Digital Information Certification With Random Timestamp Chaining
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing digital data certification mechanisms, including centralized and decentralized timestamping solutions, are vulnerable to falsification, and qualified time stamp authorities' timestamps can be easily manipulated, lacking robust security.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that utilizes a random selection of timestamp servers and a chaining process to obtain a distributed timestamp, combined with a cryptographic hash function and optional integration with a qualified timestamp authority and blockchain, to enhance the security and difficulty of falsifying timestamps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a centralized timestamping solution is used, then the certification process is simple and centralized control is achieved, but the timestamp can be easily falsified by the provider
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the timestamping function across multiple independent timestamp servers instead of relying on a single centralized provider. Each server independently timestamps the hash value, and the certification requires successful timestamping from a threshold number of servers, thereby distributing trust and preventing single-point falsification
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges multiple decentralized timestamp servers into a collective certification mechanism. By combining the timestamping capabilities of multiple independent servers and requiring a threshold number to validate the hash, the system achieves both decentralization (preventing falsification) and operational simplicity (through automated threshold-based certification)
2Reliability
If a decentralized timestamping solution is used, then the timestamp falsification difficulty increases, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the parameter of server selection from static to dynamic random selection. By randomly selecting which timestamp servers to query for each certification request, the system prevents attackers from predicting and pre-compromising specific servers, thereby maintaining security without requiring complex dynamic reconfiguration of the entire system architecture
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary random selection of timestamp servers before the actual timestamping request. This preliminary action of randomly determining the server subset and their execution order prevents prediction attacks while maintaining a relatively simple system structure, as the randomness is generated on-demand rather than requiring pre-established complex protocols
3Reliability
If multiple timestamp servers are chained randomly, then the difficulty of falsifying timestamps significantly increases, but the certification process time increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring all available timestamp servers to process each certification request, the system applies partial action by selecting only a random subset of servers (e.g., 3 out of 10). This reduces the total processing time while maintaining security, as compromising a random subset is still computationally infeasible. The excessive security margin is maintained because the subset selection is random and unpredictable
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements periodic random selection of timestamp servers for each certification request. This periodic re-randomization ensures that no fixed pattern emerges that attackers could exploit, while the periodic nature (one random selection per request) keeps the process efficient compared to continuous or multi-phase verification protocols
Data Source
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AI summary
Digital information certification system and method. The method (100) comprises receiving (110) a hash value (5) of first input digital data (4); selecting (120) a subset (7) and an order (122) of timestamp servers (8) from a set (6) of available timestamp servers (8), where at least one of the subset (7) and the order (122) is selected randomly; obtaining (130) a distributed timestamp (16) of the hash value (5) by chaining the timestamps (10) from the subset (7) of timestamp servers (8) according to the selected order; and obtaining (140), from the distributed timestamp (16) of the hash value (5), a certificate (9) of the first input digital data (4). The invention allows for reliable certification of digital information, increasing the difficulty of falsifying the timestamp included in the certification.