc.) and / or deep machine learning algorithms.

[0028] Based on the above embodiments, the following keyboard security method can be obtained (e.g., summarized as follows). Figure 3 is a schematic flowchart of a keyboard security method according to an embodiment of this disclosure. This keyboard security method is applicable to an environment having a keyboard, a keyboard control module, a microphone module, and an audio signal control module. The keyboard control module is signal-connected to the keyboard and used to output typing information, and the audio signal control module is signal-connected to the microphone module. As shown in Figure 3, this keyboard security method includes the following steps:

[0029] In step S302, when the microphone module is turned on, a first raw audio signal is obtained through the audio signal control module 120, and then step S304 is executed.

[0030] In step S304, an additional audio signal is generated based on the typing information and the first original audio signal, and then step S306 is executed.

[0031] In step S306, in response to a trigger signal, the additional audio signal and a second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module are mixed to generate a mixed audio signal, and then step S308 is executed.

[0032] In step S308, the mixed audio signal is output.

[0033] In summary, the keyboard security device and keyboard security method disclosed herein can properly mix the original audio, thereby improving the security of using the keyboard when the microphone is turned on, that is, reducing (or even eliminating) the potential risk that third parties will use typing sounds to crack the sensitive information entered by the user.

[0034] Although this application has disclosed the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the disclosure. Any modifications and alterations made by those skilled in the art to the above embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure shall still fall within the scope of the technology protected by the disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of the disclosure shall be determined by the scope of the patent application. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0010] The accompanying drawings are provided to enable those skilled in the art to further understand the present invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification of the present invention. The drawings illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention and are used together with the specification of the present invention to explain the principles of the invention. Figure 1 is a block diagram of a keyboard security device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 2 is a block diagram of an intelligent learning module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and Figure 3 is a flowchart of a keyboard security method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A keyboard safety device, comprising: a keyboard control module, signal-connected to a keyboard, for outputting typing information when the keyboard is used; an audio signal control module, signal-connected to a microphone module, for outputting a first original audio signal when the microphone module is turned on; a smart learning module, signal-connected to the keyboard control module and the audio signal control module, for: generating an additional audio signal based on the typing information received from the keyboard control module and the first original audio signal received from the audio signal control module; and outputting the additional audio signal; and a mixing audio module, signal-connected to the audio signal control module and the smart learning module, for: in response to a trigger signal, mixing a second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module and the additional audio signal received from the smart learning module to generate a mixed audio signal; and outputting the mixed audio signal, wherein: The first original audio signal corresponds to the typing information.

2. The keyboard security device as described in claim 1, wherein the typing information includes a key press event and a key release event.

3. The keyboard security device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the intelligent learning module comprises: a typing feature analysis module, configured to: receive the typing information from the keyboard control module; and analyze the typing information to generate a typing feature; and a random signal generation module, signal-connected to the audio signal control module and the typing feature analysis module, configured to: receive the typing feature from the typing feature analysis module; receive a first original audio signal from the audio signal control module; generate the additional audio signal based on the typing feature and the first original audio signal; and output the additional audio signal to the mixing sound module.

4. The keyboard security device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the intelligent learning module further comprises: a storage module, signal-connected to the random signal generation module, for storing the typing features.

5. The keyboard safety device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the typing features include at least one of typing speed, frequency of use of a first key, frequency of use of each key, duration of press of a second key, and duration of press of each key.

6. The keyboard security device as claimed in claim 1, wherein in response to the trigger signal, the intelligent learning module generates the additional audio signal based on the typing information and the first original audio signal.

7. The keyboard security device as described in claim 1, wherein the trigger signal is generated by triggering a password input area on a human-computer interface.

8. A keyboard safety device suitable for an environment having a keyboard, a keyboard control module, a microphone module, and an audio signal control module, wherein the keyboard control module is signal-connected to the keyboard, and when the keyboard is used, the keyboard control module outputs typing information; the audio signal control module is signal-connected to the microphone module, and when the microphone module is turned on, the audio signal control module outputs a raw audio signal corresponding to the typing information; the keyboard safety device comprises: a smart learning module signal-connected to the keyboard control module and the audio signal control module, wherein the smart learning module is trained based on first typing information output by the keyboard control module and a first raw audio signal output by the audio signal control module, and the trained smart learning module generates and outputs an additional audio signal based on second typing information output by the keyboard control module; and a mixing sound module signal-connected to the audio signal control module and the smart learning module, for: The system mixes a second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module and the additional audio signal received from the intelligent learning module to generate a mixed audio signal, wherein the second original audio signal corresponds to the second typing information; and outputs the mixed audio signal.

9. A keyboard security method applicable to an environment having a keyboard, a keyboard control module, a microphone module, and an audio signal control module, wherein the keyboard control module is signal-connected to the keyboard and used to output typing information, the audio signal control module is signal-connected to the microphone module, and the keyboard security method comprises: when the microphone module is turned on, obtaining a first original audio signal through the audio signal control module; generating an additional audio signal based on the typing information received from the keyboard control module and the first original audio signal through an intelligent learning module; in response to a trigger signal, mixing the additional audio signal and a second original audio signal received from the audio signal control module through a mixing sound module to generate a mixed audio signal; and outputting the mixed audio signal, wherein: The first original audio signal corresponds to the typing information.

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