Vendor-Specific Tokenization for Secure Sensitive Data Transactions

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

The security of sensitive data, such as credit card numbers and social security numbers, is compromised due to vulnerabilities in vendor systems, leading to potential identity theft and credit card fraud, despite encryption measures.

Innovation Solution

A system and method for tokenizing sensitive data using a proprietary algorithm to generate vendor-specific tokens and identifiers, ensuring secure transactions without storing the actual data, and periodically updating these tokens to enhance security.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If sensitive data is stored and transmitted in plaintext or even encrypted form across multiple vendor systems, then transaction functionality is enabled, but security vulnerabilities increase and data breaches become more likely

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata securityVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the sensitive data from the vendor systems entirely, replacing it with tokenized representations. The actual sensitive data never resides in vendor databases, eliminating the security vulnerability while maintaining transaction functionality through token-based references.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a tokenization service as an intermediary between the user and vendor systems. This service generates and manages tokens that represent sensitive data, allowing vendors to process transactions without directly handling or storing the actual sensitive information.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If sensitive data is collected and stored by multiple vendors for transaction processing, then transaction convenience is improved, but the attack surface for security breaches expands

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetransaction convenienceVSAvoidsecurity threats

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates token copies that represent sensitive data without containing the actual sensitive information. These token copies can be freely distributed to multiple vendors for transaction processing, maintaining convenience while eliminating security risks associated with duplicating sensitive data.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Reliability

If encryption is applied to sensitive data at rest and in transit, then data protection is enhanced, but computational overhead and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata protectionVSAvoidprocessing speed

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent performs tokenization as a preliminary action during the initial data collection phase. Once tokenized, the tokens can be processed, stored, and transmitted without requiring cryptographic operations, significantly reducing computational overhead for subsequent transactions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS20260080398A1Tokenizing sensitive data

Publication Date: 2026.03.19 WORLDPAY LLC

AI summary

Included are embodiments for tokenizing sensitive data. Some embodiments of systems and/or methods are configured to receive sensitive data from a vendor, determine a token key for the vendor, and utilize a proprietary algorithm, based on the token key to generate a vendor-specific token that is associated with the sensitive data. Some embodiments include creating a token identifier that comprises data related to the token key sending the vendor-specific token and the token identifier to the vendor.