Wireless Network Authentication via Public Key Cryptography
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional advertising frameworks for wireless networks are limited in their ability to transmit advertisements to users not connected to the network, and lack security mechanisms to verify the authenticity of unrequested content, leading to potential risks of displaying unwanted or fraudulent advertisements.
Innovation Solution
Implementing security mechanisms such as public key cryptography to authenticate wireless access points and verify the authenticity of control messages, allowing client devices to selectively display advertisements and prevent fraudulent content by obtaining trust information from out-of-band sources.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If advertisements are transmitted to client devices not connected to the wireless network, then the advertising reach is improved, but the security risk increases due to potential fraudulent content
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary authentication of the wireless access point using public key cryptography before transmitting or displaying advertisements. The client device obtains the access point's public key in advance, verifies the authentication tag on incoming advertisement messages, and only displays content from verified sources. This preliminary security check enables broad advertising reach while preventing fraudulent content from unauthenticated sources.
2Reliability
If security verification mechanisms are implemented for unrequested content, then the reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the cryptographic verification functionality into a dedicated security module within the client device. This module specifically handles public key verification and authentication tag validation, separating these complex operations from the general advertising display logic. By isolating the security verification functions, the system achieves high reliability for content authentication while managing device complexity through modular design.
3Reliability
If public key cryptography is used to authenticate access points, then the security is improved, but the processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs public key authentication and verification in advance before advertisement transmission. The client device obtains and stores the access point's public key beforehand, and the authentication tag is pre-computed by the access point. When advertisements are received, the verification process is expedited because the cryptographic materials are already in place, reducing the time penalty of public key cryptography to minimal processing.
Data Source
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AI summary
Security techniques and security mechanisms for wireless networks that transmit content such as advertisements. According to exemplary techniques, control messages comprising unrequested content (e.g., advertisement data) may be transmitted in response to request from a client device, while in other exemplary techniques control messages may be transmitted without any request from a client device. In some exemplary implementations, security mechanisms such as public key cryptography algorithms may be used to secure transmissions. In some of these techniques which implement public key cryptography, user may be required to retrieve a public key from a source other than the wireless access point transmitting encrypted advertisements (e.g., a sign or terminal in a commercial entity transmitting such advertisements, or from a web service), such that user may confirm that the encrypted content is from a source matching the retrieved public key and thus confirm the authenticity of a wireless access point.