Always-on Short Messages for Wireless Network Security

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Solution Overview

Problem

Wireless communication systems face challenges in ensuring always-on short message delivery, particularly in scenarios where unauthorized devices can exploit the lack of periodic short message transmission to cause denial-of-service attacks, leading to potential safety risks and connectivity issues due to non-reception of critical system information change or public warning system notifications.

Innovation Solution

Implementing an always-on short message configuration where base stations transmit short messages at configured periodicity, even when there are no system information changes or public warning system notifications, to ensure user equipment (UE) can initiate mitigation actions upon non-reception, using security keys for integrity verification and allowing UEs to monitor specific or selected reception occasions for these messages.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If base stations transmit short messages only when there are system information changes or public warning notifications, then transmission resources are saved, but the system becomes vulnerable to denial-of-service attacks and reliability decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveshort message delivery reliabilityVSAvoiddenial-of-service attack risk
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements periodic short message transmission at configured intervals regardless of whether system information changes or public warning notifications are present. This periodic action ensures that the communication channel remains active and verifies connectivity, preventing unauthorized devices from exploiting gaps in transmission to launch denial-of-service attacks while maintaining system reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent maintains continuous short message transmission to ensure uninterrupted communication between base stations and user equipment. By transmitting messages continuously at configured periodicity, the system prevents communication gaps that could be exploited by unauthorized devices, thereby eliminating denial-of-service vulnerabilities while preserving reliable message delivery.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #20Continuity of useful action

2Object-affected harmful factors

If base stations transmit short messages at configured periodicity even when no changes or notifications are present, then denial-of-service attack risk is reduced, but transmission resources are consumed

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedenial-of-service attack riskVSAvoidtransmission resource consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs periodic transmission at configured intervals rather than continuous transmission, allowing the system to maintain security by keeping the communication channel active while reducing energy consumption by transmitting only at necessary intervals rather than continuously.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

3Reliability

If UEs monitor specific reception occasions for short messages, then message delivery reliability is improved, but device power consumption increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveshort message reception reliabilityVSAvoidUE power consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent configures UEs to monitor for short messages at specific periodic reception occasions rather than continuously. This periodic monitoring approach ensures reliable reception by checking at predetermined intervals while significantly reducing power consumption compared to continuous monitoring, as the UE can enter low-power states between monitoring occasions.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

Data Source

PatentEP4059270B1Always-on short messages
Publication Date: 2024.06.19 QUALCOMM INC
  • EP4059270B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4059270B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4059270B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Various aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication. In some aspects, a user equipment (UE) may monitor a reception occasion for a short message that includes a system information change notification or a public warning system notification. The UE may initiate a mitigation action related to a radio link with a network based at least in part on non-reception by the UE of the short message in the reception occasion, failure of the short message to pass an integrity check, and/or the like. Numerous other aspects are provided.