Secure Alternative Representation for Encrypted Numerical Data

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Solution Overview

Problem

Cloud storage users face challenges in securely retrieving encrypted data due to the difficulty in searching and retrieving encrypted numerical data, which compromises privacy and convenience.

Innovation Solution

A method and computer product that generate secure alternative representations for numerical data by associating semi-finished conditions with secret parameters, determining satisfaction of these conditions, and concatenating result elements to create a secure index or trapdoor for encrypted data, allowing secure data retrieval without revealing the actual content.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If data are encrypted before being stored in cloud servers, then privacy protection is improved, but searching and retrieving data becomes difficult or impossible

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveprivacy protectionVSAvoiddata searching and retrieval
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (secure index/trapdoor) that mediates between encrypted data and search queries. The secure index is generated from the encrypted data without revealing the plaintext, while still enabling efficient search operations. This intermediary structure allows the system to maintain both privacy protection and searchability simultaneously.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent segments the data protection mechanism into multiple components: the original encrypted data, the secure index (generated from the encrypted data), and the search trapdoor. This segmentation allows different parts of the system to serve different functions - the encrypted data maintains privacy while the secure index enables search operations without exposing the underlying plaintext information.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If personal information is replaced with anonymous linking codes, then privacy protection is improved, but data processing and retrieval efficiency deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveprivacy protectionVSAvoiddata processing efficiency
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by pre-generating secure indexes from the encrypted data during the data storage phase. These secure indexes are prepared in advance and stored alongside the encrypted data, so that when search operations are needed, the system can immediately use the pre-computed indexes without performing complex processing on the encrypted data itself, thus maintaining high processing efficiency.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Reliability

If encrypted data is stored in cloud servers, then data security is improved, but the complexity of the retrieval mechanism increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedata securityVSAvoidretrieval mechanism complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements self-service by enabling the encrypted data itself to generate its own secure index without requiring external decryption or complex processing. The secure index is derived directly from the encrypted data structure, allowing the data to essentially service its own retrieval needs while maintaining security. This reduces the complexity of the overall retrieval mechanism.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP3667540B1Method and computer program product for generating secure alternative representation for numerical datum
Publication Date: 2021.04.21 IND TECH RES INST
  • EP3667540B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3667540B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP3667540B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

A method for generating secure alternative representation for a numerical datum, being performed in a processing system comprising a processing unit coupled to a storage unit, is provide. The method comprises: receiving the numerical datum; providing a plurality of semi-finished conditions; associating each of the semi-finished conditions with one or more secret parameters to form a plurality of secret conditions; for each of the secret conditions: determining whether the numerical datum satisfies the secret condition; outputting a first character as a result element if the numerical datum satisfies the secret condition; and outputting a second character as the result element if the numerical datum does not satisfy the secret condition; and concatenating each result element being output corresponding to the secret conditions as an alternative representation for the numerical datum.