Random Code Pattern Encoding for Secure Identity Data Access
Solution Overview
Problem
Personal information on user devices such as identity cards, credit cards, and debit cards is vulnerable to theft, as encoded information can be extracted using ingenious methods, compromising security.
Innovation Solution
A system that encodes user information with a random code pattern and assigns a personal identifier, requiring both the code pattern and identifier to access the information, thereby adding an extra layer of security, making it difficult for unauthorized access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If personal information is displayed on user devices in encoded form (QR code, bar code, digital encoding), then authorized decoders can access the information, but perpetrators can still extract the encoded information using ingenious methods
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides user information into two separate components: a random code pattern (which can be displayed on the device) and a personal identifier (which remains with the user). Neither component alone can reveal the user information, as the random code pattern maps to different information for different users. This segmentation prevents perpetrators from extracting useful information by simply reading the code pattern.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces a mapping table as an intermediary between the random code pattern and the actual user information. The mapping table, stored securely in a database, contains the associations between code patterns, personal identifiers, and user information. This intermediary layer ensures that the random code pattern itself does not contain the user information, adding security while maintaining ease of access for authorized decoders.
2Reliability
If a mapping table stores associations between code patterns and user information, then authorized decoders can query user information, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables authorized decoders to self-verify user information by querying the mapping table with the random code pattern and personal identifier. The mapping table automatically returns the user information if the combination is valid, or indicates invalidity if not. This self-service mechanism simplifies the authorization process while maintaining security, reducing the need for complex manual verification procedures.
3Reliability
If random code patterns are assigned to users instead of traditional encoded information, then the code pattern alone provides no useful information to perpetrators, but the decoding process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The random code pattern serves multiple functions: it acts as a unique identifier for the user's device, a key for querying the mapping table, and a display element that provides no useful information to perpetrators when viewed alone. The personal identifier serves as both a security credential and a query parameter. This multi-functionality approach maintains ease of operation while enhancing security.
Data Source
AI summary
A system is provided for encoding user information. The system is configured to generate a random code pattern, assign the random code pattern to a user, assign a personal identifier of the user to the random code pattern, map a combination of the random code pattern and the personal identifier to user information associated with the user, and store an association of the random code pattern and the personal identifier to the user information in a mapping table. The system is further configured to receive from a decoder a query comprising the random code pattern and the personal identifier of the user, wherein the decoder is configured to decode the random code pattern. The system determines based on the mapping table, the user information mapped to the combination of the random code pattern and the personal identifier and transmits the user information to the decoder.