Dynamic Challenge-Response Authentication System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current authentication methods, such as password-based systems, are vulnerable to interception and spoofing, and often result in a single security breach compromising multiple secured resources due to shared passwords, leading to inadequate protection of personal and confidential information.
Innovation Solution
An authentication system that generates and communicates a challenge string to users, allowing them to respond with a unique authentication credential, which is then evaluated for validity, while also detecting spoofing attempts and determining the specific secured resource access, ensuring secure and robust authentication without revealing sensitive information to service clients.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If password-based authentication is used, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to vulnerability to interception and spoofing
Solution Approach 1:
The authentication system uses dynamic challenge-response strings that change with each authentication attempt, making static password interception ineffective. The challenge string is generated anew for each session and must be responded to within a time window, creating a dynamic authentication process rather than static password verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary authentication server that mediates between the user and the service. The server generates challenge strings and verifies responses, preventing direct exposure of authentication credentials to service providers and reducing interception risks at the service level.
2Ease of operation
If a single password is used for multiple secured resources, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates as a breach in one resource compromises all resources
Solution Approach 1:
The authentication system segments credentials into resource-specific challenge-response pairs. Each secured resource has its own authentication challenge that must be independently verified, creating security isolation between resources while maintaining user convenience through centralized authentication management.
Solution Approach 2:
Different authentication challenges are applied to different secured resources based on their specific security requirements. Each resource can have customized challenge parameters and verification criteria, allowing localized security policies while using a unified authentication framework.
3Ease of operation
If service clients are provided with full access information, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates as sensitive information becomes vulnerable to exposure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts sensitive authentication information from the service client environment and centralizes it in the authentication server. The service client receives only non-sensitive authentication tokens and challenge parameters, while the sensitive verification logic and secret keys remain server-side, preventing information exposure.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method whereby the identity of a person, entity, device or the like attempting to gain access to a secured resource may be securely authenticated includes a means for receiving from a service client a request for access to a secured resource; means for generating and communicating to the purported authorized user a challenge string adapted to provide a basis for authenticating the identity of the requester; a means for receiving from the service client a response string corresponding to the challenge string; and a means for evaluating the response string to authenticate the identity of the requester. The secured resource has a common identifier by which it may be generally identified outside of the authentication system, but the request for access lacks sufficient information content for the service client to be able to determine the common identifier.