DNS-Based Device Geolocation Fraud Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current geolocation techniques are vulnerable to fraud as they can be easily manipulated, making it difficult to accurately verify the location of devices, particularly in financial transactions, which can lead to fraudulent activities.
Innovation Solution
The system employs DNS resolution and IP geolocation databases to verify the location of a device by comparing the purported location with the location determined from resolved IP addresses, using signal propagation times for triangulation, and denying services if inconsistencies exceed a threshold, thereby enhancing fraud detection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If GPS coordinates are used for geolocation, then location information can be obtained, but the system is vulnerable to fraud as location can be easily manipulated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces DNS resolution as an intermediary mechanism between the device and the final location verification. Instead of directly trusting GPS coordinates, the system uses DNS queries to resolve domain names to IP addresses, and then uses geolocation databases to determine the actual location of those IP addresses. This intermediary process provides an independent verification method that is difficult to manipulate, thereby resolving the contradiction between obtaining location information and resisting fraud.
2Reliability
If multiple geolocation verification methods are implemented, then fraud detection capability is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the existing DNS resolution infrastructure serve multiple functions: its primary function of resolving domain names to IP addresses, and a secondary function of providing location verification data. By extracting location information from the DNS geolocation database and comparing it with GPS coordinates, the system achieves fraud detection without adding separate dedicated verification hardware or complex protocols, thus resolving the contradiction between improved fraud detection and system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
In various situations, it may be desirable to know the location of a device requesting services, and to confirm that the device is at an actual location that coincides with the purported location of the device. In order to verify that a device is actually at its purported location, the device may be instructed to perform DNS (domain name system) lookups to resolve a set of given network domain names and to thereby find network addresses that are associated with the domain names Geolocation databases are then consulted to determine the locations of the hosts associated with the network addresses. These locations are checked for consistency with the purported location of the device, and services may be denied if inconsistencies are found.