UE Consent Signaling for Secure Edge Location Access

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing systems lack secure mechanisms for ensuring user consent before accessing user equipment (UE) location information in edge computing networks, potentially exposing sensitive data to unauthorized entities.

Innovation Solution

The UE provides an indication of user consent to the network using protected messages during initial registration, configuration update, or PDU session establishment procedures, ensuring that the consent is not modified and maintaining data security.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If the network accesses UE location information to establish connections, then connection establishment efficiency is improved, but user privacy security deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveconnection establishment efficiencyVSAvoiduser privacy security

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent obtains user consent for location information access before actually accessing the location data. This preliminary action of securing authorization ensures that while the network can efficiently establish connections using location information, user privacy is protected through prior consent validation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a consent indication as an intermediary mechanism between the user's location data and the network's access requests. This intermediary ensures that location information is only accessed when proper user authorization exists, resolving the conflict between efficient connection establishment and privacy security.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Adaptability or versatility

If user consent indication is transmitted without protection, then network functionality is improved, but data security deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenetwork functionalityVSAvoiddata security

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies integrity protection and encryption to the consent indication and location information before transmission. This preliminary protective action prevents potential tampering or unauthorized access, ensuring that network functionality is maintained while data security is preserved through cryptographic safeguards.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent transforms the consent indication from unprotected plain text to protected encoded data through integrity protection and encryption. This parameter change in the data format maintains the functional utility of the consent information while significantly enhancing its security against unauthorized modification or access.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP4193785B1Security protection on user consent for edge computing

Publication Date: 2026.03.11 APPLE INC

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AI summary

The exemplary embodiments relate to a user equipment (UE) providing an indication of user consent to a network for access to UE information. The UE may perform operations including transmitting an indication of user consent to a first network. The user consent corresponds to a network function acquiring UE information. The operations also include transmitting the UE information to the first network and establishing a connection with a second network. The network function performs operations related to establishing the connection between the UE and the second network using the UE information.