Electronic information inquiry method

Details Electronic information inquiry method Electronic information inquiry method

2001-04-26

2003-09-23

Trammell, James P. (Department: 3621)

Electrical computers and digital processing systems: support

Multiple computer communication using cryptography

Protection at a particular protocol layer

C380S255000, C380S028000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06625733

ABSTRACT:

This application claims priority of PCT/JP00/00121, filed Jan. 13, 2000.
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a safe security method in recording or exchanging electronic information, especially an inquiry process for confirming mutual electronic information maintaining the same content each other when the both parties should retain the same information in exchange of the electronic information or in electronic commerce.
BACKGROUND ARTS
Many computers are connected to communications networks for forming computer systems in recent years, and each computer may be accessed by many uncertified persons through the communications networks. Therefore, the electronic information recorded in the external memory storage of the computer such as hard disk devices may be falsified by others having no rights. Alterations may be occurred by accidents without willfulness of others, and also even the parties may commit falsification or forgery of the information.
Thus, important contents should be always doubted whether the electronic information recorded in the apparatus maintains truth or not. In electronic commerce, problems may occur afterwards when someone has transactions believing an altered electronic information changed by an accident, willful, or fault which records the contracting condition agreed by each other.
To avoid such problems, it is required to confirm agreement of the content of the records held by the both parties as the occasion demands. For confirming agreement of the electronic information held by both parties, it is enough to exchange the electronic information each other and to compare the received information with the information maintained. However, it is preferable to avoid letting full of the electronic information run in the communications channels for preventing from leakage of the information to others, when secrecy of the information is required.
When there is a difference between the contents recorded by each other, it comes into question which is true and it might become a futile discussion. It is desirable to be judged by a neutral third party such as a notary public or an authentication authority etc. If full of the information runs through the channels for judgment of genuineness of the information, the information may be stolen along the communications channels. And high ability and long time for processing are required as well as congestion occurs in the communications channels because of a vast quantity of the running information. Especially, an authentication authority or a database center who has to communicate with many customers through the communications channels, has such disadvantages that the equipment cost rises high and also number of the customers are restricted.
Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide an inquiry system for confirming the identity of the information retained in each other by exchanging only a part of the electronic information.
It is another object of the invention to provide an inquiry system for confirming the genuineness of the electronic information retained by one self by asking only small parts of the information deposited in an authentication party.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an inquiry system for obtaining a genuine electronic information by putting together the information furnished from the authority who retained only a part of the electronic information and the information held by one's self which is the other part of the electronic information.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
According to the electronic information inquiry method of this invention, the parties concerned as a reference, or a collator divides the recorded electronic information into more than one information element, and selects some elements from the divided ones for a transmittal information block. Furthermore, the reference generates division/selection data recorded with the dividing manner into the information elements, the generating manner of the transmittal information block and the selected information elements. Then the reference sends the transmittal information block and the division/selection data to the inquirer who requests the collation.
A division/selection data is necessary data for dividing and combining to form the transmittal information block, and the division/selection data is transmitted with the transmittal information block. The division/selection data includes information of location, length and so on, as well as a sum check data of the individual information elements included in the transmittal information block. The division/selection data may be accompanied with each of the information elements. The information elements may be relocated with a random order in the information block. The transmittal information block may be formed with more than one information block, and the individual information blocks may be transmitted separately.
The inquirer receives the transmittal information block or blocks and the division/selection data, divides the electronic information file recorded in his device according to the division/selection data, replaces the parts by the transmittal information located corresponding to their locations, and rearranges and integrates the information elements according to the division/selection data in order to retrieve the information content.
A transmittal information block is formed by combining some elements arbitrarily selected from the discretely divided information elements. Therefore, even a part of any information block includes some portion relating to any part of the whole information. The transmittal information blocks are not available unless they are retrieved as like a paper media treated by a shredder. Therefore, the transmittal information is safe because anyone without a retrieving means cannot utilize the information blocks as a useful information.
When the information recorded by the inquirer is not agree with the information recorded in the reference, the information content which is retrieved from the inquirer's electronic information file partly replaced with the information elements in the transmittal information block is seldom or never equal to the information content recorded by the inquirer, even though the different part of the information is not transmitted.
Especially when information elements which are formed by dividing the electronic information at arbitrary physically defined points are used, it is impossible to know its content by obtaining some of the divided information elements. Even if there is very little difference between the both information, at least some information elements have a difference because the later part of the information differs from each other. Therefore, a meaningful content cannot be obtained by replacing with information elements in the transmittal information block to retrieve the whole information, so that it is easily made sure if there is difference unless comparing the retrieved information with the original.
The both parties commonly may store the same division/selection algorithm, so that the both parties may obtain the same division/selection meanings if the same argument is applied. This manner makes simpler the division/selection data to be transmitted, and the argument itself unusable by a person who does not know the algorithm. A numerical value relating to the time of inquiry may be used as the argument. When the argument functions as a time stamp, time of alteration can be roughly estimated because the time of collation may be confirmed by each other. The argument may be selected corresponding to the address of reference. The address settles the law which the contract should conform. Thus, the inquiry method of the invention prevents a dispute with regard to the result of the contract, because the parties confirm and agree with each other the contract content, place and time of the conclusion, and so on.
As described above, according to the method of this invention, transmission of very little portion of information to be collated makes sure of the equality of the inquirer'

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