Authentication Token Reset Using Implicit Credentials
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current authentication token reset procedures are inconvenient and time-consuming, often requiring users to disable accounts, answer security questions, or follow lengthy email/SMS-based processes, which can lead to non-secure practices or forgotten tokens.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that utilize implicit credentials, such as IP addresses, MAC addresses, time, or biometric data, to reset authentication tokens without requiring the explicit token, allowing temporary access while the reset process is completed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional authentication token reset procedures are used (disabling account, notifying administrator, answering security questions), then security verification is maintained, but user convenience deteriorates and time required increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables users to reset their own authentication tokens automatically by detecting their implicit credentials (IP address, MAC address, device fingerprint) without requiring administrator intervention or manual security question answering. The authentication server autonomously verifies the implicit credential and initiates token reset without user intervention in the verification process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of account disabling, administrator notification, and security question answering with an automated electronic system that detects implicit credentials through network identifiers and biometric data, processing token reset through electronic verification and generation of new tokens.
2Ease of operation
If multiple-step reset procedures (email notification, SMS link, login to email, click link, follow instructions) are implemented, then security control is maintained, but operational simplicity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex intermediate steps of email notification, SMS links, and manual verification from the token reset process. By directly utilizing implicit credentials already present in the authentication request (IP address, MAC address, device fingerprint), the system removes unnecessary procedural layers while maintaining security through automated verification of these inherent identifiers.
3Loss of time
If implicit credentials (IP address, MAC address, time, biometric data) are used for authentication, then ease of operation improves and time is reduced, but security verification must be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs multiple types of implicit credentials (network identifiers like IP and MAC addresses, temporal data, and biometric information) that can be used individually or in combination for authentication. This multi-functional approach ensures that if one credential type is insufficient or compromised, other implicit credentials can provide alternative verification pathways, maintaining security while reducing authentication time.
Data Source
AI summary
For resetting authentication tokens based on implicit credentials, a method is disclosed that includes receiving, by use of a processor, an authentication request, the request requiring an authentication token, the request not including the authentication token, verifying an implicit credential, and resetting the authentication token in response to the implicit credential matching a predefined credential.