Method and system for chain of custody verification
A method at a network element for verification of chain of custody of goods within a portable container, the method including receiving, from a computing device associated with the portable container, first log data; receiving, from at least one transit element that interacted with the computing device associated with the portable container during transport of the goods, second log data; and correlating the first log data and the second log data to verify the chain of custody of the goods.
1. A method comprising:
controlling, with one or more processors, a lock actuating mechanism to lock a portable container, wherein a first computing device is associated with the portable container;
receiving, with the one or more processors, a first report generated by the first computing device in response to the locking of the portable container;
receiving, with the one or more processors, a second report generated by the first computing device in response to a short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and a second computing device associated with a transit element, wherein the second report indicates that an association was established with the second computing device;
receiving, with the one or more processors, a third report generated by the second computing device in response to the short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and the second computing device, wherein the third report indicates that an association was established with the first computing device;
controlling, with the one or more processors, the lock actuating mechanism to unlock the portable container;
receiving, with the one or more processors, a fourth report generated by the first computing device in response to the unlocking of the portable container; and
verifying, with the one or more processors, a chain of custody of one or more goods in the portable container based on the first, second, third, and fourth reports.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein a cloud based server comprises at least some of the one or more processors.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the lock actuating mechanism is controlled to unlock the portable container in response to a verification of one or more policy conditions.
4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the verification of the one or more policy conditions comprises verifying one or more cryptographic keys.
5. The method of claim 3 , wherein the verification of the one or more policy conditions comprises:
decrypting data with a cryptographic key; and
verifying a timestamp, a geolocation, or sensor data of the decrypted data.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the verification of the one or more policy conditions further comprises verifying that the portable container is within a predetermined geographical boundary.
7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the verification of the one or more policy conditions further comprises verifying that the portable container will be unlocked within a predetermined time window.
8. The method of claim 5 , wherein the verification of the one or more policy conditions further comprises:
verifying that the portable container is within a predetermined geographical boundary; and
verifying that the portable container will be unlocked within a predetermined time window.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first computing device is affixed to the portable container, wherein the second computing device is affixed to the transit element, and wherein the transit element is positioned along a transit path of the portable container.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the portable container comprises the first computing device, wherein the transit element comprises the second computing device, and wherein the transit element is positioned along a transit path of the portable container.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein verifying the chain of custody comprises cross-referencing the second and third reports to determine whether an anomalous condition exits.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second report comprises a first timestamp for when the association was established with the second computing device, wherein the third report comprises a second timestamp for when the association was established with the first computing device, and wherein the cross-referencing comprises comparing the first and second timestamps.
13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the second report comprises a third timestamp for when a disassociation occurred with the second computing device, wherein the third report comprises a fourth timestamp for when a disassociation occurred with the first computing device, and wherein the cross-referencing further comprises comparing the third and fourth timestamps.
14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second report comprises a first geographic location for where the association was established with the second computing device, wherein the third report comprises a second geographic location for where the association was established with the first computing device, and wherein the cross-referencing comprises comparing the first and second geographic locations.
15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second report comprises a first temperature reading read by a first sensor of the first computing device, wherein the third report comprises a second temperature reading read by a second sensor of the second computing device, and wherein the cross-referencing comprises comparing the first and second temperature readings.
16. The method of claim 11 , wherein each of the second and third reports comprises a timestamp and a geographic location for the short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and the second computing device.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the first and fourth reports are also cross-referenced with the second and third reports to determine whether the anomalous condition exits, wherein the first report comprises a timestamp and a geographic location for the locking of the portable container, and wherein the fourth report comprises a timestamp and a geographic location for the unlocking of the portable container.
18. The method of claim 11 , wherein verifying the chain of custody further comprises determining that each of the first, second, third, and fourth reports were received within one or more predetermined amounts of time.
19. A system comprising one or more processors configured to:
control a lock actuating mechanism to lock a portable container, wherein a first computing device is associated with the portable container;
receive a first report generated by the first computing device in response to the locking of the portable container;
receive a second report generated by the first computing device in response to a short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and a second computing device associated with a transit element, wherein the second report indicates that an association was established with the second computing device;
receive a third report generated by the second computing device in response to the short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and the second computing device, wherein the third report indicates that an association was established with the first computing device;
control the lock actuating mechanism to unlock the portable container;
receive a fourth report generated by the first computing device in response to the unlocking of the portable container; and
verify a chain of custody of one or more goods in the portable container based on the first, second, third, and fourth reports.
20. A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
control a lock actuating mechanism to lock a portable container, wherein a first computing device is associated with the portable container;
receive a first report generated by the first computing device in response to the locking of the portable container;
receive a second report generated by the first computing device in response to a short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and second computing device associated with a transit element, wherein the second report indicates that an association was established with the second computing device;
receive a third report generated by the second computing device in response to the short-range wireless communication between the first computing device and the second computing device, wherein the third report indicates that an association was established with the first computing device;
control the lock actuating mechanism to unlock the portable container;
receive a fourth report generated by the first computing device in response to the unlocking of the portable container; and
verify a chain of custody of one or more goods in the portable container based on the first, second, third, and fourth reports.