IoT Beacon Identity Hashing to Prevent Tracking and Impersonation

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Solution Overview

Problem

IoT devices emit beacons that can reveal identifying information, leading to security and privacy concerns as they can be used to track individuals and impersonate devices, and existing methods fail to adequately address these issues.

Innovation Solution

Implement a system where IoT devices generate anonymized beacons using hash values based on device identity and time units, which are validated and forwarded through intermediate devices to a server, ensuring privacy and security by masking the device's identity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If IoT devices transmit beacons containing device identity information, then device identification and communication are enabled, but security and privacy are compromised due to tracking and impersonation risks

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevice identification reliabilityVSAvoidtracking and impersonation risks

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the device identity information from the beacon payload and replaces it with a hash value. The actual identity is kept separate and only used for validation purposes, effectively removing the harmful element (raw identity data) while preserving the useful function (device identification).

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a hash value as an intermediary between the device identity and the beacon transmission. This intermediary element allows the system to reference device identity without exposing it directly, enabling secure verification while preventing tracking and impersonation. The hash acts as a mediator that preserves identification capability without compromising security.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If beacons contain unhashed device identity, then verification is simplified, but security is weakened allowing unauthorized tracking and impersonation

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveverification simplicityVSAvoidsecurity assurance

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent performs preliminary hashing of the device identity before inclusion in the beacon. This pre-processing step transforms the identity into a secure format that maintains verification capability while preventing security breaches. The hash is computed in advance, so no additional complex operations are needed during beacon validation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the parameter format of device identity from plain text to hashed value. This parameter transformation maintains the uniqueness and verifiability of device identity while eliminating the security vulnerabilities associated with transmitting raw identity data. The hash function transforms the identity parameter into a secure representation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS20250374056A1Secure beacon identity

Publication Date: 2025.12.04 NODLE TECHNOLOGY INC

AI summary

A method may include receiving, from an endpoint device, a request to register a service that is supported by the endpoint device, identifying, in view of the service identified in the request, a service provider of interest that relates to the service, receiving, from the endpoint device, a service connection request to initiate data flow related to the service, validating the endpoint device, and responsive to validating the endpoint device, establishing the service connection to a device associated with the service.