Location Freshness Policy for Mobile Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional GPS location services consume significant power and can be slow, leading to battery drain and authentication delays or failures due to poor satellite reception, especially when frequent location updates are required for authentication.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method that allows the use of earlier-acquired location information within a designated freshness interval and switching to alternative location determination methods like cellular triangulation or WiFi-based methods when GPS signals are weak, with automatic determination of freshness intervals and permissible methods based on additional factors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If GPS location services are used frequently for authentication, then authentication reliability is improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary location determination and caches the location information before authentication is needed. The cached location data with its timestamp is stored and reused for subsequent authentication requests within a valid time window, avoiding repeated GPS activations and reducing power consumption while maintaining authentication reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the location freshness threshold based on authentication risk assessment. When authentication risk is low, older cached location data is accepted, reducing power consumption. When risk is high, the system requires fresher location data, maintaining security. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction between reliability and power consumption.
2Measurement precision
If GPS location services are activated for each authentication request, then location accuracy is improved, but authentication time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system determines location in advance and caches it before authentication is required. When authentication requests arrive, the system can immediately use the pre-determined cached location data, eliminating the time delay of real-time GPS acquisition while maintaining location accuracy within the valid time window.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a copy of the location data and stores it in cache for reuse. Instead of repeatedly acquiring fresh GPS data for each authentication request, the system copies the cached location information and uses it multiple times within the validity period, reducing authentication time while preserving location accuracy.
3Loss of information
If GPS location services are used when satellite reception is weak, then location information can be obtained, but authentication failures increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs location determination in advance when GPS satellite reception is strong and caches the location data. When authentication is needed during periods of weak satellite reception, the system uses the previously cached location information rather than attempting real-time GPS acquisition, ensuring authentication success while maintaining location information availability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system prepares location data in advance and stores it as a buffer or cushion against future authentication needs. This pre-prepared location information acts as a safeguard that ensures authentication can proceed successfully even when GPS reception is weak at the time of authentication, preventing authentication failures.
Data Source
AI summary
Improved techniques are directed to a method performed by a computing device of authenticating a mobile client device to a resource using location services. The method includes (a) receiving authentication requests from the mobile client device, the authentication requests each including a location freshness value indicating a respective amount of time that has passed since the mobile client device last determined its location, (b) testing the location freshness value received in each authentication request against a location freshness policy to generate a freshness result indicating whether the location freshness value complies with the location freshness policy, (c) generating an authentication response for each authentication request based at least in part on the location freshness result for that authentication request, and (d) directing the authentication response to be sent to the resource. A computerized apparatus and a computer program product for performing methods similar to that described above are also provided.