Secure Correlation Identifier for Filtering Unsolicited Notifications
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for filtering unsolicited notifications in distributed computer systems are inadequate, as IP-based filtering is unreliable, content-based filtering is complex and resource-intensive, and correlation ID-based filtering is vulnerable to denial of service attacks.
Innovation Solution
A secure correlation identifier (SCID) authentication system that generates unique SCIDs by concatenating a correlation ID with random bits and a secure tag, allowing for fast verification and rejection of invalid notifications, thereby reducing the risk of denial of service attacks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If IP-based filtering is used to filter unsolicited notifications, then the filtering mechanism is simple to implement, but it is unreliable because IP addresses can be faked or notifications may be sent from different machines
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism (correlation ID verification) between the notification source and the subscriber to establish trusted communication. The correlation ID acts as a mediator that proves the notification originates from an authorized event source, resolving the unreliability of direct IP-based filtering while maintaining implementation simplicity
2Measurement precision
If content-based filtering is used to filter unsolicited notifications, then the filtering accuracy can be improved, but the system complexity and computational cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential authentication element (correlation ID) from the notification content and uses it as the primary filtering criterion. This extraction approach achieves high filtering accuracy by verifying the authenticity of notifications through correlation ID matching, while avoiding the complexity of analyzing entire notification contents
3Speed
If correlation ID-based filtering is used to filter unsolicited notifications, then the verification speed can be improved, but the system becomes vulnerable to denial of service attacks with randomly generated correlation IDs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by pre-establishing a trusted relationship between event sources and subscribers through subscription registration. The event source is pre-authenticated with the subscriber, and only notifications containing correlation IDs from registered event sources are accepted. This preliminary authentication prevents denial of service attacks by blocking randomly generated correlation IDs before they can exploit the verification mechanism
Data Source
AI summary
A secure correlation identifier (SCID) for authentically correlating notifications received from event sources with subscriptions, a SCID authentication system and method of filtering unsolicited messages are provided. The SCID comprises a correlation identifier for making the SCID unique, a sequence of bits concatenated with the correlation identifier and a secure tag concatenated with the concatenation of the correlation identifier and the sequence of bits. The system comprises a SCID generator for generating a SCID to be used in a message and a SCID authenticator for authenticating the SCID. The method comprises the steps of receiving a notification message having a SCID, verifying that that SCID is authentic, accepting the message if the SCID is authentic and rejecting the message if the SCID is not authentic.