Emc Corporation

Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Rsa Security Inc.

Emc IP Holding Company LLC

Decho Corporation

Telefonaktiebolaget Lm Ericsson (publ)

Selander, Göran

Lindholm, Fredrik

Nyström, Magnus

Magnus Nyström

Stefan Thom

Burton S Kaliski, Jr

Mark Fishel Novak

William Duane

Andrew Layman

John Gordon Brainard

Ronald L Rivest

Robert Karl Spiger

James Townsend

Alina Oprea

Marc R Barbour

Scott Daniel Anderson

Himanshu Soni

David John Linsley

Nathan Jeffrey Ide

John P Field

Kirk Shoop

Nick Voicu

Robert M Polansky

Adam Back

Peter Röstin

Xintong Zhou

Burton S Kaliski

Ajay Venkateshan Krishnaprasad

Parasuraman Narasimhan

Anders Rundgren

William M Duane

Fredrik Lindholm

Göran Selander

A personal computing device, server or other type of processing device authenticates a user attempting to access a protected resource by verifying user knowledge of one or more extracted characteristics of stored information indicative of an internal operating state of that resource. The one or more extracted characteristics are characteristics that would likely be known to the user if that user had made one or more previous authenticated accesses to the protected resource. For example, the extracted characteristics may be indicative of a manner in which the user had utilized the protected resource during the one or more previous authenticated accesses to the protected resource. The processing device receives input from the user regarding the one or more extracted characteristics, and grants or denies access to the protected resource based at least in part on the input received from the user.

Dynamic knowledge-based user authentication without need for presentation of predetermined credential

A system that includes an account management module configured to maintain protected accounts. For instance, a particular protected account includes a protected data set that is not readable outside of the system, and perhaps not even readable outside of the account. The particular data set corresponds to a particular entity assigned to the particular account and that includes keys corresponding to the particular entity. A security processor uses at least some of the plurality of keys to perform cryptographic processes in response to one or more trusted execution environment commands received from the particular entity.

Network based management of protected data sets

A mobile telephone or other type of mobile communication device is configured to store a cryptographic credential within a secure hardware environment of the device. A script is provisioned for execution in the mobile communication device, the script comprising program code that executes at least in part within the secure hardware environment and is configured to utilize the cryptographic credential stored within the secure hardware environment. Prior to permitting the script to access the cryptographic credential, the secure hardware environment verifies an endorsement of the script. The endorsement may be provided by an issuer of the cryptographic credential. The cryptographic credential stored in the secure hardware environment may comprise a long-term credential and the script may be configured to generate a plurality of short-lived credentials based on the long-term credential. More particularly, the script may implement an OTP algorithm so as to provide a software authentication token within the mobile communication device.

System, method and apparatus for secure use of cryptographic credentials in mobile devices

Techniques are disclosed for performing operations in an authentication token or other cryptographic device in a system comprising an authentication server. In one aspect, a code generated by the authentication server is received in the cryptographic device. The code may have associated therewith information specifying at least one operation to be performed by the cryptographic device. The cryptographic device authenticates the code, and responsive to authentication of the code, performs the specified operation. If the code is not authenticated, the operation is not performed. The code may be determined as a function of a one-time password generated by the authentication server. The function may also take as an input an identifier of the operation to be performed.

Method and apparatus for remote administration of cryptographic devices

Cloning of a virtual machine having a trusted executed environment such as a software-based trusted platform module. In order to clone the virtual machine, the virtual machine state of the source virtual machine is copied to formulate a target virtual machine state that is to be associated with a target virtual machine. The target virtual machine is a clone of the source virtual machine state, and thus the storage hierarchy of the trusted execution environment may be the same for the trusted execution environment in the source and target virtual machine states. However, because the identity of the target virtual machine is different than that of the source virtual machine, the endorsement hierarchy of the target virtual machine state is altered such that it is based on the identity of the target virtual machine, rather than the source virtual machine.

Trusted execution environment virtual machine cloning

A virtual machine on a physical host computer provides controlled access to protected data by creating and storing a 'stored system fingerprint' from stable system values (SSVs) as existing when creating the stored system fingerprint. The SSVs include virtual-machine-specific values that change upon cloning the virtual machine (VM) but do not change upon migration of the VM. Upon a request for access to the protected data, a current system fingerprint is calculated from the SSVs as existing when processing the request, the current system fingerprint is compared to the stored system fingerprint to determine whether there is a predetermined degree of matching, and the requested access to the protected data is permitted only if there is the predetermined degree of matching.

Data protection using virtual-machine-specific stable system values

A technique controls access to a file. The technique involves creating a file encryption key based on (i) a user input parameter (e.g., a user password) from a user of the client device and (ii) an automatically generated salt parameter (e.g., a random number). The technique further involves encrypting the file using the file encryption key to form an encrypted copy of the file, and providing the salt parameter to an external storage system to externally store the salt parameter. Access to data within the encrypted copy of the file requires the salt parameter provided to the external storage system.

Controlling access to data within encrypted copies of files using salt parameters

An event log can comprise, not only entries associated with components instantiated since a most recent power on of a computing device, but also entries of components instantiated prior to that power on, such as components that were instantiated, and represent, a state of the computing device prior to hibernation that has now been resumed. Upon hibernation, the current values of the Platform Configuration Registers (PCRs) of a Trusted Platform Module (trusted execution environment), as well as a quote of those current values, and a current value of a monotonic counter of the trusted execution environment can be logged. The monotonic counter can be incremented at each power on to track successive generations of the computing device and to guard against an intervening, not-logged generation. A subsequent parsing of the event log can verify the prior generational entries with reference to the PCR values in the log that are associated with those generations.

Globally valid measured operating system launch with hibernation support

Computing devices utilizing trusted execution environments as virtual smart cards are designed to support expected credential recovery operations when a user credential, e.g., personal identification number (PIN), password, etc. has been forgotten or is unknown. A computing device generates a cryptographic key that is protected with a PIN unlock key (PUK) provided by an administrative entity. If the user PIN cannot be input to the computing device the PUK can be input to unlock the locked cryptographic key and thereby provide access to protected data. A computing device can also, or alternatively, generate a group of challenges and formulate responses thereto. The formulated responses are each used to secure a computing device cryptographic key. If the user PIN cannot be input to the computing device an entity may request a challenge. The computing device issues a challenge from the set of generated challenges. Upon receiving a valid response back, the computing device can unlock the secured computing device cryptographic key associated with the issued challenge and subsequently provide access to protected data.

Secure credential unlock using trusted execution environments

An authentication-delegating service implemented in an authentication server or other processing device is configured to receive a request from a relying party for delegated authentication information associated with a particular user, to determine a level of trust associated with the relying party, and to provide the delegated authentication information to the relying party if the relying party has a sufficient level of trust, so as to permit the relying party to authenticate the user based on the delegated authentication information. The delegated authentication information has the property that the user can be presently authenticated based on such information. The delegated authentication information may comprise, for example, at least one value derived from a one-time password or other authentication credential of the particular user. The authentication-delegating service may be graded to provide different types of delegated authentication information based on respective levels of trust that may be associated with relying parties.

Methods and apparatus for delegated authentication

Techniques for secure generation of a seed for use in performing one or more cryptographic operations, utilizing a seed generation protocol carried out by a seed generation client () and a seed generation server (). The seed generation server () provides a first string to the seed generation client (). The seed generation client () generates a second string, encrypts the second string utilizing a key (), and sends the encrypted second string to the seed generation server (). The seed generation client () generates the seed as a function of at least the first string and the second string. The seed generation server (s) decrypts the encrypted second string () and independently generates the seed as a function of at least the first string and the second string.

Secure seed generation protocol

A method of protecting a password being used to establish interaction between a user and an application includes detecting a request for the password from the application by receiving a notification from the user indicating the request. The method further includes combining the password with information identifying the application, so as to produce a protected password, and authenticating to the application using the protected password. The method may also include a mutual authentication capability between user and the application.

Password-protection module

A multimedia device or other type of processing device comprises a memory, a processor coupled to the memory, and playback circuitry coupled to the processor. In one aspect, the processor is operative to control the storage in the memory of at least one multimedia file containing a one-time password or other type of password, where the password is generated externally to the processing device, and to control the playback of the multimedia file via the playback circuitry to make the password apparent to or otherwise accessible to an associated user or other entity. The multimedia file may comprise, for example, an audio file, with the password being presented to the user in an audible form upon playback of the audio file. As another example, the multimedia file may comprise a video file, with the password being presented to the user in a visible form upon playback of the video file.

Password presentation for multimedia devices

A single sign-on technique allows multiple accesses to one or more applications or other resources using a proof-of-authentication module operating in conjunction with a standard authentication component. The application or other resource issues an authentication information request to the standard authentication component responsive to an access request from the user. The application or other resource receives, responsive to the authentication information request, a proof-of-authentication value from the standard authentication component, and authenticates the user based on the proof-of-authentication value. The standard authentication component interacts with the proof-of-authentication module to obtain the proof-of-authentication value. The proof-of-authentication module is configured to generate multiple proof-of-authentication values for authentication of respective access requests of the user.

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Magnus Nyström