Technique for configuring secured access to a host network for an invited terminal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9853980-B2
Application number	US-201414538523-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 11, 2014
Priority date	Nov 12, 2013
Publication date	Dec 26, 2017
Grant date	Dec 26, 2017

Abstract

A method is provided for configuring access to a network, to authorize an access to the network for at least one invited terminal associated with an invited user. The method is implemented by a first network access management module associated with a host user. The method includes: receiving, from a terminal associated with the host user, an offer to share the access to the network intended for the invited user, the users being connected via a social network; obtaining, from a second network access management module associated with the invited user, information identifying the invited terminal; obtaining, from the network, configuration information allowing access to the network by the invited terminal, following a sending, to the network, of an access configuration request comprising the identification information; and sending, to the second management module, configuration information intended for the invited terminal allowing it access to the network.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for configuring access to a network, called host network, to allow at least one terminal associated with an invited user, called invited terminal, to access said host network, said method being implemented by a first network access management module associated with a host user, and comprising the following steps:
obtaining, via a social network, of a list of trusted users;
reception from a terminal associated with the host user, of an offer to share the access to the host network intended for the invited user, said invited user being selected from the list by the host user;
obtaining from a second network access management module associated with said invited user, information identifying said invited terminal;
obtaining from the host network configuration information allowing access to the host network by the invited terminal, following a sending, to the host network, of an access configuration request comprising said identification information and specific authentication parameters generated for said invited terminal; and
sending, to the second management module, said configuration information, comprising the authentication parameters, including a service set identifier and an access key, specific to the invited terminal, offering the invited terminal a personalized access to the host network, intended to be transmitted to the invited terminal.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising, prior to the step of obtaining identification information, a step of obtaining, via the social network an address of the second management module, said address being used in the obtaining of the identification information from the second management module.

3. The method according to claim 1 , the method further comprising, prior to the step of sending to the host network, a step of generation of said authentication parameters by the first network access management module.

4. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising, prior to the reception step, a step of obtaining, via the social network, of a list of invited users, the steps of the method being reiterated for each invited user in said list.

5. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising a step of updating of said configuration information allowing access to the host network by the invited terminal.

6. A method for configuring access to a network, called host network, to allow a terminal associated with an invited user, called invited terminal, to access said host network, said method being implemented by a first network access management module associated with an invited user, and comprising the following steps:
sending a request to a social network of a list of trusted users
supplying information identifying the invited terminal to a second network access management module associated with the host network, in response to a request for information identifying the invited terminal received from said second module;
reception, from a terminal associated with the host user, via a social network, of an offer to share the access to the host network intended for the invited user, said invited user being selected by host user from the list;
reception of a request to access the host network from the invited terminal; and
sending to the invited terminal, configuration information comprising authentication parameters, including a service set identifier and an access key, specific to the invited terminal, obtained from the second management module, said configuration information comprising an access configuration offering the invited terminal a personalized access to the host network, obtained by the second management module by using the information identifying the invited terminal and the authentication parameters specific to said invited terminal.

7. The method according to claim 6 , in which the supply of the identification information is performed after the reception of a message selecting the invited terminal by the invited user.

8. The method according to claim 6 , further comprising, prior to the step of reception of the access request, a step of obtaining, from the invited terminal, an agreement from the invited user to the offer to share the access received from the host user.

9. A network access management module arranged to authorize an access to a host network to at least one invited terminal associated with an invited user, said module being associated with a host user and comprising:
a hardware memory;
at least one communication bus;
a first communication submodule configured to communicate with a social network, and to obtain a list of trusted users to which a host user is connected via said social network;
a first reception submodule configured to receive, from a terminal associated with a host user, an offer to share the access to the host network intended for the invited user, said invited user being selected from the list by the host user;
a first sending submodule configured to send, to a second network access management module associated with said invited user, a request for information identifying said at least one invited terminal, and to send, to said second management module, configuration information comprising authentication parameters, including a service set identifier and an access key, specific to the invited terminal, intended for the identified invited terminal, said configuration information offering a personalized access to the host network;
a second reception submodule arranged to receive, from a second network access management module associated with said invited user, information identifying said at least one invited terminal; and
a second sending submodule arranged to send, to the host network, an access configuration request comprising said identification information and the authentication parameters specific to said invited terminal, said configuration, once done, making it possible to authorize said identified invited terminal to access the host network.

10. A network access management module arranged to authorize at least one invited terminal associated with an invited user to access a host network, said module being associated with an invited user, comprising:
a hardware memory;
at least one communication bus;
a first communication submodule arranged to communicate with a social network, notably arranged to receive, from the social network, an offer to share the access to the host network intended for the invited user, said invited user being selected from a list of trusted users connected to the host user via the social network;
a first sending/receiving submodule arranged to receive, from the invited terminal, a request to access the host network, and send configuration information to said invited terminal;
a second sending/receiving submodule arranged to receive, from a second network access management module associated with the host user, a request to identify the invited terminal, send, to said second module, information identifying said invited terminal, and receive configuration information, comprising authentication parameters, including a service set identifier and an access key, specific to the invited terminal and an access configuration offering the invited terminal a personalized access to the host network, the invited terminal having previously been identified by the second management module via the sent identification information and the authentication parameters specific to said invited terminal to access the host network.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon, which when executed by a processor of a first network access management module associated with a host user, configure t

Assignees

• Orange

Inventors

• Radier Benoit
• Nicaisse Sebastien

Classifications

• H04L63/10 Primary

  for controlling access to devices or network resources · CPC title

• H04W84/12

  WLAN [Wireless Local Area Networks] · CPC title

• H04L67/22

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H04W12/04

  Key management, e.g. using generic bootstrapping architecture [GBA] · CPC title

• H04W12/50 Primary

  Secure pairing of devices · CPC title