US 7,047,415 B2Granted

System and method for widely witnessed proof of time

AssigneeDFS Linkages, Inc.

InventorsMichael D. Doyle, Paul F. Doyle, Glenn W. Bernsohn, Jeffrey D. Roberts, Kirk James Wolf, Stephen P. Goetze

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Abstract

A system for authenticating records without reliance upon a trusted third party. A first server provides a sequential series of certifications associated with discreet, non-overlapping time Intervals. The server can provide selected information to a second server which, in turn, incorporates the request and associated information in a cross-certification. The cross-certification is then provided to more other servers. Accordingly, a “chain-mail” of certifications among a variety of servers is provided. The system thus provides effective protection against a breach of security in any one server, resulting in increased reliability in the authentication of records.

Claims1

Dependent claims

A method for providing security with respect to who provided digital data at what time, said method comprising the steps of:

performing a serially chained certification process including:
(a) forming a first interval certification at a first server including the server's identification the start time of an interval chain in Coordinated Universal Time, the start time of an interval in Coordinated Universal Time, the stop time of the interval, a public key for the interval, a digital signature for the interval, signed by a previous interval's private key, and a digital signature for the interval, signed by the interval's private key;
(b) upon expiration of the first interval, destroying its private key;
(c) configuring a second server to request a cross-certification for a second interval so that the first server is effectively requested to provide independent proof of the existence of the interval (and its public key) at a point in time witnessed by the first server;
(d) continuing steps (a), (b), and (c) for second, third, and following intervals so that intervals are cross-chained with other servers to form a widely witnessed, temporal web of signed intervals of time.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 09/844,066Filed 26 Apr 2001 · continuation in part
Priority: 22 Sep 1997
Published: US 2002/0112157 A115 Aug 2002
Granted: 16 May 2006
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

H04L 63/0823
For authentication of entities: using certificates
H04L 9/007
Involving public key infrastructure [PKI] trust models: involving hierarchical structures
H04L 9/3265
Involving certificates, e.g. public key certificate [PKC] or attribute certificate [AC]; Public key infrastructure [PKI] arrangements: using…
H04L 9/3297
Including means for verifying the identity or authority of a user of the system or for message authentication, e.g. authorization, entity…:…

Family

Application09/158,592Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 22 Sep 1997
Application60/059,455Us provisional application · filed 22 Sep 1997
Application60/200,328Us provisional application · filed 28 Apr 2000
Application60/200,372Us provisional application · filed 28 Apr 2000
US 2002/0112157 A1Pre-grant publication · published 15 Aug 2002
US 6,381,696 B1Parent of this continuation-in-part
US 7,047,415 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.