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US 10,769,316 B2Granted
Protecting mobile devices from unauthorized device resets
AssigneeT-Mobile USA, Inc.
InventorsJoshua Finger, Kimberly Bylund, Yasmin Karimli
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Systems and methods are described herein for authorizing master resets (e.g., factory resets) of mobile devices, such as smart phones, tablets, and so on. In some embodiments, the systems and methods employ a server-based authorization schema or mechanism, where at least one step or operation is performed, or caused to be performed, by a server or other system that is remote from the mobile device being reset.
Claims19
A method for preventing an unauthorized master reset of a mobile device, the method comprising:
- receiving, at a server remote from the mobile device, a token from the mobile device,
- wherein the token is transmitted in part from an operating system of the mobile device to the server after invocation of a master reset at the mobile device, and
- wherein the server is associated with a wireless network carrier that provides a telecommunication network for the mobile device;
- extracting an identifier for the mobile device from the token;
- identifying a status of the mobile device by comparing the extracted identifier to information stored within one or more databases associated with the server,
- wherein the one or more databases store information for subscribers of the wireless network carrier that provides the telecommunication network for the mobile device;
- wherein the information relates identifiers for mobile devices with status information for the mobile devices, and
- wherein the status information for the mobile devices indicates whether the mobile devices are stolen;
- based on the identified status of the mobile device, automatically authorizing the mobile device to perform the master reset without requiring a user authentication;
- and
- transmitting to the mobile device an authorization token to the operating system of the mobile device based on the identified status of the mobile device,
- wherein the authorization token causes the mobile device to complete the master reset at the mobile device when the identified status of the mobile device is an authorized status;
- and
- wherein the authorization token causes the mobile device to prevent completion of the master reset operation at the mobile device when the identified status of the mobile device is a stolen status.
11 more elements
A non-transitory computer-readable medium whose contents, when executed by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform a method for authenticating a reset mobile device to a telecommunication network, the method comprising:
- receiving, at a server remote from a mobile device, a signal transmitted from a reset system of the mobile device,
- wherein the signal is transmitted from the mobile device to the server after invocation of a master reset at the mobile device, and
- wherein the server is associated with a network carrier that provides the telecommunication network for the mobile device;
- obtaining an identifier for the mobile device from the signal;
- identifying a status of the mobile device by comparing the identifier to information stored within one or more databases associated with the server,
- wherein the one or more databases store information relating identifiers for mobile devices with status information for the mobile devices that indicates whether the mobile devices are stolen, and
- wherein the one or more databases store information for subscribers of the network carrier that provides the telecommunication network for the mobile device;
- based on the identified status of the mobile device, automatically authorizing the mobile device to perform the master reset without requiring a user authentication;
- and
- transmitting to the reset system of the mobile device an authorization signal for use in part by an operating system of the mobile device that is based on the identified status of the mobile device,
- wherein the reset system controls the master reset based on the authorization signal.
8 more elements
A mobile device, comprising:
- a master reset system stored in memory that performs a master reset of the mobile device, the master reset system including:
- a token module that transmits a reset token to a remote server in response to an initiation of the master reset of the mobile device,
- wherein the remote server is part of a telecommunication network providing telecommunication services to the mobile device, and
- the token module that receives from the remote server an authorization token for the master reset of the mobile device based on the information stored in one or more databases of the telecommunication network;
- and
- an authentication module that completes the master reset of the mobile device after receiving the authorization token from the remote server, without providing a user authentication to the remote server.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.