Home Core Network Prepayment Enforcement for Unauthenticated Wireless Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile stations that do not support authentication functionality within wireless serving systems can lead to illegitimate devices engaging in communication, causing home carriers to incur costs for unverified communications, especially for expensive services like international calls.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system that enforces prepayment requirements for mobile stations attempting to register with wireless serving systems that lack authentication functionality, ensuring payment before allowing communication services.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the home carrier allows mobile stations to register with wireless serving systems that do not support authentication functionality, then the mobile station can access communication services, but illegitimate mobile stations may engage in communication causing the home carrier to incur costs
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs authentication verification before allowing the mobile station to access communication services. The home core network entity checks whether the wireless serving system supports authentication functionality prior to granting service access, preventing illegitimate stations from exploiting non-authenticating systems
2Reliability
If the home carrier requires authentication functionality support from wireless serving systems, then legitimate mobile stations can be verified, but mobile stations may be denied service on systems that do not support authentication
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies different service policies based on the local capability of each wireless serving system. Systems that support authentication functionality receive normal service requests, while systems lacking authentication support receive only prepayment-enabled requests. This allows the network to adapt to varying capabilities of different serving systems while maintaining security where possible
3Loss of energy
If the home carrier enforces prepayment requirements for wireless serving systems lacking authentication functionality, then financial losses from illegitimate stations are minimized, but additional complexity is introduced to the service management system
Solution Approach 1:
The home core network entity acts as an intermediary between mobile stations and wireless serving systems, mediating service requests based on the serving system's authentication capabilities. This centralizes the complexity of managing different service policies in one location rather than distributing it across all network elements
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are methods and systems for enforcing prepayment based on lack of support of authentication functionality by a particular wireless serving system. In one embodiment, at least one home-core-network entity associated with a home core network of a mobile station receives from a particular wireless serving system a registration request associated with the mobile station. Responsive to receiving the registration request, the at least one home-core-network entity makes a determination as to whether the particular wireless serving system supports authentication functionality. Responsive to the determination being that the particular wireless serving system does not support authentication functionality, the at least one home-core-network entity sends to the particular wireless serving system a registration response that grants the request subject to at least one prepayment requirement.