Secure Element Biometric Transaction Binding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cybersecurity solutions fail to securely integrate user identity with data protection and transaction control, leading to vulnerabilities in untrusted computing environments, where authentication and authorization are not adequately linked, and biometric information is compromised due to unsecured storage and handling on user computers.
Innovation Solution
A system with a secure area that includes a secure processor and memory, separate from the main user system, which binds biometric authentication information with transaction data using hash functions to ensure secure transactions by preventing unauthorized access and hijacking, using a standalone portable device or chip that generates unique passcodes based on biometric data and transaction information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If cryptography keys are stored on the user's computer or chip executing the operating system, then convenience of access is improved, but security is worsened because the computer can be compromised and keys accessed by attackers
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the computing environment into a trusted secure element and an untrusted host system. The secure element is a separate hardware component that physically isolates cryptographic key storage and biometric authentication from the main computer system, preventing attackers who compromise the host from accessing keys or biometric data.
Solution Approach 2:
The secure element acts as an intermediary between the user and the host system. It receives biometric authentication requests from the host, performs verification internally, and returns authentication results without exposing biometric templates or cryptographic keys to the host system, thus maintaining security while enabling convenient access.
2Speed
If biometric information is stored and processed on the user's computer, then authentication speed is improved, but security is worsened due to vulnerable storage and handling of biometric data
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates biometric data processing from the main computer system by implementing it within the secure element. This segmentation allows fast local authentication processing while protecting biometric templates from exposure to the untrusted host environment, as the templates never leave the secure element.
Solution Approach 2:
The secure element provides a localized secure processing environment specifically for biometric authentication. Within this localized environment, biometric templates are stored and processed with high security guarantees, while still enabling rapid authentication responses through local processing rather than remote verification.
3Ease of operation
If the web browser is used for user authentication and action authorization, then user interface convenience is improved, but security is worsened because the browser cannot be trusted to maintain the connection between authentication and authorization
Solution Approach 1:
The secure element serves as a trusted intermediary that maintains the critical link between authentication and authorization. It verifies user identity through biometric authentication and then directly controls authorization decisions for actions, preventing the web browser from hijacking or manipulating the authentication-authorization connection while still allowing the browser to provide the user interface.
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts the critical security function of maintaining authentication-authorization integrity from the untrusted web browser environment and places it in the trusted secure element. This extraction removes the vulnerability where browsers could be compromised to disconnect authentication from authorization, while preserving the browser's role in providing convenient user interaction.
4Reliability
If a secure area separate from the main user system is implemented, then security is improved, but device complexity is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a secure element as a separate hardware component with its own processor and memory, physically segmented from the main computer system. This segmentation provides robust security isolation while using standardized interfaces to minimize the complexity of integration and interaction between the secure element and host system.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems are provided for performing a secure transaction. Users register biometric and/or other identifying information. A registration code and an encryption key are generated from the biometric information and/or information obtained from a unpredictable physical process and are stored in a secure area of a device and also transmitted to a service provider. A transaction passcode generator may be computed based on the stored registration code. In at least one embodiment, a unique transaction passcode depends upon the transaction information, so that on the next step of that transaction, only that unique transaction passcode will be valid. In an embodiment, the passcode includes the transaction information. In at least one embodiment, if the transaction information has been altered relative to the transaction information stored in the device's secure area, then the transaction passcode sent during this step will be invalid and transaction may be aborted.