Dynamic Certificate Generation for Blocked Domain Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current digital certificate systems fail to provide users with clear information about why access to a domain is blocked, leading to security risks and unnecessary administrative burdens, as standard error messages do not convey the reason for untrusted certificates or potential threats.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for generating a custom error message and certificate in response to a DNS query, using a set of rules to determine access permission, which extracts the domain name and returns a blocked error message with a valid certificate, informing users of the reason for access denial and potential threats, leveraging AI-powered categorization and response policy zones.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If standard error messages are provided when access is blocked, then the system maintains simplicity and ease of operation, but users receive insufficient information about the reason for blocking and potential threats
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-generates certificates for blocked domains before users attempt to access them. When a domain is identified as blocked through DNS query analysis, the system proactively creates a certificate with embedded blocking reasons and threat information, so that when the user encounters the block, comprehensive information is already available without requiring additional system complexity during the blocking event.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a certificate as an intermediary carrier that transports blocking reason information from the security system to the user. Instead of directly communicating complex blocking reasons through error messages, the system embeds this information within a certificate structure that the browser can display, thereby conveying detailed information while maintaining interface simplicity.
2Ease of operation
If manual certificate importing is allowed to bypass untrusted certificate warnings, then users can access secure websites, but security risks increase and business objectives may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides immediate feedback to users about why a certificate is untrusted by displaying blocking reasons and threat categories directly in the certificate warning. Instead of leaving users to manually investigate or guess the reason for the warning, the system feedback loop includes: detecting the blocked domain, generating a certificate with embedded reasons, and presenting this information to the user, thereby maintaining security awareness while enabling informed access decisions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically generates and presents certificates with embedded blocking reasons without requiring manual administrator intervention. When a domain is blocked, the system self-services by creating the appropriate certificate, embedding the blocking reason, and presenting it to the user's browser, thereby reducing administrative burden while maintaining security information delivery.
3Reliability
If administrators must manually investigate and communicate with employees about blocked access reasons, then security control is maintained, but productivity decreases due to redundant communication
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically generates certificates containing blocking reasons and threat information without requiring administrator intervention. When a domain is blocked, the system self-services by creating the appropriate certificate, embedding the blocking reason, and presenting it to the user's browser, thereby reducing administrative burden while maintaining security information delivery.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides immediate feedback to users about why a certificate is untrusted by displaying blocking reasons and threat categories directly in the certificate warning. Instead of leaving users to manually investigate or guess the reason for the warning, the system feedback loop includes: detecting the blocked domain, generating a certificate with embedded reasons, and presenting this information to the user, thereby maintaining security awareness while enabling informed access decisions.
4Adaptability or versatility
If generic error messages are used for blocked access, then the system maintains simplicity, but users cannot distinguish between different types of threats or blocking reasons
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by customizing certificate information based on the specific blocking reason for each domain. Instead of using a uniform error message for all blocked domains, the system embeds different blocking reasons, threat categories, and security information into certificates on a per-domain basis. This allows the error message system to remain structurally simple while providing differentiated, context-specific information for each blocking scenario.
Data Source
AI summary
Certificate generation is provided by the rule set of an AI-powered extension used to categorize the domains and restrict access to the specific categories of websites. As a result, a user may receive a return “blocked” error page with a valid certificate. If the domain falls under a category of rules, in response to a user's DNS query, the domain name is extracted from the header of the query; a certificate is generated based on the domain's name; a “Blocked” error page (with a valid certificate) using a route certificate is returned. Thus, a valid error page informs the client why the website cannot be reached, in which category/-ies it has been included, and what level of threat this page has.