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US 2003/0172272 A1Published application
Authentication system and method
OwnerGavin Walter Ehlers, Walter Bam Smutsinventors
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OwnerGavin Walter Ehlers, Walter Bam Smutsinventors
Estimating the term…
An authentication system (10) allows the identity of a user (12) to be authenticated when the user (12) is seeking access to a secure service provided by a server (14). The system (10) comprises two separate communications channels. The first channel is a network (20) for allowing the user (12) to communicate with the server (14). The second channel is a mobile communications channel (26) that utilises a mobile communications device (28) for allowing an authentication server (22) to communicate with the user (12). In use when the user (12) requests access to the server (14), he or she sends a username to the server (14). The server (14) generates a request for the confirmation of the user's identity, which it sends to the authentication server (22). The authentication server (22) in turn generates a passcode and also queries a user database for the mobile communication device network number of the user (12). The server (22) sends the passcode via the mobile communication network to the user's mobile device (28) and to the server (14). Once the user (12) receives the passcode, he or she offers it as a passcode to the server (14), which compares the passcode that was offered by the user (12) with the passcode that it received from the authentication server (22). If the two codes are the same, the server (14) may allow access to the desired service or facility.
An authentication system for authenticating the identity of a user wishing to access a facility, the system comprising:
An authentication system according to either one of the preceding claims wherein the comparing means is situated at the facility, thereby allowing the facility to make a final decision as to whether to allow the user access to the facility.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the third communications network is a cellular communications network with the database including at least the user's name or an identification number and an associated cellular communication device contact number.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims that includes a confidence value generating means for generating a confidence value reflecting the integrity of the authentication system, the confidence value being sent to the facility together with the passcode via the second communications network.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the authentication request includes the user identification information and a server name or address.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the passcode is a random number.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims that includes session number generating means for generating a session number, the session number being sent to both the facility and the user via the second and third communications networks respectively, so as to allow the facility and the user to match the received passcode with the correct authentication session.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims, which includes logging means for logging each attempted authentication session so as to form an audit trail.
An authentication system according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the first and/or second communications network is selected from the group comprising a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) and the Internet.
An authentication method for authenticating the identity of a user wishing to access a facility, the method comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.