Abstract:
An individual identity authentication system for authenticating an identity of an individual includes a client computer system and a service provider computer system. The client computer system may be implemented at various locations, for example, airport terminals, so as to provide ready access for various users to authenticate the identity of a particular individual. The service provider computer system is in communication with the client computer system and executes code for causing the service provider computer system to perform a number of steps. One step includes receiving a personal identification number (PIN) and a social security number (SSN) of an individual that is entered into a secure terminal associated with the client computer system. Another step includes authenticating an identity of the individual when the entered PIN and the entered SSN correspond to a registered PIN and a registered SSN of the individual.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/437,652, entitled “IDENTITY THEFT REDUCTION SYSTEM,” by John William Clifton et al., filed on May 13, 2003, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention is generally directed to an authentication system and, more specifically, to an individual identity authentication system.  
           [0003]    It is common practice for a creditor to request a credit report for an individual before extending credit to that individual. In a typical situation, a creditor requests a social security number (SSN) of the individual, at which point the creditor requests a credit report from one of any number of credit bureaus, e.g., consumer reporting agencies, such as Equifax™, Experian™ and TransUnion™. Upon receiving the credit report from a credit bureau, the creditor may then use the credit information contained in the credit report in determining whether to approve/disapprove entering into a financial transaction, for example, a loan, a rental agreement, a real estate agreement, etc., with the individual. However, when the individual seeking credit has assumed another individual&#39;s identity, the creditor may erroneously extend credit to the individual. This type of fraud may cost creditors hundreds of millions of dollars every year and can cause the individual whose identity has been stolen difficulty in obtaining future credit due to the fraud perpetuated upon the individual&#39;s identity.  
           [0004]    A number of systems have been proposed and/or implemented to prevent unauthorized access to various consumer information. For example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0009435 discloses a centralized personal database that is accessible via the Internet and secured by a combination of identification numbers, including a basic, a primary and a secondary number. The secure personal database is accessible to a customer using a combination of the basic and primary numbers and is accessible to others who have been supplied with the basic number and a secondary number. In general, the primary and secondary numbers may be thought of as personal identification numbers (PINs).  
           [0005]    As another example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0174067 discloses a tokenless electronic transaction system that uses a biometric sample of a buyer and an associated PIN to validate a buyer with a seller. As is disclosed, upon the determination of sufficient resources in a buyer&#39;s financial account, the financial account of the buyer is debited and a financial account of the seller is credited. The buyer initially registers with the system by providing at least one biometric sample and a PIN along with a financial account number.  
           [0006]    The seller registers with the system by providing a seller financial account number. In performing a registration operation, an employee identifies himself/herself using a biometric sample and PIN when initially activating a registration system.  
           [0007]    U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0143708 discloses a system for conducting secure credit card transactions over the Internet that prompts a consumer to enter a pre-registered PIN, which, together with a phone number from which the consumer is calling, is used to verify the identity of the consumer. The system implements software that selectively switches a consumer&#39;s computer connection from a merchant&#39;s web site on the Internet to a secured telephone line for accessing a freestanding server used to obtain authorization to make a purchase and then switches the consumer back to the merchant&#39;s web site once such authorization is obtained or denied. As is disclosed, a consumer may provide their social security number (SSN) for identification purposes.  
           [0008]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,892,900 discloses a system that provides secure transaction management so as to maintain integrity, availability and/or confidentiality of information and processes related to the use of the information. The system tracks an individual&#39;s credit and generally protects the security of information related to the individual. The system also alternatively provides one or more passwords or other information used to identify or otherwise verify/authenticate an individual&#39;s identity. While the above-described systems attempt to limit the dissemination of an individual&#39;s personal information, these systems may fail to adequately safeguard the ability of one individual to assume the identity of another individual when seeking credit.  
           [0009]    Additionally, it is increasingly desirable for various entities, for example, government entities, to be able to readily determine the identity of a particular individual. For example, government agencies and businesses have incorporated various devices, such as retinal scanners, fingerprint recognition and photo recognition systems at entrances of buildings or portions of buildings to limit the access to the buildings or portions of buildings to authorized personnel. However, such systems are typically very expensive and, as such, have only been implemented in limited high security situations.  
           [0010]    What is needed is a system that reduces personal identity theft by ensuring that an individual who has applied for credit is legitimate before providing a potential creditor with a credit report on the individual. It would also be desirable to provide a system that economically and readily provides a means for authenticating the identity of a specific individual.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0011]    According to one embodiment of the present invention, a technique for authenticating the identity of an individual includes a number of steps. One step includes receiving a personal identification number (PIN) and a social security number (SSN) of an individual. Another step includes authenticating the identity of the individual when the entered PIN and entered SSN correspond to a registered PIN and a registered SSN of the individual. It should be appreciated that this technique is particularly useful in that virtually all legal residents of the United States have an assigned SSN. According to another embodiment of the present invention, the technique includes registering the PIN of the individual with the SSN of the individual through a registration provider. According to one aspect of the invention, the registration provider includes banks and savings and loan associations. According to another embodiment of the present invention, the step of registering the PIN of the individual with the SSN of the individual through a registration provider includes a step of verifying the identity of the individual before providing the individual with access to a secure terminal for inputting the PIN and the SSN. According to a different aspect of the present invention, the identity of the individual is verified by an employee of the registration provider through examination of at least one of a drivers license, passport, SSN card, credit card and a birth certificate.  
           [0012]    According to another embodiment of the present invention, the technique includes a number of other steps. One step includes monitoring authentication requests of the individual.  
           [0013]    Another step includes flagging the individual when a number of failed authentication requests are above a predetermined level during a predetermined period. Yet another step includes notifying at least one of the registration provider and the individual of a potential identity theft when the associated authentication requests are above the predetermined level during the predetermined period. According to another aspect of the present invention, the secure terminal is connected to a service provider computer system that accesses a secure database to determine whether the entered PIN and the entered SSN correspond to a registered PIN and a registered SSN of the individual. According to a different aspect of the invention, the PIN may include numerals, characters, or a combination of numerals and characters, e.g., alphabetical symbols.  
           [0014]    These and other features, advantages and objects of the present invention will be further understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art by reference to the following specification, claims and appended drawings. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0015]    [0015]FIG. 1 is an electrical block diagram of an exemplary private secured computer network;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 2 is an electrical block diagram of an exemplary computer network that utilizes the Internet;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 3 is a flow-chart of an exemplary entity set-up routine;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 4 is a flow-chart of an exemplary credit bureau routine;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5 is a flow-chart of an exemplary credit report request routine; and  
         [0020]    [0020]FIGS. 6A-6B are flow-charts of exemplary individual identity authentication routines. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0021]    As is described further herein, an identity theft reduction system designed according to the present invention reduces and/or eliminates personal identity theft by ensuring that an individual that applies for credit is, in fact, the individual who they represent themselves to be. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the identity theft reduction system is linked with a number of credit bureau computer systems and entity computer systems so as to allow an individual with a social security number (SSN) to assign a personal identification number (PIN), e.g., a 4 to 10 digit numeric and/or alphanumeric string, to their SSN. According to this embodiment, a credit bureau does not provide a credit report to a creditor unless the individual produces a valid PIN with the SSN.  
         [0022]    According to another aspect of the invention, a technique for authenticating an identity of an individual is disclosed which can be implemented economically and which readily allows for authentication of the identity of a specific individual. It should be appreciated that virtually everyone legally present in the United States has an assigned social security number (SSN) that is readily available to that individual and which has typically been memorized by the individual. According to this aspect, each individual can register a personal identification number (PIN) in combination with their SSN to allow themselves to be uniquely identified in various places and under varying circumstances. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a registered PIN and SSN are stored in an encrypted form such that a PIN of an individual is protected from theft. According to this embodiment, the fact that the PIN is protected in an encrypted form ensures that an individual, whose identity is verified by a system constructed according to various embodiments of the present invention, is, in fact, who they claim to be. As is discussed above, implementing such a system provides a secure relatively low-cost system that adequately authenticates an identity of an individual under various circumstances and in a variety of different applications.  
         [0023]    For example, in the financial industry, the system can be used to verify the identity of an individual for new accounts and loans, credit cards, large withdrawals, check cashing, safety deposit box access and cardless automatic teller machine (ATM) transactions. In the retail industry, the system can be interfaced with various retailers for identity checks for large purchases, rental agreements, cell phone services and over-the-counter credit card applications. In the airline industry, the system can be interfaced with airport security for automated identity checks. In the government agency area, the system can be used to verify the identity of an individual for immigration purposes (worldwide at U.S. embassies), government benefit offices, tax agencies and for homeland security purposes. In a corporate setting, the system provides a way for an affiliated company to verify the identity of new hires, allow human resource departments to verify the identity of an individual for tax purposes and to provide security for employees accessing facilities of a given company. In the Internet industry, the system provides a means for authenticating the identity of an individual undertaking an Internet transaction. In the medical industry, the system can be utilized to authenticate the identity of someone making a healthcare benefit claim. In the law enforcement area, the system readily provides a means for authenticating the identity of people who have been incarcerated. According to one aspect of the present invention, various entities utilizing the service can use a secure workstation that is interfaced to the Internet to access a service provider computer system accessible database to authenticate the identity of a user. For example, a secure keypad associated with a workstation may be provided to allow an individual to enter their PIN and SSN, after the PIN and SSN have been registered with the system. Upon verifying the PIN and SSN of the individual, the system then provides the name of the individual (and potentially may provide other information) to the workstation for display to an individual who is contemplating some sort of transaction with the individual. It is further contemplated that the system may be interfaced with building security systems to control employee access to facilities and may also be used as an interface with credit bureau systems to provide access to, for example, credit bureau reports. It should be appreciated that a registration process, similar to that described below, is necessary to verify the identity of a person and then to allow them to enter a PIN for registration with the service provider.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary computer network  100  that includes three computer systems  102 ,  104  and  120 , which are coupled to a private secured communication link  106 . The computer system  120 , which is exemplary of the computer systems  102  and  104 , includes a processor  122  that is coupled to a mass storage device  128 , a memory subsystem  124 , a display  126 , an input device  132  and a network interface card (NIC)  130 . The memory subsystem  124  includes an application appropriate amount of volatile and non-volatile memory and the mass storage device  128  is utilized to store one or more databases that may be utilized by the service provider computer system  120 , which is programmed according to the various embodiments of the present invention.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary computer network  200  that includes computer systems  210 ,  220  and  230  that are capable of communicating with each other over an Internet connection  240 , via Internet service providers (ISPs)  212 ,  222  and  232 , respectively. As an example, when an individual approaches an authorized entity to set-up an account with the identity theft reduction and/or individual identity authentication service provider, an employee of the entity, utilizing the computer system  220 , communicates with the service provider computer system  210 , via the Internet  240  and the ISPs  212  and  222 . The identity theft reduction and/or individual identity authentication services may be offered through a qualified financial institution and/or other entity that meets minimum requirements for proof of identity. In this manner, an authorized financial institution and/or other entity can offer the identity theft reduction and/or individual identity authentication services to any of its customers.  
         [0026]    According to this embodiment, an employee of an approved entity, such as a loan officer or interviewer, provides customer registration information to the service provider for each customer. This information can be provided in various ways, such as through a paper or electronic form. In one embodiment, the form would require an entity identification number, an employee code, the individual&#39;s SSN and a PIN. The PIN may be selected by the customer and may be of varying lengths and include numerals, characters or a combination of numerals and characters. The form is then electronically provided to the service provider computer system  210  through a secured interface. According to another embodiment of the present invention, the employee may provide the information via a voice interface. It should be appreciated that the employee of an authorized financial institution may verify the identity of a customer through examination of at least one of a drivers license, a passport, an SSN card, a credit card, a birth certificate and/or other identification means.  
         [0027]    An exemplary entity set-up routine  300  is further depicted in FIG. 3. In step  302 , the routine  300  is initiated, at which point control transfers to step  304 , where the computer system  210  receives an authorization request from an entity, via, for example, the computer system  220 . Next, in step  306 , the system  210  evaluates the information provided in the authorization request to determine whether the entity meets the minimum criteria to become an approved entity. Then, in decision step  308 , the system  210  determines whether the entity has met the minimum criteria and, if so, control transfers to step  310 .  
         [0028]    If the entity does not meet the minimum criteria in step  308 , control transfers to step  312 , where a communication is sent to the entity notifying the entity of authorization refusal, at which point control transfers to step  316 , where the routine  300  terminates. In step  310 , after establishing that the entity meets the minimum criteria in step  308 , the system  210  assigns entity identification codes, employee codes and passwords to the entity and securely communicates the information to the entity. Next, in step  314 , the system  210  stores the information in one or more databases before the routine  300  terminates in step  316 .  
         [0029]    With reference to FIG. 4, a credit bureau routine  400  is further depicted. The routine  400  is designed to be executed on a credit bureau computer system, e.g., the computer system  230 , which is coupled to Internet  240  through the ISP  232 . In step  402 , the routine  400  is initiated, at which point control transfers to step  404 , where the computer system  230  receives a request that includes an encrypted combination SSN and PIN from, for example, the creditor computer system  220 . Next, in step  406 , the computer system  230  communicates the SSN/PIN to the service provider computer system  210  via, for example, a secure Internet connection.  
         [0030]    Then, in step  408 , the computer system  230  receives a response from the service provider computer system  210 .  
         [0031]    Next, in decision step  410 , the computer system  230  determines whether the response was a positive response. If the response was a positive response, control transfers from step  410  to step  412 . If the response is not a positive response, control transfers from step  410  to step  414 , where the computer system  230  provides a message to the computer system  220 , indicating that the credit report requested is denied, at which point control transfers to step  416 , where the routine  400  terminates. In step  410 , when a positive response is received, control transfers to step  412 , where the computer system  230  causes a credit report to be provided to the creditor. This may be achieved by causing a report for the individual to be printed and mailed to the creditor and/or an electronic transfer of the credit report may take place. In step  412 , control transfers to step  416 , where the routine  400  terminates.  
         [0032]    With reference to FIG. 5, an exemplary credit report request routine  500  is shown. The routine  500  is initiated in step  502 , at which point control transfers to step  504 , where the computer system  210  receives a validation request from the credit bureau computer system  230 . Next, in step  506 , the computer system  210  compares the received SSN/PIN with a stored SSN/PIN to determine if a match occurs. It should be appreciated that the database that contains the stored SSN/PIN pairs may also be encrypted. Then, in decision step  508 , the computer system  210  determines whether the received SSN/PIN matches a stored SSN/PIN. If so, control transfers from step  508  to step  518 , where the computer system  210  sends a valid PIN message to the credit bureau computer system  230 . Next, in step  520 , the computer system  210  updates an appropriate database or databases before the routine  500  terminates in step  522 .  
         [0033]    In step  508 , when the computer system  210  determines that the received SSN/PIN does not match the stored SSN/PIN, control transfers to step  510 . In step  510 , the computer system  210  causes a counter, e.g., a BAD counter, to be incremented, at which point control transfers to decision step  512 . In step  512 , the computer system  210  determines whether the BAD counter is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, e.g.,  3 . If so, control transfers to step  516 , where the computer system  210  notifies the parties, e.g., the entity, credit bureaus, authorities and the individual whose SSN has been supplied, of a potential identity theft before transferring control to step  520 . In step  520 , the routine  500  updates an appropriate database or databases before transferring control to step  522 . In step  512 , when the BAD counter is less than  3 , control transfers to step  514 , where the computer system  210  causes an invalid PIN message to be sent to the credit bureau computer system  230 , before transferring control to step  520  for updating appropriate databases and termination of the routine in step  522 .  
         [0034]    It should be appreciated that the communication link between the computer systems  210 ,  220  and  230  may be achieved through an application program interface (API) via a secure Internet link. Using a static TCP/IP address, a reasonable security level may be achieved.  
         [0035]    Further, it may desirable that each employee of the credit bureau be provided with an initial login ID and password to begin a session with the service provider computer system  210 . It should be appreciated that the initial set-up of the individual PINs may be achieved through an audio system located in a secure environment that prompts an employee of an entity for an entity number, an employee code and a password, as well as an SSN and a PIN for an individual who desires to secure their SSN.  
         [0036]    It should also be appreciated that the service provider computer system  210  may implement one or more databases. For example, the computer system  210  may implement an encrypted SSN/PIN database, an encrypted entity database, a secure credit bureau database and a secure encrypted access history database. The SSN/PIN database may be utilized to store the SSNs and PINs for individuals who have signed up for the service. Further identification information, such as name, address, challenge phrase and passcode, may also be included in the SSN/PIN database. The financial institution database may include information for qualifying entities offering the service. In addition, the entity database may include identification numbers for each of the entities along with associated employee codes and passwords that are used to add new PINs. The credit bureau database houses information for participating credit bureaus and the access history database may be utilized to track access to the service provider computer system  210 . In this manner, information can be stored that allows for monitoring excessive accesses and notifying individuals or entities of a potential problem. As is discussed above, upon, for example, a third attempt to obtain a credit report using an SSN and an invalid PIN, the computer system  210  may automatically lock the account and notify affected credit bureaus, authorized entities and government authorities of a potential identity theft. Further, an individual whose identity is being stolen may also be notified and/or local authorities may be notified that a potential identity theft is in progress. Additionally, as is described above, an entity can readily add a PIN for a customer&#39;s SSN through an audio interface system and the financial institution can also request a credit report with the assigned PIN.  
         [0037]    With reference to FIG. 6A, a flow-chart of an exemplary individual identity authentication routine  600  is illustrated, which is executed on the service provider computer system  210 . In step  602 , the routine  600  is initiated, at which point control transfers to step  604 , where the service provider computer system  210  receives an individual identity authentication request from an entity including a social security number (SSN) and an associated PIN of an individual through the entity computer system  220 . Next, in decision step  606 , the system  210  determines whether the received SSN/PIN corresponds to a registered SSN/PIN. If so, control transfers from step  606  to step  610 , where the system  210  sends a message to the entity computer system  220  confirming the individual&#39;s identity, at which point control transfers to step  612 . In step  606 , if the received SSN/PIN does not correspond to a registered SSN/PIN, control transfers to step  608 , where the system  210  sends an individual identity unknown message to the entity computer system  220  before the routine  600  terminates in step  612 . It should be appreciated that the system  210  may also implement a routine, similar to that disclosed with reference to FIG. 5, that tracks when a received SSN/PIN does not correspond to a stored SSN/PIN and notifies appropriate parties of a potential identity theft.  
         [0038]    With reference to FIG. 6B, another exemplary individual identity authentication routine  650  is illustrated that is executed on the entity computer system  220 . In step  652 , the routine  650  is initiated, at which point control transfers to step  654 , where the entity computer system  220  provides an authentication request to the service provider computer system  210 . Next, control transfers to step  656 , where the entity computer system  220  receives a response from the service provider computer system  210 . Then, in decision step  658 , the entity computer system  220  determines whether the identity of the individual is verified. If so, control transfers from step  658  to step  660 , where the entity computer system  220  provides an indication that the identity of the individual is authenticated before providing a name of the individual to the entity and transferring control to step  664 , where the routine  650  terminates. If the identity of the individual is not verified in step  658 , control transfers to step  662 , where the entity computer system provides an alert that a possible identity fraud is in progress before providing a name of the individual assigned to the SSN/PIN and transferring control to step  664 .  
         [0039]    The above description is considered that of the preferred embodiments only. Modifications of the invention will occur to those skilled in the art and to those who make or use the invention. Therefore, it is understood that the embodiments shown in the drawings and described above are merely for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit the scope of the invention, which is defined by the following claims as interpreted according to the principles of patent law, including the doctrine of equivalents.