Real privacy management authentication system
View Patent ↗A system for secure communications. An authentication procedure establishes a session key between communicating entities that is used to encrypt subsequent communications. The authentication procedure can be repeated for each n messages exchanged, where n is an integer, for each web page sent and received and for any other suitable interval. An entity can establish a trusted relationship with a directory server that can act as a trusted intermediary in authentication and session key set up between two or more entities that do not trust each other.
1. A method for secure communications, comprising:
receiving at a server an authentication request from a browser that includes a security setting flag, wherein
if the security setting flag is a first value, then
sending a session key to the browser, wherein the session key is encrypted using a public key of the browser;
if the security setting flag is a second value, then
receiving from the browser a list of directory servers;
sending to the browser a first part of a session key encrypted using a public key of the browser;
selecting a directory server from the list of directory servers;
sending to the selected directory server a second part of the session key, said second part encrypted using a first key to be decrypted by the directory server and sent to the browser encrypted using a second key; and
if the security setting flag is a third value, then
sending to the directory server the session key encrypted with a first key to be sent to the browser encrypted using a second key.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the authentication request further includes a public key of the browser.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein a new session key is generated and used once every n messages received at the server, where n is an integer.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein a new session key is generated and used for each web page sent from the server to the browser.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: Sending from a server a verified set up request to a directory server that includes a verified set up security setting flag, wherein if the flag is a first value, then receiving a directory server key encrypted using a public key of the server; and if the flag is a second value, then receiving a directory server key at an email address; and if the flag is a third value, then receiving a first part of a directory server key from the directory server over an HTTP connection and a second part of the directory server key at an email address.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the verified set up request includes a domain name of the server and at least part of the directory server key is sent to an email address at the same domain name address.