Obscured Security Term Entry via Predefined Padding Scheme
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face the risk of their electronic security terms being compromised when entering them, as nefarious entities can view or obtain the terms, leading to unauthorized access to restricted resources.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that require users to enter security terms in an obscured form using a predefined padding scheme, which is then de-padded for verification, and denies access if the same obscured term is reused within a predetermined time or number of attempts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If users enter security terms in plain form, then ease of operation is improved, but security reliability deteriorates as nefarious entities can view and obtain the terms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a screen as an intermediary physical barrier between the user and the nefarious entity. The screen allows the user to view the keyboard and enter the security term correctly while preventing the nefarious entity from viewing the entered characters. This intermediary object resolves the contradiction by maintaining both ease of operation (user can see what they are typing) and security reliability (observer cannot see the input).
2Reliability
If padding characters are added to obscure the security term, then security reliability is improved, but device complexity increases due to padding scheme requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of the security term from its original form to a padded form by adding extra characters at the beginning and/or end. This parameter transformation obscures the actual security term within the padded version, making it difficult for nefarious entities to identify the true password even if they observe the entry. The system validates by removing the padding characters and comparing the core security term, thus improving security reliability without requiring complex cryptographic operations.
3Reliability
If security term is padded with additional characters, then security reliability is improved by preventing observation attacks, but ease of operation deteriorates due to additional entry steps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies padding to the security term in advance before the user enters it. The padding scheme is pre-defined and stored in the system, so when the user enters the padded security term, the system already knows how to process it. This preliminary preparation of the security term with padding characters simplifies the validation process and maintains ease of operation, as the user only needs to enter the padded term without understanding the underlying processing logic.
Data Source
AI summary
A security service determines whether to grant a user access to a resource. The service receives from the user a security term in an obscured form derived from a revealed form of the security term according to a predefined padding scheme known to the user and to the security service. The service applies the padding scheme to the received term to result in a de-padded security term and confirms that the de-padded security term matches the retrieved revealed security term. Additionally, the service confirms that the received term has not been previously employed within a predetermined frame of reference. Accordingly, if the received obscured security term is purloined and re-used within the predetermined frame of reference, the security service denies access to the resource.