Proxy Authentication for Unauthenticated Personal Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manual configuration of mobile devices for wireless network access is error-prone and inefficient, requiring significant human intervention and resulting in duplicate configurations when devices are upgraded or added for a single subscriber.
Innovation Solution
A system that allows an authenticated electronic device to proxy the registration, authentication, and configuration of unauthenticated devices, reducing human intervention by using the authenticated device to transmit identifiers and access information over a personal area network, thereby automating the network access and billing setup.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual configuration is used to provision mobile devices with network access information, then human intervention is required for device setup, but configuration errors and duplicate steps increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables devices to automatically provision themselves by detecting nearby authenticated devices and using them as proxies for authentication. The unauthenticated device initiates a discovery process, selects an appropriate proxy, and automatically completes registration without manual technician intervention, thereby eliminating configuration errors while maintaining ease of use
Solution Approach 2:
Authenticated devices serve as intermediaries or proxies between unauthenticated devices and the authentication server. These proxies handle the authentication requests on behalf of unauthenticated devices, enabling automatic configuration while maintaining security through the authenticated device's existing credentials
2Adaptability or versatility
If manual configuration is performed for each mobile device, then individual provisioning is achieved, but time consumption and resource waste increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary authentication and provisioning actions for a primary device, then leverages those pre-completed actions to automatically configure additional devices. The discovery and selection of proxy devices occurs before the actual authentication, allowing bulk provisioning to benefit from the time saved in repeated manual configuration steps
3Device complexity
If authenticated devices proxy authentication requests, then server complexity is reduced, but device security exposure may increase
Solution Approach 1:
Authenticated devices act as secure intermediaries that forward authentication requests to the server using their own established credentials. This intermediary approach allows the server to remain simpler while maintaining security, as the proxy devices handle the sensitive authentication logic and never expose their keys to unauthenticated devices or the server
Data Source
AI summary
Communication systems, media, and methods for authenticating and registering unauthenticated electronic devices are provided. The communication systems include authorized electronic devices that proxy authentication and registration for one or more unauthenticated electronic devices. The unauthenticated electronic devices connect to the authenticated electronic device over a personal area network and initiate a communication session—via the authenticated electronic devices—with an authentication server located on a secure broadband wireless network that connects the one or more authenticated electronic devices. When the authentication server authorizes the unauthenticated electronic devices to access the secure broadband wireless network, network configuration data is communicated to the unauthenticated electronic devices via the authenticated electronic devices.