Authentication Interface Using User-Specified Noise Symbols
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional authentication systems require an exact match for credentials, which are vulnerable to eavesdropping attacks due to noise introduced by communication channels and expose users to security risks from shoulder surfers, keyloggers, and man-in-the-middle attacks, as they expose the exact credential during authentication.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of user-specified noise symbols interspersed within credentials, where the authenticator decomposes submitted symbols into vectors and uses a distance metric to determine a match without knowing the position or type of noise symbols, enhancing security by preventing eavesdroppers from determining the actual credential.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional exact match authentication is used, then authentication simplicity is maintained, but security against eavesdropping and credential exposure is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces noise symbols as an intermediary element between the user's credential and the authentication system. These noise symbols are inserted at predetermined positions within the credential string, acting as a mediator that obscures the actual credential from eavesdroppers while allowing the system to still verify authentication through the noise-tolerant comparison mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of credential comparison from exact match to approximate match with noise tolerance. By modifying the authentication mechanism to accommodate and ignore noise symbols at predetermined positions, the system transitions from requiring perfect credential matches to allowing matches with controlled deviations, thereby enhancing security without completely complicating the authentication process.
2Reliability
If noise symbols are added to credentials, then security against eavesdropping is improved, but ease of operation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-determining the positions where noise symbols will be inserted before the authentication process begins. This allows users to understand in advance that certain positions will contain non-credential characters, making the credential entry process more predictable and easier to operate while still providing security benefits.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a copying approach where the noise symbol pattern is replicated consistently across authentication attempts. By maintaining a consistent pattern of noise symbol insertion at predetermined positions, the system creates a reliable template that users can follow, making the operation easier while the randomization of actual noise characters maintains security.
3Reliability
If noise symbols are randomly placed, then security against discerning actual credential is improved, but complexity of authentication processing increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the credential string into distinct portions: credential characters and noise symbol positions. By dividing the authentication string into these segments with predetermined noise positions, the system can process only the relevant credential portions while ignoring the noise symbols, reducing processing complexity compared to randomly placed noise throughout the entire string.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating noise symbols at specific predetermined positions rather than randomly distributing them throughout the entire credential string. This localized approach to noise placement maintains security by obscuring the credential at critical positions while minimizing the overall processing complexity by limiting noise to specific regions rather than the entire string.
Data Source
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AI summary
Disclosed in some examples are methods, systems and machine-readable mediums which allow for more secure authentication attempts by implementing authentication systems with credentials that include interspersed noise symbols in positions determined by the user. These systems secure against eavesdroppers such as shoulder-surfers or man-in-the middle attacks as it is difficult for an eavesdropper to separate the noise symbols from legitimate credential symbols.