Blockchain-implemented method and system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2019164137-A1
Application number	US-201716320945-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 21, 2017
Priority date	Jul 29, 2016
Publication date	May 30, 2019
Grant date	—

Abstract

The computer-implemented invention provides a method and corresponding system for controlling access to and/or use of an interne-enabled resource. The invention uses an electronic ledger such as, for example, the Bitcoin blockchain. The resource may be an IoT device or system. Access to the resource is permitted or enabled upon provision of a cryptographic key e.g. a private key which corresponds to a public key which has been stored in memory. In one embodiment, the public key is stored in a DHT. Access to the resource is prevented or disabled by removing the public key from memory, and using a redeem script of a second blockchain Transaction to spend a tokenised output of a first blockchain Transaction. The second transaction detokenizes the token (or ‘coloured coin’) contained within the first Transaction. In order to prevent further access to the resource, an encrypted message is sent to the internet-enabled resource, wherein the message communicates a public key and the redeem script. The resource then checks whether the public key in the message matches that stored in memory and, if it does, removes the stored version of the public key from memory. The resource then uses the redeem script to perform the detokenization.

First claim

1 . A method of controlling access to and/or use of an internet-enabled resource, comprising the steps:
permitting access to and/or use of the internet-enabled resource upon provision of a private key which corresponds to a public key which has been stored in memory; and preventing access to and/or use of the internet-enabled resource by:
removing the public key from memory; and
using a redeem script of a second blockchain Transaction to spend a tokenised output of a first blockchain Transaction.

2 . A method according to claim 1 wherein the public key, or a reference to its location, is stored in a Distributed Hash Table.

3 . A method according to claim 1 wherein the public key which is stored in memory is stored in memory that is:
i) accessible by the internet-enabled resource; and/or
ii) in, on or connected to the resource.

4 . A method according to claim 1 and wherein preventing access to the internet-enabled resource further comprises:
sending a message to the internet-enabled resource, wherein the message communicates a public key and the redeem script.

5 . A method according to claim 4 and further comprising the step of:
checking whether the public key stored in memory is related to, or matches, the public key communicated by the message.

6 . A method according to claim 1 wherein the tokenised output comprises a locking script which includes metadata, and wherein the metadata comprises the public key or a hash of the public key.

7 . A method according to claim 1 wherein access to internet-enabled resource is permitted upon provision of the private key by an encrypted message which has been signed using the private key.

8 . A method according to claim 7 and further comprising the step of:
enabling access to the internet-enabled resource if the stored public key can be used to decrypt the message.

9 . A method according to claim 7 wherein the encrypted message is generated and/or encrypted by a portable or handheld computing device.

10 . A method according to claim 1 wherein the internet-enabled resource is an IoT device.

11 . A method according to claim 1 wherein the redeem script comprises a cryptographic key associated with the internet-enabled resource, optionally wherein the cryptographic key is a public key.

12 . A method according to claim 1 and further comprising the step of providing the first and/or second blockchain transaction to a blockchain network.

13 . A computer-implemented system arranged to perform the method of claim 1 .

14 . A system according to claim 13 wherein the system comprises:
an internet-enabled resource, wherein the resource is an IoT device or apparatus;
a blockchain; and
an internet-enabled client device associated with a user and arranged to store a cryptographic key associated with the user, wherein the client device is a portable or handheld computing device.

15 . A system according to claim 13 wherein the internet-enabled resource is arranged to generate a blockchain Transaction and provide the Transaction to a blockchain network.

Assignees

• Nchain Holdings Ltd

Inventors

• Vincent Stephane

Classifications

• G06Q30/0645

  Rental transactions; Leasing transactions · CPC title

• G06Q20/14

  specially adapted for billing systems · CPC title

• H04W4/70

  Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC] · CPC title

• H04L9/0825

  using asymmetric-key encryption or public key infrastructure [PKI], e.g. key signature or public key certificates · CPC title

• G06Q2220/00

  Business processing using cryptography · CPC title