Trust Client Mediator for Mobile App Data Security
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mobile payment applications face challenges in securely managing sensitive data without relying heavily on secure elements (SE) or trusted execution environments (TEE), as neither is ideal for enabling applications in the main execution environment of a mobile device to use sensitive data effectively.
Innovation Solution
A method is introduced that establishes a trust relationship between a trust client in a secondary execution environment and a remote trusted party, allowing a mobile application to operate in the regular execution environment while leveraging the more secure trusted execution environment for sensitive data management, using biometric authentication and cryptographic key pairs to ensure secure data handling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a secure element (SE) or trusted execution environment (TEE) is used to hold secure data, then data security is improved, but application functionality and ease of operation in the main execution environment deteriorates due to significant logical separation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a trust client as an intermediary component that bridges the main execution environment and the trusted execution environment. The trust client establishes trust relationships with remote trusted parties and manages sensitive data items, allowing the payment application to operate in the main execution environment while securely handling sensitive data through the trust client's coordination with the TEE. This mediator approach resolves the contradiction by enabling application functionality in the main environment while maintaining data security through the intermediary trust management layer.
2Reliability
If significant parts of application functionality are moved into an SE or TEE, then data security is improved, but device complexity and implementation difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the system into distinct functional components: a payment application in the main execution environment, a trust client in the trusted execution environment, and remote trusted parties. The trust client is further divided into authentication functionality and sensitive data item management functionality. This segmentation allows the payment application to remain simple and functional in the main environment while the TEE handles security-critical operations, reducing overall implementation complexity compared to moving all functionality into the TEE.
3Reliability
If a trust relationship is established between a trust client in the second execution environment and a remote trusted party, then secure data management is improved, but authentication process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-establishing trust relationships between the trust client and remote trusted parties before actual payment operations. The trust client pre-authenticates with the remote trusted party and obtains authorization in advance. This preliminary setup simplifies subsequent payment operations, as the authentication framework is already in place, reducing the complexity of real-time authentication processes while maintaining secure data management.
Data Source
AI summary
A mobile computing device has at least one processor and at least one memory together providing a first execution environment and a second execution environment logically isolated from the first execution environment. The following approach is taken to manage data items for an application executing the first execution environment. A trust relationship is established between a trust client in the second execution environment and a remote trusted party and the trust client receives one or more data items from the remote trusted party. On executing the application in the first execution environment, the trust client provides the data items or further data items derived therefrom to the application. Provision of these data items may be conditional upon a user authentication process. A suitable mobile computing device is also described.