Cross network authentication method and system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11775950-B2
Application number	US-201816629958-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 12, 2018
Priority date	Jul 13, 2017
Publication date	Oct 3, 2023
Grant date	Oct 3, 2023

Abstract

The described embodiments concern one or more methods, systems, apparatuses, and computer readable mediums storing processor-executable process steps to authenticate mobile subscribers for using a foreign application when they are outside of their home telecom carrier's mobile network zone (“foreign zone”). A mobile subscriber can be authenticated through data roaming service, voice roaming service, and/or WiFi service. After cross network authentication, a mobile subscriber can use the foreign application to provide the same or similar services in a foreign zone, such as foreign country, through the home services in connection with the subscriber's home telecom carrier in a similar manner like he/she can use in his/her home zone, such as home country.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of authenticating a mobile device at a foreign zone, by a home telecom carrier associated with the mobile device, to use a foreign application installed on the mobile device and supported by a foreign application server in a network of a foreign telecom carrier in communication with a network of the home telecom carrier, the method comprising:
(a) establishing a data transmission connection between the mobile device and the network of the home telecom carrier;
(b) identifying through the foreign application or a foreign authentication server in the network of the foreign telecom carrier the home telecom carrier by checking a global IP (Internet Protocol) address of the home telecom carrier generated by the network of home telecom carrier; and
(c) receiving a subscriber authentication token from the network of the home telecom carrier through the foreign application, the foreign application server, and a home authentication server in the network of the home telecom carrier, after the home telecom carrier is identified and the mobile device is authenticated.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein, at step (b), the global IP address is translated by the network of the home telecom carrier from a data packet sent originally from the mobile device located at a foreign zone to query an identify of the home telecom carrier.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the data packet is sent originally from the mobile device, through a foreign telecom carrier's mobile network and a GPRS tunneling protocol user plane tunnel, to a home telecom carrier's mobile network, and then sent to an internet after the global IP address is translated.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein, at step (a), the data transmission connection between the mobile device and the home telecom carrier is established by data roaming.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein step (c) comprises:
(c1) sending an authentication request, by the foreign application or the foreign application server, to the home authentication server;
(c2) receiving a Mobile Subscriber International Subscriber Directory Number (“MSISDN”) by the home authentication server to validate the subscriber by checking the MSISDN against a subscriber database; and
(c3) sending the subscriber authentication token, by the home authentication server, to the foreign application or the foreign application server.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein step (c1) comprises:
(c11) sending an authentication request, by the foreign application, to the foreign application server; and
(c12) receiving the authentication request, by the home authentication server, from the foreign application server, via redirection of the foreign application.

7. The method of claim 5 , wherein step (c2) comprises:
(c21) sending a subscriber information request, by the home authentication server, to a home telecom carrier's mobile subscriber number (“MSN”) management server (“MS”), via redirection of the foreign application;
(c22) sending a subscriber information, by the home telecom carrier's MSN MS, to the home authentication server, via redirection of the foreign application;
(c23) sending the subscriber information, by the home authentication server, directly to the home telecom carrier's MSN MS;
(c24) receiving the MSISDN, by the home authentication server, directly from the home telecom carrier's MSN MS; and
(c25) validating the subscriber, by the home authentication server checking the MSISDN against the subscriber database.

8. The method of claim 5 , wherein step (c3) comprises:
(c31) sending a subscriber authentication response with an authentication code, by the home authentication server, to the foreign application server, via redirection of the foreign application;
(c32) sending the subscriber authentication response with the authentication code, by the foreign application server, to the home authentication server;
(c33) receiving the MSISDN and the authentication token, by the foreign application server, directly from the home authentication server; and
(c34) sending the authentication token, by the foreign application server, to the foreign application.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the foreign application is a foreign wallet application and the foreign application server is a foreign wallet server.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
(d) receiving a remittance request, by the foreign wallet server, from the foreign wallet application installed on the mobile device located at the foreign zone;
(e) receiving the remittance request, by a home wallet server, from the foreign wallet server;
(f) submitting the remittance request to a home telecom carrier's node of a distributed transaction consensus network to transfer digital property from a home virtual wallet to a target foreign wallet; and
(g) recording the remittance in a distributed ledger.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein, at step (e), the remittance request is sent by the foreign wallet server, to the home wallet server, via a foreign wallet application's authentication gateway and a home telecom carrier's authentication gateway.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein, at step (g), the distributed ledger has a blockchain data structure.

Assignees

• Softbank Corp
• Tbcasoft Inc

Inventors

• Fukuizumi Takeshi
• Asao Takahiro
• Noguchi Katsuyoshi
• Yanase Masayoshi
• Fukazawa Miki
• Yamaguchi Daisuke
• Wu Ling
• Chang Yuan-Shiang
• Wu William
• Chan Brian M
• Li Chiahsin
• Lin Huan-Yi

Classifications

• G06Q20/16 Primary

  Payments settled via telecommunication systems · CPC title

• G06Q20/04

  Payment circuits · CPC title

• G06Q20/085

  involving remote charge determination or related payment systems · CPC title

• G06Q20/325

  using wireless networks · CPC title

• G06Q20/3221

  Access to banking information through M-devices · CPC title