Base Station Time Alignment via Authentication Message Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
In LTE security architectures, base stations face security threats due to incorrect local time, which can lead to invalid or expired digital certificate authentication issues, especially when disconnected for a long time, necessitating a clock component and battery installation to obtain accurate time, resulting in increased costs and resource wastage.
Innovation Solution
A time check method for base stations that receives and extracts time information from authentication interaction messages before establishing an IKE connection with a security gateway, allowing for accurate local time alignment without the need for a clock component or battery, thereby ensuring secure authentication.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a clock component and battery are installed on the base station to maintain accurate time, then the time accuracy is improved, but the device cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an authentication interaction device as an intermediary that provides time information during the authentication process. The base station extracts time information from authentication messages received from this intermediary device, eliminating the need for local clock components and batteries while maintaining accurate time for certificate validation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical clock component and battery system with an information-based time acquisition method. Instead of using physical time-keeping hardware, the base station obtains time information through authentication interaction messages, substituting a mechanical system with an information processing approach.
2Measurement precision
If a clock component and battery are installed on the base station to maintain accurate time, then the time accuracy is improved, but the manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The authentication interaction device serves as an intermediary that supplies time information during authentication. This eliminates the need to manufacture and install clock components and batteries in the base station, thereby reducing manufacturing costs while maintaining time accuracy for security certificate validation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical time-keeping system with an information-based approach, substituting physical components that require manufacturing with a software-based time acquisition method through authentication messages, thereby reducing manufacturing complexity and cost.
3Device complexity
If the base station uses local time without external time checking, then the device complexity is reduced, but the security reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary time alignment by extracting and using time information from authentication interaction messages before establishing the IKE connection. This preliminary action ensures that the base station has accurate time for certificate validation without requiring continuous local time-keeping hardware, thus maintaining security reliability while keeping device complexity low.
Solution Approach 2:
The authentication interaction device acts as an intermediary that provides authoritative time information during the authentication process. This external time reference ensures security reliability for certificate validity checking without requiring the base station to maintain complex local time-keeping systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A time check method and a base station are provided. The base station receives an authentication interaction message sent by an authentication interaction device; extracts time information in the authentication interaction message; and uses the time information to check local time. Before an Internet Key Exchange (IKE) connection is set up between the base station and a security gateway, relatively accurate time is obtained from an external authentication interaction device and is used for aligning the local time. Therefore, the cost of installing a clock component and a battery is saved, the time on the base station is trustworthy, and the security gateway is authenticated securely.