GB2371665A

GB2371665A - Call-back function provides a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service

Info

Publication number: GB2371665A
Application number: GB0101962A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Per Hakan Larsson
Original assignee: LETS GUARD IT EUROP AB
Current assignee: LETS GUARD IT EUROP AB
Priority date: 2001-01-25
Filing date: 2001-01-25
Publication date: 2002-07-31
Also published as: WO2002059727A3; GB0101962D0; WO2002059727A2

Abstract

Providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service (which can be e.g. secure data, electronic funds, or physical premises) comprising storing at least one incoming telephone number and/or unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user for obtaining an authorisation code, and an outgoing telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent. When a telephone call is received from a user, the calling telephone number and/or unique telecommunications terminal identity is determined and compared to the stored numbers and/or identities to determine whether the number and/or identity is valid for authorising access to a service by a user. If it is valid, the outgoing telephone number and an authorisation code for the user are determined, and the authorisation code is sent to the outgoing telephone number, e.g. as a voice message, pager message, or SMS message. The authorisation code can be e.g. a limited use credit card number.

Description

SECURITY SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING A USER WITH AN AUTHORISATION CODE FOR ACCESSING A SERVICE The present invention generally relates to a method and apparatus for providing the user with an authorisation code for accessing a service.

In today's society there are many systems which require a user to enter an authorisation code such as a user ID and password or Personal Identification Number (PIN) in order to access a service or carry out an action. Such systems pervade all aspects of modem society. For example, in order to access secure areas in a building, a security code can be required to be entered by a user. In order to gain access to facilities on a computer system, a user can be required to enter a user ID and password.

More recently, this general problem of authorisation codes has become even more important in view of the prevalent use of the Internet. A major advantage of the Internet is the global availability of information and services. However a major disadvantage is security. This is particularly the case with the growth of electronic commerce. The development of retail electronic commerce has been relatively slow in spite of the perceived demand of such trade. The reason for this is attributed to the potential for fraud. In order for electronic commerce to operate, it is necessary for there to be put in place a secure and simple method of payment. Credit cards are being used for payment for goods and services over the Internet but the potential for fraud has been a major concern for the credit card companies and financial institutions as well as the customer and providers of goods and services. In electronic commerce using credit cards, credit card numbers act as an authorisation code for authorising the transaction.

The problem with issuing the user with an authorisation code such as a user ID, or credit card number, is that the authorisation code may be acquired by an unauthorised person.

There are many different ways that this can take place. It is possible for the user to lose a piece of paper carrying the user ID or credit card number or to lose the credit card itself. For computer systems, particularly for use with the Internet for electronic commerce, it is also possible for hackers to access databases storing confidential authorisation codes such as lists of credit card numbers or user IDs and thereby use them for illegal purposes.

Thus a weakness with the issuance of an authorisation code to a user is that if it is a static code, there is a high risk of unauthorised use. This problem has been identified in the prior art and has been addressed in different ways. For example, a company Vasco Limited (www. vasco. com) sells a product called Digipass which comprises a device which can be carried by a user for generating a dynamic authorisation code. The code is generated as a time dependent code by encryption. The code can be used to access a service by inputting the code e. g. to a computer system or to access a building and the code can be decrypted and validated. The manufacturers of this system state that this provides the advantage of requiring the user to both recall a pin number and to have the Digipass device to generate the authorisation code. However, this system has a disadvantage of requiring a user to carry a code generating device. Thus for accessing many different services such as bank accounts, computer systems, buildings etc. , it is necessary for the user to carry many different authorisation code generating devices.

This system thus becomes unwieldy.

Another system which has been developed specifically for e-commerce transactions is disclosed in WO99/419424. This system discloses a method of issuing limited use credit numbers to users. Limited use can be based on a time period or a limited number of transactions. A limited use credit card number is issued to a user against a fixed credit number. The limited use credit card number is then provided to the user and can be used for a transaction. In order to complete the transaction, when the limited use credit card number is received, it is compared with the database of limited use credit card numbers to see if it matches to thereby to obtain the fixed credit card number used for authorising the transaction. Thus in this way the fixed credit card number is not exposed. However, the method of delivery of the limited use credit card number disclosed in W099/49424 can be varied and it is possible for the limited credit card number to be fraudulently obtained e. g. by interception over the Internet.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a secure method and system for providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service.

In accordance with one aspect, the present invention achieves this by using a communications network whereby a user is required to dial in to the authorisation code generating service to request an authorisation code and the telephone and/or the unique identity of the telecommunications terminal being used by the user can be determined by the system. The determined number or unique identity is compared with a prestored number or unique identity for a number of users in order to determine whether the incoming call is from an authorised telephone number or an authorised telecommunications terminal associated with a user. If it is determined that the telephone number or telecommunications terminal is authorised, an authorisation code is determined for the user and a telephone call is made to a predetermined number for the user in order to send the determined authorisation code to the user.

In this way the authorisation code is securely determined and provided to the user over a telecommunications network. A user must register one or more telephone numbers or telecommunications terminal identities with the service as numbers or terminals from which authorised requests for authorisation codes can be received. The user must also register a telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent. Thus in this way a secure system for providing authorisation codes is provided in which it is not possible for a user to simply dial in and obtain an authorisation code immediately. It is necessary for the system to dial out to the user. This acts as a means of confirming the identity of the user since the user must be at the telephone terminal to receive the outgoing telephone call and this number is the one agreed with the user to be used for reception of the code.

The authorisation code can be obtained from a library of valid authorisation codes so that the determined authorisation code can be assigned to a user for authorising access.

Alternatively, the authorisation code can be generated e. g. by an encoding and/or encryption technique.

Preferably the authorisation code is unique to the user and unique for an access. This avoids the possibility of re-use of a valid authorisation code.

In one embodiment the authorisation code is generated to include time information and is valid only for a predetermined time. In another embodiment the authorisation code is valid for a limited number of users, and preferably a single use. Thus in a preferred embodiment the authorisation code is a limited use authorisation code. In one embodiment the limited use authorisation code can be generated e. g. , by encryption and can thus include information on the time of generation of the code such that at the time of use of the authorisation code, it can be decrypted to enable the elapse of time between the generation of the authorisation code and the use of the authorisation code to be determined in order to determine whether access to the service is authorised.

The authorisation code in accordance with the present invention can comprise any code for providing access to a service. This can comprise any user ID for accessing a computer system function, or for accessing premises. For electronic commerce, the authorisation code can comprise providing access to funds. In a preferred embodiment the authorisation code comprises a valid credit or debit card number which matches the structure of a conventional credit or debit card number system. In this way the credit or debit card number issued to the user can be used by the user as a conventional credit card number and it can be handled by the e-commerce system as a conventional credit card number. When the limited use credit or debit card number is received by a funding institution, its validity can be checked against stored limited use credit card numbers determined and assigned for users.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, where caller ID is available, it is not necessary for the call to be picked up by the system. The system can simply extract the telephone number from the caller ID and drop the call. Alternatively, the call can be picked up and a message played to the user to either inform them that the request for an authorisation code has been authorised or refused. Where the caller ID function is not available, or in addition to the determination of the telephone number from the caller ID, the system can pick up the call and request the user to input their telephone number. As a further validation step, a user can be required to input a password or PIN number.

In one embodiment of the present invention, as a method of identifying the telecommunications terminal, when a user uses a mobile telephone, it is possible for the system to obtain the SIM card number from the mobile phone thereby uniquely identifying the telecommunications terminal.

The present invention encompasses any method of sending the determined authorisation code to the user's predetermined telephone number over a telecomunications network.

Where the user has a mobile telephone, the short message service (SMS) can be used to send the authorisation code within an SMS message. If user has a pager, the authorisation code can be sent within a pager message. Alternatively, the authorisation code can be sent as a voice message generated by a text to speech application within a computer system.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the validation of the authorisation code received to access a system can be carried out at any convenient location. In one embodiment the validation takes place at a security system which receives a request for validation of the authorisation code from a facility offering a service. The authorisation code can thus be compared with stored authorisation codes for users and where necessary can be decrypted to determine whether the authorisation code has time expired. Where the authorisation code is valid for a limited number of uses, the security system can also take the requested use into consideration to determine whether the authorisation stored in the security system should be kept as a valid authorisation code. For example, if the authorisation code has been issued for a single use, once the security has compared it to determine that the authorisation request is valid, the stored authorisation code will either be deleted or marked as used to prevent it being used again. A response will be sent to the facility providing the service in dependence upon the outcome of the authorisation determination by the security system.

In an alternative embodiment, the facility providing the service is provided with the authorisation codes generated by a security system. Thus the authorisation code for accessing the facility is modified in accordance with the received authorisation code from the security system so that for future access to the facility, the user must use the new authorisation code. This authorisation code can be a limited use authorisation code whereby the facility can either take into consideration the time of generation of the authorisation code to determine whether it has time expired, or it can take into consideration the number of uses made of the authorisation code in order to access the service. Thus this embodiment provides a simple way by which authorisation codes for accessing facilities can be updated.

In one embodiment of the present invention, in addition to the authorisation code, either the security system or the facility providing the service can additionally have stored passwords or PINs for users and thereby require the input of a password or PIN from a user in order to gain access to the service. The use of the authorisation code in conjunction with the PIN provides the benefit that even if the authorisation code could in some way be acquired by an unauthorised person, a PIN known only to the user is still required to gain authorised access.

The present invention can be implemented either in hardware or on software in a general purpose computer. Further the present invention can be implemented in a combination of hardware and software. The present invention can also be implemented by a single processing apparatus or a distributed network of processing apparatuses.

Since the present invention can be implemented by software, the present invention encompasses computer code provided to a general purpose computer on any suitable carrier medium. The carrier medium can comprise any storage medium such as a floppy disk, a CD ROM, a magnetic device or a programmable memory device, or any transient medium such as any signal e. g. an electrical, optical or microwave signal. A specific example of a carrier medium is the signal carrying computer code over the Internet.

The embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure I is a schematic diagram of an e-commerce system in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an e-commerce server for use in the system of Figure I in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an e-commerce system for use in an e-commerce system which is a modification of the embodiment of Figure 1, Figure 4 is a flow diagram illustrating the steps for setting up the security database in the first embodiment of Figure 1, Figure 5 is a flow diagram illustrating the process for generating a disposable credit card number in accordance with the first embodiment of Figure 1, Figure 6 is a flow diagram illustrating the steps of the e-commerce method using the disposable credit card number in accordance with the first embodiment of Figure 1, Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a secure access system in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention, Figure 8 is a flow diagram of the method of generation of an authorisation code for use in the second embodiment of the present invention of Figure 7, Figure 9 is a flow diagram of the method of authorising access in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention of Figure 7, and Figure 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an alternative method of implementing the secure access system illustrated in Figure 7.

The first embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to Figures 1 to 6.

Figure 1 illustrates an e-commerce system in which a customer uses a computer 6 to access an e-commerce service provided by an e-commerce server 7 over the Internet 5.

In order to purchase goods or services using the e-commerce server 7 a credit card number must be input by the customer using their computer 6 and this credit card number must be transmitted over the Internet 5. In order to improve security, the customer can obtain a disposable credit card number using the security service provided by the security server 3. In order to do this, a customer is required to use a telecommunications terminal which in this embodiment comprises a mobile telephone 1. The mobile telephone 1 communicates over a telecommunications network to a telecommunications terminal 2 which is coupled to the security server 3. A security database 4 is provided with the security server 3 to store user information which includes at least one telephone number from which an authorised request for a disposable credit number can be received. It can also store a PIN number which a customer is required to input as a further authorisation check. The security database 4 can store the SIM card number for the mobile telephone 1 used by the customer in addition to or instead of the telephone number from which the customer will call. Also the security database stores the telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent. Further, the security database 4 can store an indication of the format in which the authorisation code is to be sent e. g. an SMS message, a pager message, or a voice message. The format of the way in which the authorisation code is sent to the telecommunications terminal used by the customer will depend upon the type of telecommunication terminal used by the customer. In this embodiment the preferred form in which the authorisation code is sent to the customer is an SMS message to the mobile telephone 1.

The e-commerce server 7 is provided with a secure link to the security server 3 to enable the disposable credit card number to be validated. The secure link can include a conventional credit card validation system wherein the e-commerce server 7 can input the disposable credit card number into the conventional credit card validation system.

The disposable credit card number is then passed within the system to an authorising funding institution. The funding institution can be identified by the first few digits of the credit card number as is conventional. Thus the disposable credit card number is generated to include the correct first few digits to identify the desired funding institution. The funding institution can then have a link to the security server 3 whereby when the disposable credit card number is identified, it can be sent to the security server 3 for validation. The security server 3 can respond to the funding institution with either a valid or invalid notice and the funding institution can thereby respond with a conventional validation code to the e-commerce server 7. In this way the system utilises the conventional credit card system and the operator of the e-commerce system is not required to have any knowledge of disposable credit card numbers.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the e-commerce server 7 in the first embodiment and shows the functional units in more detail. The e-commerce server includes a web server 70 to act as the interface and a transaction server 71 interacting with the web server 70 to provide the e-commerce functionality. The transaction server 71 is connected to an ecommerce 72 to provide all the necessary data to provide the e-commerce functionality.

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an alternative embodiment in which the e-commerce 700 includes all the functionality. In this embodiment all of the functionalities are provided in one location. A web server 703 provides the web interface to the ecommerce site and a transaction server 704 provides the e-commerce functionality. The e-commerce database 705 is provided connected to the transaction server 704 to provide all the necessary data to provide the e-commerce functionality. A security server 701 is provided linked to the transaction server 704 to provide the authorisation code issuance and validation functions. A security database 702 is provided to store all of the data necessary for the security server 701 to provide the authorisation function. A telecommunications interface 706 is provided to provide the interface over the telecommunications system to the customer.

The embodiment of Figure 3 functions in the same way as the embodiment of Figure 2.

The only difference is in the location of the security server in relation to the transaction server.

The operation of the first embodiment of Figure 1 will now be described with reference to the flow diagrams of Figure 4 and 6.

Figure 4 is a flow diagram illustrating the method by which a customer signs up for the service and the security database is populated. In step S I the customer contacts the operators of the service in order to sign up for the service. This step can comprise any conventional method for contacting the operators of the system. This can be completed by telephone, in writing, or electronically e. g. over the Internet.

In step S2 the customer enters customer details which are securely entered into the security database 4. The customer details can include personal information, a PIN number or password, credit cards details, one or more telephone numbers from which authorised requests for credit card numbers can be received, a telephone number to which the credit number can be sent, and the mode in which the credit card number is to be sent e. g. an SMS message, a pager message, or a voice message.

In step S3 all the input information is stored in the security database 4. The service is therefore enabled for the customer.

Figure 5 illustrates a method of generating a disposable credit card number for a customer using the system of Figure 1.

In step S 10 a customer dials up the security server and the telecommunication interface 2 receives the call. In step Sol 1 the telecommunications interface 2 determines the caller ID is available. If the caller ID is available, in step S12 the security server 3 obtains the number from the caller ID and in step S 15 the number is used to look up the customer details in the security database 4.

In step S 11 the telecommunications interface 2 determines that the caller ID is not available, the telecommunications interface of the security server picks up the call and provides a voice prompt requesting the customer to enter their telephone number in step

S 13. When the customer inputs the telephone number using the keypad of the mobile telephone 1, the security server receives the telephone number in step S14 and in step S 15 the number is used to look up the customer details in the security database 4.

In step S 16 it is determined whether the number is valid for a customer. If the number cannot be matched to a number in the database for a customer, in step S 17 the security server controls the telecommunications interface 2 to hang up or to play back a message to say that the number is invalid. If the telephone number was obtained from the caller id, there is no need to pick up the call in the first place and the line is simply dropped.

If the telephone number is determined to be valid for a customer, in step S 18 the security server can play back a message to say that the number has been accepted and hang up the call. This is an optional step to provide a confirmation to the customer that they will be receiving a disposable credit card number. Alternatively, the system could simply drop the line without informing the customer. The customer will then have to wait for the call back with the disposable credit card number to determine whether they had successfully asked for the credit card number in the first place.

In step S 19 the security server will then generate a disposable credit card number and store it in the security database 4. An SMS message is then generated and sent to the telephone number in the database for the customer in step S20. Although in this embodiment only the telephone number is used for authenticating a user, a PIN number or password can also be required to be input for authentication purposes. In this case the validation process for the customer will include not only looking up the telephone number but also the PIN number or password. When a mobile telephone is used, it is also possible to validate the customer by obtaining the SIM card number from the mobile telephone since this uniquely identifies the mobile telephone. This can be used in addition or instead of the telephone number for the authentication of the customer requesting the credit card number.

The use of the disposable credit card number in an e-commerce transaction in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the flow diagram of Figure 6.

In step S30 a customer uses their computer 6 to access and download an e-commerce web page for the e-commerce server 7. In step S31 the customer enters the disposable credit card number and PIN for payment for goods or services. In step S32 the disposable credit card number and PIN are transmitted over a secure link e. g. a secure socket layer (SSL) over the Internet 5 to the e-commerce server 7. In step S33 the disposable credit card number and PIN are then transmitted to the security server 3 over the secure link. This process can be considered by the e-commerce server to comprise nothing more than a conventional credit card number validation process since the disposable credit card number appears to be a valid conventional credit card number.

In step S34 the security server uses the received disposable credit card number to look up the customers details in the security database 4. The look up operation can look to see whether the disposable credit card number has been generated for a customer. If so, then it is a valid credit card number for the customer. An additional validity check can be performed on the basis of the time of generation of the disposable credit card number. If the disposable credit card number has a lifetime, the security server can decrypt the number in order to extract the time of generation of the credit card number so that this can be compared with the time of use of the disposable credit card number for a transaction. If the time of use is outside a predetermined range, the disposable credit card number has expired and although the number may be valid for a customer, it cannot be used. Another method by which this same effect can be achieved is by the security server periodically looking through the stored disposable credit card numbers for users and seeing whether any has expired. If any have expired, these can be deleted or marked so that when in step S34 the look up operation is performed, no valid credit card number is identified. Thus in step S35 if the credit card number is not valid for a user or it has expired, in step S36 the security server generates an invalid notice which is returned to the e-commerce server. This invalid notice can take the form of refusal to authorise a transaction which can be sent to a funding institution. The funding institution can then send a conventional refusal of the transaction through the ecommerce server 7 in a conventional manner. In step S37 the e-commerce server generates a web page containing a notice to inform the customer that authorisation of the transaction has been refused.

If in step S35 it is determined that the disposable credit card number is valid for a customer and it has not expired, in step S38 the security server generates an authorisation notice and an authorisation code is returned to the e-commerce server. If a conventional credit card validation system is used, the security server can generate an authorisation notice to the funding institution and they can return a validation code in a conventional manner to validate the credit card transaction. In step S39 the e-commerce server than processes the transaction in a conventional manner.

It can thus be seen from this embodiment of the present invention that the invention can be applied to the e-commerce field wherein the authorisation code comprises a dynamic, disposable or limited use credit card number. The use of an authorisation code in the form of a valid credit or debit number enables the debit or credit card number to be processed for validation over a conventional credit or debit card validation system. It is then necessary for the security system to link to the funding institution to which the disposable credit card number will be directed. This avoids the need for the ecommerce organisation to be in any way involved in the secure transaction system.

They simply receive and process credit card numbers in the usual way. The present invention does however encompass the provision of a dedicated secure link between the e-commerce server and the security server. This however requires modifications to the conventional operation of the e-commerce service.

The present invention is not limited to the field of e-commerce and has wide applicability to the generation of an authorisation code for permitting access to any service or facility. Further embodiments of the present invention which illustrate the wide applicability of the technique will now be described with reference to Figures 7 to 10.

Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the system for authorising access to a service in accordance with a secon embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment the service to be accessed can be access to a building 17 using an authorisation code input device such as a keypad 16, or access to a computer system 18 via an access server 15 from a user's computer 19 over a network 14.

In this embodiment of the present invention the user is provided with a telecommunications terminal i. e. a mobile telephone 10 which can connect over a telecommunications network to a telecommunications interface 11 connected to a security server 12. The security server 12 is also provided with a security database 13.

The security server 12 is connected over the network 14 to the authorisation code input device 16 and the access server 15 in order to provide an authorisation code provision service.

The embodiment of the present invention illustrated in Figure 7 operates in a similar manner to the first embodiment described hereinabove. Thus the security server can be incorporated within the authorisation code input device 16 or the access server 15 to provide an integrated authorisation code generation system and access control system.

This embodiment of the present invention operates in a similar manner to the previously described embodiment of the present invention. In particular when a user wishes to utilise this service the steps described with reference to Figure 4 similarly apply for this embodiment. The user must register for the service by entering details including a PIN number, if necessary, for gaining access, one more telephone numbers for validly requesting authorisation code, a telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent, and a mode of transmission of the authorisation code e. g. an SMS message, a pager message or a voice message. Alternatively, or in addition if a mobile phone is used, the SIM card number can be stored. A record for the user is thus set up in the security database 13.

One method for operating the embodiment illustrated in Figure 7 in order to enable a user to obtain an authorisation code will now be described with reference to the flow diagram of Figure 8.

In step S40 the user dials up the security server 12 and a call is received by the telecommunications interface 11. The telecommunications interface 11 determines in step S41 whether the caller ID is available from the incoming call. If so, in step S42 the security server controls the telecommunications interface to obtain the telephone number from the caller ID. In step S45 the number is then used by the security server to look up in the security database 13 to determine whether it corresponds to a user.

If in step S41 the telecommunications interface 11 determines that it cannot identify a caller ID, in step S43 it picks up the call and generates a voice prompt requesting the user to input the telephone number. When the user inputs the telephone number, it is received by the security server 12 via the telecommunications interface 11 in step S44 and it is used to look up in the security database 13 to determine whether it corresponds to a valid user.

Thus in step S46 it is determined whether the number is valid for a user, and if not in step S47 the security server instructs the telecommunications interface 11 to hang up the call or play back a message to the user to inform them that the number is invalid.

Where the telephone number has been obtained from the caller ID, it not necessary for the call to be picked up and the call can simply be disconnected without informing the user. If in step S46 it is determined that the number is valid for a user, in step S48 the security server can instruct the communications interface 11 to pick up the call, if it has not already done so, and play back a message to the user to say that the number has been accepted. The line will then be disconnected. Alternatively, if the number has been determined from the caller ID, the call may not be picked up and the line can simply be disconnected. The user will thus not know whether they have been successful in requesting an authorisation code. They will need to wait to see whether they have received a call back.

In step S49 the security server then generates an authorisation code and stores it in the security database for the user. A security server 12 then controls the telecommunications interface 11 to generate an SMS message to the telephone number of the mobile phone 10 using the telephone number given for the user in the security database 13 (step S50). In this way the user receives the authorisation code necessary to access the service.

Although in this embodiment a mobile telphone is shown, any telecommunications equipment can be used such as a conventional telephone, or a pager. If a pager is used, the message can be received as a pager message, and if a conventional telephone is used, the message can be received as a voice message whereby the security server 12 uses text to speech software to generate a voice message containing the authorisation code which is transmitted by the telecommunications interface 11.

The method of controlling authorised access to the service i. e. to the premises 17 or access to the computer system 18 will now be described with reference to flow diagram of Figure 9.

In step S60 the user enters the authorisation code in the access device. Access device can either comprise the authorisation code input device 16 whereby the user physically presses the buttons or the access server 15 whereby the user uses their computer 19 to send the authorisation code to the access server 15.

In step S61 the authorisation code is transmitted to the security server 12 over the network 14. The security server looks up the user's details in the database using the received authorisation code in step S62. In step S63 the security server 12 identifies whether the received authorisation code is valid for a user. Also it can be determined whether the authorisation code has expired. The authorisation code can be of limited life time and, as explained for the previous embodiment, if the time of use is more than the predetermined time after the time of generation of the authorisation code, it can be determined to be an invalid (expired) code. If the authorisation code is not valid for use or has expired (step S63) in step S64 the security server generates an invalid notice and returns it to the access device (i. e. the access server 15 or the authorisation code input device 16). Thus in step S65 access to the service is denied i. e. access to the premises 17 is denied or access to the facilities of the computer system 18 is denied.

If in step S63 it is determined that the code is valid and has not expired, in step S66 the security server generates an authorisation notice and returns it to the access device. The access device (the authorisation code input device 16 or the access server 15) thereby permits the user to access the service in step S67, i. e. to access the premises 17 or to access the facilities of the computer system 18.

In this embodiment it is also possible to require the user to enter a PIN number or password. This can be stored in the security database 13 along with the authorisation code. The PIN number is not generated by the security server and remains the same.

This has to be remembered by the user. Thus the use of a PIN number and the generated limited use authorisation code provides the added security of requiring the user to remember the PIN number or password, and requiring the receipt of a valid authorisation code.

In the embodiments described with reference to the flow diagram of Figure 8, the security server performs the dual function of issuing the authorisation code and subsequently validating the authorisation code. It is not however necessary for the security server to perform both functions. Once the security server has issued the authorisation code, the validation of the authorisation code can be carried out by the facility controlling access so long as it also receive the authorisation codes for users.

This enables the local facility to update the list of valid authorisation codes. This embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the flow diagram of Figure 10.

In step S70 a user dials up the security server 12. In step S71 the telecommunications interface 11 is controlled by the security server 12 to identify whether the caller ID is available from the call. If so, in step S72 the security server controls the telecommunications interface 11 to obtain the telephone number of the user from the caller ID. In step S75 the security server 12 then uses the determined number to identify whether the number is valid for a user by looking up the data in the security database 13.

If in step 71 it is determined by telecommunications interface 11 that the caller ID is not available, in step S73 the security server instructs the telecommunications 11 to pick up the call and sends a voice prompt to the mobile telephone 10 to request the user to input the user's telephone number. The user inputs their telephone number and thus in step S74 the security receives the input telephone number. In step S75 the security server 12 uses the input telephone number to determine if it is valid for the user by looking up the data in the security database 13.

If in step S76 the security server determines that the number for a user is invalid or has expired (as described hereinabove for previous embodiments), in step S77 the security server hangs up or plays back a message to say that this number is invalid and then hangs up. Alternatively, if the number is available from the caller id, the security server can instruct the telecommunications interface to not pick up the call and disconnect the line.

If in step S76 the security server determines that the number is valid for a user and has not expired, in step S78 the security server can control the telecommunications interface to play back a message to say that the number has been accepted. The security server can then hang up the call. Alternatively, to avoid telecommunications costs on the part of the user, if the number has been obtained from the caller ID, the line can simply be disconnected. The user does not however know whether they have been successful in requesting an authorisation code or not. They will have to wait for the call back from the security server from the authorisation code.

In step S79 the security server generates an authorisation code and sends it to the access device (the authorisation code input device 16 or the access server 15) to change the access code for the user. The access device stores a list of authorisation codes for the users. Also in step S80 the security server generates an SMS message and controls the telecommunications interface 11 to send a message to the telephone number in the database identified for the user by the obtained telephone number for the incoming call.

Thus in this embodiment of the present invention, the user receives a new authorisation code and the authorisation code on the device controlling access to the service is also updated. Thus the method by which access is gained to the service or facility is conventional, in that the user enters the authorisation code and the authorisation code is compared to the authorisation codes stored in the device.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the PIN number can also be used. The pin number can be stored locally at the access device and remained fixed. The security server will generate a new authorisation code which is used to update the authorisation code on the device.

Although has been described hereinabove with reference to specific embodiments, the present invention is not limited to specific embodiments and modifications lie within the spirit and scope of the present invention.

The present invention is applicable to any type of authorisation code of any form. The authorisation code can comprise a sequence of digits, numbers or alphanumeric characters. The authorisation code can be of any structure and in one embodiment is structured as a conventional credit or debit card number. The authorisation code can include encrypted information such as the time of generation of the code. The authorisation code can also be simply one of a number of a pool of authorisation codes which are used in turn and assigned to users.

Although in the embodiments described hereinabove the present invention has been described in relation to specific modules and means for carrying out specific functions, the means and modules can be combined or arranged in any combination to perform the functions. In particular, where features are implemented in software, the means for performing the functions can comprise any code modules in any combination.

The present invention is applicable to the generation of validation codes locally for an access control device or the transmission of access code to a remote access control device.

The service or facility being accessed can comprise a physical premises, information, funds, or any function performed by a machine. The operation being allowed by the access control can for example be the retrieval of information, the access to electronic funds to authorised transactions, or the operation of a machine e. g. to allow access to premises by the unlocking of a door. The access control can also be access to permit processing of data in a specific way.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A method of providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service, the method comprising: storing at least one incoming telephone number and/or unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user for obtaining an authorisation code and an outgoing telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent; receiving a telephone call from a user; determining the telephone number from which the user is calling and/or the unique identity of the telecommunications terminal making the call; comparing the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity to the stored incoming telephone numbers and/or unique identities to determine if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorising access to a service by a user, and if so, determining the outgoing telephone number for the user and determining an authorisation code for the user; and sending the determined authorisation code to the determined outgoing telephone number.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the authorisation code is unique for the user and unique for an access.
3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the authorisation code is determined to include time information and is valid for a predetermined time.
4. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the authorisation code is determined by generation taking into consideration time of generation of the authorisation code.
5. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the authorisation code comprises a valid credit or debit card number.
6. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the telephone number from which the user is calling is determined from the caller ID available prior to picking up the call.
7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the call from the user is not picked up.
8. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the call from the user is picked up, a voice prompt is played to request the input of the telephone number, and the user input telephone number is received.
9. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 6 or 8, wherein if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorised access to a service by a user, a voice message is played to inform the user that the request for an authorisation code has been accepted.
10. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 6,8 or 9, wherein if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is not valid for authorised access to a service by a user, a voice message is played to inform the user that the request for an authorisation code has been declined.
11. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user comprises a SIM card number.
12. A method according to any preceding claim, including storing a PIN for the user, and receiving a PIN from the user during the telephone call, wherein the comparing step includes comparing the received PIN with the stored PIN to determine if the received PIN is valid, the outgoing telephone number for the user only being determined if the received PIN is valid and the authorisation code for the user only being determined if the received PIN is valid.
13. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein the authorisation code is sent to the determined outgoing telephone number as an SMS message, a voice recording or a pager message
14. A method of authorising access to a service, the method comprising the method of providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service according to any preceding claim, storing the determined authorisation code for the user, receiving a request for authorisation for user access, the request including an authorisation code from a user, comparing the authorisation code with the stored authorisation code, and responding to the request in dependence upon the outcome of the comparison.
15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the method is carried out in an authorisation apparatus, the request is received from a facility providing the access service, and the response is transmitted to the facility providing the access service.
16. A method according to claim 15, including the step of storing a PIN for the user, wherein the request includes a PIN from the user, and the comparing step includes comparing the received PIN with the stored PIN.
17. A method of authorising access to a service, the method comprising: the method of providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service according to any one of claims I to 13 carried out in an authorisation apparatus; sending the determined authorisation code for the user from the authorisation apparatus to a facility providing the access service; and at the facility providing the access service: storing the determined authorisation code for the user, receiving a request for authorisation for user access, the request including an authorisation code from a user, comparing the authorisation code with the stored generated authorisation code, and responding to the request in dependence upon the outcome of the comparison.
18. A method according to claim 17, including the step at the facility providing the access service of storing a PIN for the user, wherein the request includes a PIN from the user, and the comparing step includes comparing the received PIN with the stored PIN.
19. Authorisation apparatus for providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service, the apparatus comprising: storage means for storing at least one incoming telephone number and/or unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user for obtaining an authorisation code and an outgoing telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent; a telecommunications interface for receiving a telephone call from a user and for determining the telephone number from which the user is calling and/or the unique identity of the telecommunications terminal making the call; and code determining means for comparing the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity to the stored incoming telephone numbers and/or unique identities to determine if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorising access to a service by a user, for determining the outgoing telephone number for the user, and for determining an authorisation code for the user if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorising access to a service by a user; wherein the telecommunications interface is adapted to send the determined authorisation code to the determined outgoing telephone number.
20. Authorisation apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the unique authorisation code is unique for the user and unique for an access.
21. Authorisation apparatus according to claim 19 or claim 20, wherein the code determining means is adapted to generate the authorisation code to include time information and to be valid for a predetermined time.
22. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 21, wherein the code determining means is adapted to generate the authorisation code taking into consideration time of generation of the authorisation code.
23. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 22, wherein the authorisation code comprises a valid credit or debit card number.
24. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 23, wherein the code determining means is adapted to determine the telephone number from which the user is calling from the caller ID available prior to picking up the call.
25. Authorisation apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the telecommunications interface is adapted not to pick up the call from the user.
26. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 23 wherein the telecommunication interface is adapted to pick up the call from the user, to play a voice prompt to request the input of the telephone number, and to receive the user input telephone number.
27. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 24 or 26, wherein the telecommunications interface is adapted to, if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorised access to a service by a user, play a voice message to inform the user that the request for an authorisation code has been accepted.
28. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 24,26 or 27, wherein the telecommunications interface is adapted to, if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is not valid for authorised access to a service by a user, play a voice message to inform the user that the request for an authorisation code has been declined.
29. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 28, wherein the unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user comprises a SIM card number.
30. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 29, wherein the storage means is adapted to store a PIN for the user; the telecommunications interface is adapted to receive a PIN from the user during the telephone call ; and the code determining means is adapted to compare the received PIN with the stored PIN to determine if the received PIN is valid, to determine the outgoing telephone number for the user only if the received PIN is valid, and to determine the authorisation code for the user only if the received PIN is valid.
31. Authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 30, wherein the telecommunications interface is adapted to send the determined authorisation code to the determined outgoing telephone number as an SMS message, a voice recording or a pager message
32. An authorisation system for authorising access to a service, the system comprising the authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 31, code storage means for storing the determined authorisation code for the user, an authorisation interface for receiving a request for authorisation for user access, the request including an authorisation code from a user, and authorisation means for comparing the authorisation code with the stored authorisation code, wherein the authorisation interface is adapted to respond to the request in dependence upon the outcome of the comparison.
33. An authorisation system according to claim 32, wherein the authorisation interface is adapted to receive the request from a facility providing the access service, and to send the response to the facility providing the access service.
34. An authorisation system according to claim 32 or claim 33, wherein the code storage means is adapted to store a PIN for the user, the authorisation interface is adapted to receive the request including a PIN from the user, and the code determining means is adapted to compare the received PIN with the stored PIN in process of the determination of the authorisation code.
35. An authorisation system for authorising access to a service, the system comprising : the authorisation apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 31 including means for sending the determined authorisation code for the user from the authorisation apparatus to a facility providing the access service; and a facility providing the access service comprising: code receiving means for receiving the determined authorisation code for the user from the authorisation apparatus, storage means for storing the determined authorisation code for the user, inputting means for inputting a request for authorisation for user access, the request including an authorisation code from a user, comparing means for comparing the authorisation code with the stored authorisation code, and access control means for responding to the request in dependence upon the outcome of the comparison.
36. An authorisation system according to claim 35, wherein the storage means in the facility is adapted to store a PIN for the user, the inputting means is adapted to input a PIN from the user, and the comparing means is adapted to compare the received PIN with the stored PIN.
37. A carrier medium carrying computer readable program code for controlling a computer to carry out the method of any one of claims 1 to 18.
38. Authorisation apparatus for providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a service, the apparatus comprising: a storage device storing processor implementable instructions; a processor for implementing the instructions stored in the storage device ; wherein the instructions stored in the storage device comprise instructions for controlling the processor to: store at least one incoming telephone number and/or unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user for obtaining an authorisation code and an outgoing telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent; determine a telephone number from a telephone call from a user and/or the unique identity of the telecommunications terminal making the call; compare the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity to the stored incoming telephone numbers and/or unique identities to determine if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorising access to a service by a user, and if so, determining the outgoing telephone number and an authorisation code for the user ; and control a telecommunications interface to send the authorisation code to the determined outgoing telephone number.
39. An authorisation system for authorising access to a service, the system comprising the authorisation apparatus according to claim 38, wherein the storage device stores instructions for controlling the processor to: store the determined authorisation code for the user, receive a request for authorisation for user access, the request including an authorisation code from a user, compare the authorisation code with the stored authorisation code, and respond to the request in dependence upon the outcome of the comparison.
40. An authorisation apparatus according to claim 38, wherein the storage device stores instructions for controlling the processor to send the determined authorisation code to a facility providing said service for the updating of the authorisation code for the service.
41. An authorisation device for providing a user with an authorisation code for accessing a facility, the device comprising: a storage device storing at least one incoming telephone number and/or unique identity of a telecommunications terminal for a user for obtaining an authorisation code and an outgoing telephone number to which the authorisation code is to be sent; a telecommunications interface for receiving a telephone call from a user and for determining the telephone number from which the user is calling and/or the unique identity of the telecommunications terminal making the call; and a processor programmed to compare the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity to the stored incoming telephone numbers and/or unique identities to determine if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorising access to a facility by a user, to determine the outgoing telephone number for the user, and to determine a unique authorisation code for the user if the determined telephone number and/or the unique identity is valid for authorising access to a facility by a user; wherein the telecommunications interface is operative to send the determined authorisation code to the determined outgoing telephone number.