Virnetx, Incorporated

Robert Dunham Short

Michael Williamson

Victor Larson

Edmund Colby Munger

Douglas Charles Schmidt

Nathaniel Jackson Short

Vincent J Sabio

Virgil D Gligor

Douglas Schmidt

Methods and related systems are presented that relate to automatically avoiding address conflicts when establishing a secure communications link over a public network between a local computer, associated with a local network, and a remote device, located outside the local network. Local network addresses on the local network reserved for use, and a block of local network addresses that do not conflict with the reserved local network addresses, are identified. At least one local network address is selected from the block and assigned as an address of the local device for use in communicating with the remote device securely over the public network. Communication is facilitated with the remote device using the network driver based on the assigned at least one local network address.

Dynamic VPN address allocation

Systems and methods are provided for establishing an encrypted communication link between a first device and a second device. One exemplary computer-implemented method includes accessing, from a storage, identification information of a user of the first device. The method further includes receiving, at a domain name server, a Domain Name Service (DNS) request from the first device requesting a network address corresponding to a domain name associated with the second device, the domain name being used to establish the encrypted communication link to the second device. The method further includes authenticating the user based on the user identification information, the user identification information including biometric information of the user. The method also includes transmitting network address in response to the DNS request based on a determination that the user has been authenticated at the domain name server using the biometric information of the user. The encrypted communication link between the first device and the second device is established based on the network address.

User authenticated encrypted communication link

A device and method for establishing a connection between devices is disclosed. A first device receives a request to connect to a second network device and, based on the request, a determination is made as to whether the first device is set to a first communication mode or a second communication mode. If the first device is set to the first communication mode then a first name associated with the second device is sent to a first name service, the first name service supporting establishing an encrypted connection to the second device, a resource for the encrypted connection to the second device is received at the first device, and communication with the second device is established over the network via the encrypted connection using the received resource. If the first device is set to the second communication mode then communication with the second device is established via a second connection.

Method for establishing connection between devices

A network device stores an application program for a secure communications service and has processor configured to execute the application program. The execution causes the processor to send a request to look up an internet protocol (IP) address of a second network device based on an identifier associated with the second network device, to receive, following a determination by a name service that the second network device is available for the secure communications service, the determination by the name service being based on the identifier in the request: (1) an indication that the second network device is available for the secure communications service, (2) the requested IP address of the second network device, and (3) provisioning information for an encrypted communication link. The execution further enables the processor to connect to the second network device and to communicate data with the second network via the encrypted communication link. The network device is a device at which a user uses the secure communications service to access the encrypted communication link.

System and method for establishing an encrypted communication link based on IP address lookup requests

Systems and methods for connecting a first network device and a second network device over a communication network are disclosed. An exemplary method includes receiving, from the first network device, a request to look up a network address of the second network and evaluating the request to determine whether an identifier associated with the second network device is registered with a name service that facilitates resolving the identifier and further facilitates establishing direct encrypted communication links. It is determined whether the second network device is available to communicate through a direct encrypted communication link facilitated by the name service, the establishment of the direct encrypted communication link between the first network device and the second network device is facilitated. This includes provisioning the first network device or the second network device with one or more resources for the direct encrypted communication link. The established direct encrypted communication link carries encrypted data communicated between the first network device and the second network device, and the first network device is a user device.

Systems and methods for connecting network devices over communication network

Methods and related systems are presented that relate to automatically avoiding address conflicts when establishing a secure communications link over a public network between a local computer, associated with a local network, and a remote computer, located outside the local network. In order to avoid address conflict, addresses reserved for use by the local network and addresses reserved for use by the remote network are determined. At least one local address is selected from among available local addresses such that the selected local address is an address that does not conflict with the reserved addresses of the local network and the reserved addresses of the remote network. The selected local address is used in connection with establishment of the secure communications link between the local computer and the remote computer.

A method for connecting a first network device to a second network device includes receiving a request to resolve a network address of the second network device. The request includes a name associated with the second network device that corresponds to the network address. The request is evaluated to confirm that the name is registered with a name service that facilitates resolving the name and facilitates establishing communication links, which use encryption, between the first network device and the second network device over the network. It is determined whether the second network device is available to establish the communication link. If so, the communication link is automatically established, including sending a signal to a provisioning server to provision the first network device or the second network device with a resource for the communication link.

System and method for using a registered name to connect network devices with a link that uses encryption

A system for connecting a first network device and a second network device includes one or more servers. The servers are configured to: (a) receive, from the first network device, a request to look up a network address of the second network device based on an identifier associated with the second network device; (b) determine, in response to the request, whether the second network device is available for a secure communications service; and (c) initiate a virtual private network communication link between the first network device and the second network device based on a determination that the second network device is available for the secure communications service, wherein the secure communications service uses the virtual private network communication link.

System and method employing an agile network protocol for secure communications using secure domain names

A network device comprises a storage device storing an application program for a secure communications service; and at least one processor configured to execute the application program enabling the network device to: (a) send a request to look up a network address of a second network device based on an identifier; (b) receive an indication that the second network device is available for the secure communications service, the indication including the requested network address of the second network device and provisioning information for a secure communication link; (c) connect to the second network device over the secure communication link, using the received network address of the second network device and the provisioning information for the secure communication link; and (d) communicate at least one of video data and audio data with the second network device using the secure communications service via the secure communication link.

A method and system are used to transparently create an encrypted communications channel between a client device and a target device. Audio video communications between the client device and the target device are allowed over the encrypted communications channel once the encrypted communications channel is created. The method comprises: (1) receiving from the client device a request for a network address associated with the target device; (2) determining whether the request is requesting access to a device that accepts an encrypted channel connection with the client device; and (3) depending on the determination made in step (2) providing provisioning information required to initiate the creation of the encrypted communications channel between the client device and the target device such that the encrypted communications channel supports secure audio/video communications transmitted between the two devices.

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Lexington, VA, United States of America

Robert Dunham Short