Wireless Network Security Using Physical Gesture Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current digital mechanisms for regulating access to wireless networks are inconvenient, insecure, and vulnerable to malicious attacks, particularly in IoT devices, as they rely on passwords and usernames that can be easily compromised, leading to leakage of personal information and increased risk of keystroke inference attacks.
Innovation Solution
A wireless network security system that uses a DHCP server, an authorising device, and a verifying device, coupled through a distributed ledger infrastructure, which requires physical actions to authenticate devices, eliminating the need for passwords and usernames, and utilizing a Candidate Joining Device Record on a distributed ledger to manage device access, ensuring secure and controlled network entry.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If digital password mechanisms are used for network access control, then ease of operation is improved, but security is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces digital/password-based authentication mechanisms with physical action-based authentication. Users must perform specific physical gestures (e.g., hand movements, body positioning) that are detected by sensors on the device, thereby substituting the mechanical/digital password entry system with a physical biometric authentication system that is harder to compromise.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary verification layer between the user and network access. A trusted device (such as a smartphone or authentication token) acts as a mediator that must physically verify the user's identity through sensor-detected gestures before granting network access, adding a security intermediary that prevents direct password compromise.
2Ease of operation
If passwords are shared with others, then ease of operation is improved, but control over access is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the possibility of password sharing by replacing the shared secret (password) with a non-transferable physical authentication mechanism. Each user's physical gestures are unique and cannot be transferred to another device or person, maintaining control over access while enabling ease of operation for authorized users.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary verification of the user's physical identity before granting access rights. By requiring physical gesture verification in advance of network connection, the system ensures that only authenticated users can access the network, preventing unauthorized sharing while maintaining convenience for legitimate users.
3Reliability
If physical actions are required for authentication, then security is improved, but device complexity is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service authentication where the user's own body serves as the authentication mechanism. The device's sensors detect physical gestures that the user naturally performs, eliminating the need for external authentication servers or complex verification infrastructure, thereby improving security while managing device complexity through self-contained authentication.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces complex digital authentication infrastructure with simpler physical sensor detection. Instead of requiring sophisticated password management systems, the invention uses basic sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes, cameras) to detect physical gestures, reducing system complexity while enhancing security through physical biometric verification.
Data Source
AI summary
Traditional Media Access Channel (MAC) address filtering used to prevent a device from gaining access to a wireless network requires an operator to manually enter the MAC address of the undesirable device into the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server of the wireless network. However, the present invention does not require or permit manual entry of MAC addresses into the DHCP server. Instead, unique identifiers of devices seeking permission to join the wireless network are contained in a Candidate Joining Device (CJD) Record which resides on a distributed ledger technology infrastructure. The use of a distributed ledger infrastructure, prevents unauthorised users from modifying MAC address records in a DHCP server to grant an unauthorised device access to a wireless network, as any such modification to a CJD Record must be read from and accepted by the members of the distributed ledger infrastructure in accordance with the consensus mechanism thereof.