Securing Private Key Access for Cross-Component Message Signing

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Solution Overview

Problem

In mobile wireless communication systems, signing a composite email message that includes both a new portion and an original message is challenging due to resource constraints, leading to truncated messages and complex manual processes, which can result in the recipient not receiving the complete context of the original message.

Innovation Solution

A method is introduced where the mobile wireless device detects the need to sign a message, generates an access key, and transmits a request to a server to obtain a private cryptographic key, allowing for the encryption of a hash to form a digital signature, which is then transmitted with the composite message, ensuring end-to-end security and full message context.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the mobile device signs a composite message including both new portion and original message, then end-to-end security is improved, but device resource constraints cause truncation of the original message

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveend-to-end securityVSAvoidmessage size

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The message is divided into a new portion (user-composed) and an original message portion (received previously). The system processes these segments separately - the new portion is signed locally on the device, while the original message portion is retrieved from the server. This segmentation allows the device to maintain security for new content without being forced to store or process the entire original message, resolving the contradiction between security and resource constraints.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The server acts as an intermediary that stores the original message portion and provides it to the mobile device when needed for signing composite messages. This intermediary approach allows the device to access complete message context for security purposes without permanently storing large amounts of data locally, thus maintaining end-to-end security while managing device resource constraints.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Use of energy by moving object

If the mobile device manually processes and truncates messages to fit resource constraints, then device resource usage is optimized, but the recipient does not receive complete message context

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevice resource usageVSAvoidmessage context

Core Design Contradiction:

Use of energy by moving objectVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary retrieval of the original message portion from the server before the signing process begins. By having the complete original message available in advance, the mobile device can sign the composite message (new portion + original message) without needing to truncate or manually process the content, thus avoiding information loss while managing resources efficiently.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The manual mechanical process of truncating and assembling messages is replaced by an automated system that retrieves the original message portion from the server and automatically combines it with the new portion for signing. This substitution eliminates the need for manual intervention and ensures complete message context is maintained while optimizing resource usage through automated processing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Extent of automation

If the system automatically retrieves and processes original messages for signing, then the signing process is automated and user experience is simplified, but server processing requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesigning process automationVSAvoidserver processing power

Core Design Contradiction:

Extent of automationVSPower

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts the original message portion retrieval and processing tasks from the mobile device and places them on the server. The server is responsible for storing original messages, retrieving them when needed, and providing them to the mobile device for signing. This extraction of processing requirements to the server enables automated signing on the device while managing server processing load through efficient message retrieval mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS9166794B2Securing private key access for cross-component message processing

Publication Date: 2015.10.20 MALIKIE INNOVATIONS LTD

AI summary

Often, for reasons of wireless bandwidth conservation, incomplete messages are provided to wireless messaging devices. Employing cryptography, for secrecy or authentication purposes, when including a received message that has been incompletely received can lead to lack of context on the receiver's end. By automatically obtaining the entirety of the message to be included, an outgoing message that includes the received message can be processed in a manner that securely and accurately represents the intended outgoing message. Alternatively, a server can assemble a composite message from a new message and an original message and, in cooperation with a wireless messaging device, sign the composite message. Since signing the composite message involves access to a private key, access to that private key is secured such that such access to the private key can only be arranged responsive to an explicit request for a hash that is to be signed using the private key.