International Business Machines Corporation

Frank Hoering

Michael Baentsch

Peter Buhler

Thomas Eirich

Thomas D Weigold

Marcus B Oestreicher

Thorsten Kramp

Michael Peter Kuyper-Hammond

Reto Josef Hermann

Thomas Gschwind

Tamas Visegrady

Michael Charles Osborne

Paolo Scotton

Harold D Dykeman

Sean G Rooney

Douglas H Dykeman

Alexandru Caracas

Diego Alejandro Ortiz-Yepes

Michael Kuyper

Eirich Thomas

Michael P Kuyper

Embodiments of the present invention may provide the capability to personalize end devices over-the-air (OTA) without the involvement of device manufacturers, for example, in a federated large scale wireless IoT network, such as LoRaWAN. Preset with factory settings, end devices may securely connect to the network before they are finally personalized for their target service. Security sensitive personalization information may only be exchanged between device and service provider. The process may require relatively little effort by the network operator and end customers, may lower personalization costs, and may provide a security model that is attractive for a wide range of IoT applications.

Over-the-air personalization of network devices

A system and method for executing software modules on a computer, the method comprising: executing (S) a bootloader (), at least partly () in the computer (); and upon execution of the bootloader: accessing (S) requirements as to an initial set (IS) of software modules (SMn); and hardware specifications of the computer; determining (S) within said initial set, one or more candidate sets (CS, CS) of software modules that are compatible (S) with said hardware specifications and can (S) be stored as a RAM disk; and storing (S) the software modules of a final set (FS) on a RAM disk (), the final set (FS) being one of the one or more candidate sets, and instructing to execute the software modules stored on the RAM disk, wherein each of the initial set and the final set of software modules comprises application components and operating system image components, and preferably further comprises hardware component drivers.

Secure execution of software modules on a computer

A method, a secure device and a computer program product for securely managing files. The method includes providing a secure device, where the secure device is protected by design against malicious software or malware and adapted to establish a connection to a server via a host, the host connected to the server through a telecommunication network, upon receiving a request for using a file stored on the secure device, processing the request at the secure device according to an updated use permission associated to the file, where the updated use permission is obtained by instructing at the secure device to establish a connection between the secure device and the server via the host and updating at the device the use permission associated to the file, according to permission data sent from the server through the established connection.

Method, secure device, system and computer program product for securely managing files

A system and method of performing electronic transactions between a server computer and a client computer. The method implements a communication protocol with encrypted data transmission and mutual authentication between a server and a hardware device via a network, performs a decryption of encrypted server responses, forwards the decrypted server responses from the hardware device to the client computer, displays the decrypted server responses on a client display, receives requests to be sent from the client computer to the server, parses the client requests for predefined transaction information by the hardware device, encrypts and forwards client requests, displays the predefined transaction information upon detection, forwards and encrypts the client request containing the predefined transaction information to the server if a user confirmation is received, and cancels the transaction if no user confirmation is received.

System and method of performing electronic transactions

A user trusted device and a software update method for updating the device. The device includes: a connection interface enabling connection with a host computer; a persistent memory storing a boot enabling data structure and a network updater, wherein: the network updater is configured to interact with firmware of the host computer to initiate communication over a network; and the boot enabling data structure: is detectable by the firmware upon connection of the user trusted device with the host computer; is such that host computer can boot from the user trusted device, as per the data structure of the boot enabling data structure; and includes instructions for the firmware to initiate a transfer of the network updater on the host computer for subsequent execution, upon the host computer booting from the user trusted device.

Network updatable user trusted device

An authorization device for authorizing operations of a remote server requested from user computers via a data communications network includes a computer interface configured to connect to a local user computer for facilitating communication with the remote server via a data communications network, a user interface configured to present information to a user, and control logic. The control logic is adapted to use security data accessible to the control logic to establish, via the local user computer, a mutually-authenticated connection for encrypted end-to-end communications with the server; collect from the server, via the connection, information indicative of any operation requested via a different connection to the server and requiring authorization by the user; and present the information to the user via the user interface to prompt for authorization of the operation.

Authorization of server operations

A secure online banking transaction apparatus to communicate with a server over a non-secure connection is provided and includes a selector configured to allow for a selection of a mode of the apparatus, a processing unit coupled to the selector and including a secure communication unit, which is configured to set up a secure connection, along which a secure transaction occurs, with the server via the non-secure connection in accordance with the mode, an input unit coupled to the processing unit and configured to allow for a input of data into the apparatus, which is at least partly related to the secure transaction, and an interface coupled to the processing unit and configured to convey at least a status of the secure transaction and the contents off the inputted data.

Secure online banking transaction apparatus and method

A method for providing a user device with a set of access codes comprises, in the user device, storing an encryption key a an identification code, and sending a message containing the identification code to a server via a communications network. In the server, an encryption key is stored corresponding to the key stored in the user device, allocating the set of access codes on receipt of the identification code from the user device. A look up function is performed based on the identification code received in the message to retrieve the key from storage. The set of access codes is encrypted using the retrieved key to produce an encrypted set. A message containing the encrypted set is sent to the user device via the network. In the user device, the encrypted set received from the server is decrypted using the key in storage, and storing the decrypted set of access codes for use by a user of the user device.

Providing a user device with a set of access codes

The invention is directed to a method for a software provider to enable a software-acquiring entity to arrive from an existent first signed piece of code at a second signed piece of code. Both pieces of code were generated at the software provider by use of a first software archive generator under use of generation instructions. The software provider provides to the software-acquiring entity a difference code that comprises the steps necessary to arrive from the first signed piece of code at the second signed piece of code. The difference code is combinable at the software-acquiring entity with the first signed piece of code by a second software archive generator to generate the second signed piece of code. The second software archive generator is therefor to be fed with those generation instructions that were used by the first software archive generator for the generation of both pieces of code.

Device and method for updating code

Provides a data processing system comprising a processor and encrypted information in a first persistent memory whose level of information leakage is higher than that of a second persistent memory. The second persistent memory stores a cryptographic key for decrypting the encrypted information, generating therefrom unencrypted information that is usable by the processor for executing an operation. The cryptographic key may be used for encrypting the unencrypted information, generating the encrypted information. Also provided is a method of processing such a data-processing system with an operating system, comprising writing unencrypted information into the first persistent memory, encrypting the unencrypted information under use of the first cryptographic key, creating therefrom encrypted information in the first persistent memory, and setting the data-processing system to a state in which writing into the first persistent memory is controlled by the operating system.

Device and method with reduced information leakage

A technique for language verification of a Java&#xae; card CAP file is provided. The Java&#xae; card CAP file is converted from an original Java&#xae; code file while conserving its original Java&#xae; semantics. The Java&#xae; card CAP file is converted into a corresponding converted Java&#xae; code file that is semantically identical to the Java&#xae; card CAP file. In a language-verification step, the converted Java&#xae; code file is then verified if it has been found to comply with a predetermined language specification.

File language verification

The invention is directed to a method for distinguishing reachable objects and non-reachable objects in an object-based application in a system with a volatile memory and a non-volatile memory. The object-based application operates in the non-volatile memory on the objects, whereof at least one is a root object. Each root object is processed by writing for each object that is reachable from the root object, a positive reachability information into the volatile memory and marking those objects in the non-volatile memory as reusable memory, for which no positive reachability information is present in the volatile memory.

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Zurich, Switzerland

Frank Hoering