Probabilistically Searchable Encrypted Message Metadata

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional encrypted messages are not searchable by service providers, compromising privacy and convenience, as encryption obfuscates message contents, preventing indexing and search functionality.

Innovation Solution

A method for generating probabilistically searchable messages by cryptographically hashing words from textual messages, mapping them to tokens, and storing these tokens as metadata, allowing search engines to index and search encrypted messages without revealing their contents.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If messages are encrypted to prevent unwanted parties from reading them, then security and privacy are improved, but searchability and convenience deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemessage securityVSAvoidmessage searchability

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The message is segmented into two parts: encrypted content (for security) and searchable tokens/metadata (for searchability). The tokens are generated from the message content but stored separately as metadata, allowing search operations without decrypting the main message body.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Searchable tokens act as an intermediary between the encrypted message and the search engine. These tokens are derived from the message content through hashing and mapping processes, enabling the search engine to index and search messages without accessing the actual encrypted content.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If service providers can search encrypted messages, then convenience is improved, but user privacy may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesearch convenienceVSAvoidmessage privacy

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of giving service providers access to the original message content, the system creates a copy in the form of searchable tokens. These tokens capture the essential searchability of the message content while containing no readable or meaningful information about the actual message, thus preserving privacy while enabling search functionality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The message content is transformed through cryptographic hashing and token mapping processes, changing its parameters from readable text to unreadable token sequences. This transformation maintains the searchability property while eliminating the privacy risk, as the transformed tokens cannot be reverse-engineered to reveal the original message.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS10114900B2Methods and systems for generating probabilistically searchable messages

Publication Date: 2018.10.30 VIRTRU CORP

AI summary

A computer-implemented method for generating probabilistically searchable messages includes obtaining, by a computing device, a textual message. The method includes extracting, by the computing device, from the textual message, a plurality of words. The method includes cryptographically hashing, by the computing device, each word of the plurality of words. The method includes mapping, by the computing device, each cryptographically hashed word to a plurality of tokens. The method includes generating, by the computing device, a set of tokens associated with the textual message, the set of tokens including each plurality of tokens associated with each cryptographically hashed word. The method includes storing, by the computing device, the set of tokens associated with the textual message in metadata associated with the textual message.