Secure method for communicating credit card data when placing an order on a non-secure network

A method for communicating credit card data in connection with a message transmitted over a non-secure network, comprising the steps of:

• (a) transmitting the message over the non-secure network from a local computer, said message including only a portion of the credit card data;
• (b) receiving the message with the portion of the credit card data at a remote location that is coupled to the non-secure network, said message being added to a database;
• (c) calling the remote location via a secure network to finalize the message by entering complete credit card data;
• and
• (d) matching the message containing the portion of the credit card data with the complete credit card data by comparing the portion of the credit card data that was included in the message with a corresponding portion of the complete credit card data that was entered via the secure network, said complete credit card data thereby being matched with and entered into the message in the database.

A method for entering an order and/or establishing an account over a non-secure computer network, to make a purchase on credit by reference to a credit card number, comprising the steps of:

• (a) completing a form that includes purchaser data and a predefined subset of the credit card number, said subset of the credit card number comprising an order key;
• (b) transmitting data entered to complete the form to a remote location over the non-secure computer network;
• (c) storing said data in a database of an automated order entry system, said data being associated with a specific customer;
• (d) placing a telephone call to the remote location and entering the complete credit card number, a subset of said number that corresponds to the subset of the credit card number entered on the form comprising a match key;
• (e) comparing the match key to the order keys stored in the data base to identify the data entered in the form previously stored in step (c) and to associate the telephone call with the specific customer with which said data are associated;
• and
• (f) adding the complete credit card number to said data, to complete an order and/or to establish an account for placing subsequent orders for said specific customer.

A system for receiving messages from a plurality of sites, each message including non-confidential data and a subset of confidential data, said non-confidential data and said subset of the confidential data being conveyed as a message to an intended recipient using a non-secure transmission method, to be completed by adding the complete confidential data, which are transmitted to the intended recipient using a secure transmission method, comprising:

• (a) a computer for use in receiving said messages, said computer having a central processor that executes instructions, a memory for storing instructions to be executed, and non-volatile storage for storing the messages;
• (b) an automated attendant system, coupled to the computer, for automatically answering a communication from one of the plurality of sites, said communication having been placed to enter the complete confidential data into the computer using the secure transmission method, a portion of the complete confidential data thus entered, which corresponds to the subset of the confidential data, comprising a match key;
• and
• (c) said instructions in the memory of the computer causing the central processor to:
• (i) store the messages received from the plurality of sites using the non-secure transmission method in the non-volatile storage, said messages including the non-confidential data and the subset of the confidential data, said subset comprising an order key;
• (ii) compare the match key with the order keys associated with messages stored in the non-volatile storage to identify the message conveyed using the non-secure transmission method from said one of the plurality of sites and to associate the complete confidential data conveyed using the secure transmission method with said message;
• and
• (iii) adding the complete confidential data conveyed using the secure transmission method to the message thus identified, for storage in the non-volatile storage, to complete the message.