Method and apparatus for authenticating biometric information

A terminal, a server, and a system for authenticating biometric information and a biometric information authentication method are provided. A method, performed by a terminal, of registering biometric information includes: transmitting a registration request and biometric capability information of the terminal to a server; receiving biometric capability information of the server from the server; acquiring a user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the server; acquiring a pseudonymous identifier (PI) and auxiliary data (AD) based on the user's biometric information; and transmitting the PI and the AD to the server.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based on and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2018-0099432 filed on Aug. 24, 2018 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The disclosure relates to registration of biometric information and an apparatus and method of providing a service of authenticating biometric information, based on the registration of the biometric information.

2. Description of Related Art

Biometrics is an authentication method that involves extracting an individual's unique biometric features such as a fingerprint, a voice, a face, an iris, and blood vessels that are different for each individual and converting them into processible information. As the need for security becomes more important, biometric technologies have been widely used to authenticate users requesting access to an indoor area.

Biometric technologies employ various methods using parts of a human body, such as face recognition, fingerprint recognition, iris recognition, blood vessel recognition, etc. Unlike keys or passwords, an individual's characteristics such as a face shape, voice, a fingerprint, and an eyeball cannot be stolen or duplicated for use by another person. Furthermore, due to their low risk of change or loss, these characteristics are widely used in security applications.

Various services may be made available due to advancement in mobile communication systems and electronic devices. Thus, there is a need for methods of effectively providing services based on these biometric technologies.

SUMMARY

Provided are an apparatus and method capable of effectively providing a user authentication service using biometric information.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, a method, performed by a terminal, of registering biometric information includes: transmitting a registration request and biometric capability information of the terminal to a server; receiving biometric capability information of the server from the server; acquiring a user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the server; acquiring a pseudonymous identifier (PI) and auxiliary data (AD) based on the user's biometric information; and transmitting the PI and the AD to the server.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the disclosure will be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, a method of constructing and using an electronic device, according to an embodiment of the disclosure, will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference numerals or symbols refer to like components or elements performing substantially the same functions. It will be understood that, although the terms including an ordinal number such as “first”, “second”, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements or components, these elements or components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are only used to distinguish one element or component from another element or component. For example, a first element or component t to be discussed below may be termed a second element or component without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Similarly, a second element or component may be termed a first element or component. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing embodiments of the disclosure only and is not intended to limit the embodiments of the disclosure. As used herein, singular forms are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “includes” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.

FIG. 1illustrates a block diagram of a configuration of a biometric information authentication system1000according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring toFIG. 1, the biometric information authentication system1000includes a terminal1100and an authentication server1200.

The terminal1100may acquire biometric information from a user. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the biometric information refers to information containing biometric characteristics that are time invariant and unique for each user. For example, biometric information may be information about at least one of a face shape, an iris, a retina, veins, a fingerprint, or Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA). Biometric information may also be referred to as bioinformation.

The terminal1100may determine whether the user is an authorized user, based on the biometric information. In detail, the terminal1100may perform a biometric information registration procedure for registering information generated based on the user's biometric information and a biometric information authentication procedure. The biometric information authentication procedure involves comparing the registered information with information acquired when authentication is requested and determining whether the user is an authorized user.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, in the biometric information registration procedure, the terminal1100may transmit a part of the information generated based on the user's biometric information to the authentication server1200and request registration from the authentication server1200. Furthermore, when authentication is requested by the user, the terminal1100may transmit a part of the information generated based on the user's biometric information to the authentication server1200and receive a result of the authentication from the authentication server1200. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, when authentication is requested by the user, the terminal1100may request transmission of additional information from the authentication server1200, generate information based on the user's biometric information and the additional information received from the authentication server1200, and transmit a part of the generated information to the authentication server1200. The additional information received from the authentication server1200may include information registered during the biometric information registration procedure.

To protect the user's biometric information against an external attack, the terminal1100and the authentication server1200may transmit or receive information generated based on user's biometric information by using various types of security techniques. Furthermore, the authentication server1200may include a server for exchanging data with the terminal1100and a bioserver, which is separate from the server, for performing operations of processing and storing biometric information. However, this is merely an example, and a configuration of a server according to the disclosure is not limited thereto.

In addition, the terminal1100may obtain a template based on the biometric information acquired from the user. A template refers to feature information obtained by performing algorithmic processing based on biometric information to analyze and extract biometric characteristics in the biometric information and may include a user's unique biometric information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the template may include a pseudonymous identifier (hereinafter, referred to as a ‘PI’) and auxiliary data (hereinafter, referred to as ‘AD’). The terminal1100may prevent the risk of leakage of the biometric information by using a template instead of directly using the user's biometric information for registration and authentication of the biometric information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal1100may transmit biometric capability information of the terminal1100to the authentication server1200while requesting registration of the user's biometric information from the authentication server1200. The biometric capability information refers to information about a biometric technology supported by the terminal1100. Biometric technology may refer to technology that extracts unique biometric information of the user via an automated device to create a template. The biometric technology may also be referred to as bio authentication technology. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, biometric capability information may include items of biometric information (e.g., each user's face shape, iris, retina, veins, fingerprint, DNA, etc.) that may be acquired by the terminal1100and information about an algorithm performed to obtain a template based on the biometric information.

The terminal1100may receive biometric capability information of the authentication server1200from the authentication server1200. The biometric capability information of the authentication server1200may refer to information about a biometric technology supported by the terminal1100among a plurality of biometric technologies supported by the authentication server1200.

The terminal1100may acquire user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the authentication server1200and obtain a template based on the acquired biometric information. The terminal1100may transmit at least some of the obtained templates to the authentication server1200to register information generated based on the user's biometric information or authenticate the user.

FIG. 2illustrates a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of a biometric information authentication system according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring toFIG. 2, the biometric information authentication system includes a terminal1100and a server1200. The terminal1100includes a biometric information client1110, an input/output (I/O) interface1120, a biometric information inputter1130, and a security storage1140.

The biometric information client1110performs operations of processing biometric information. The biometric information client1110may obtain a template based on biometric information acquired via the biometric information inputter1130and control the security storage1140to store the template. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the biometric information client1110is located in a security area of the terminal1100to block access from outside. Alternatively, the biometric information client1110may include a hardware security module (HSM). The HSM is a dedicated crypto processor equipped with a key management system that ensures both hardware and cryptographic security. The HSM may use chips certified as being physically secure. In other words, the HSM may prevent an unauthorized access to information stored in a chip in terms of hardware and software.

The I/O interface1120may receive an input from a user10or provide a processing result to the user10via interactions with the user10. Furthermore, the I/O interface1120may transmit or receive information while communicating with the server1200. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the I/O interface1120may be a web browser or a native application in a mobile operating system (OS).

The biometric information inputter1130acquires biometric information from the user10. The biometric information inputter1130may include a sensor for acquiring biometric information. Biometric information that can be acquired by the biometric information inputter1130may vary depending on biometric capability information of the terminal1100.

The security storage1140stores, based on control by the biometric information client1110, information requiring security such as biometric information or a security key as will be described below. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the security storage1140may include a trusted execution environment (TEE) or a secure element (SE). However, the security storage1140is not an essential component of the terminal1100according to the disclosure, or may not be used when a security key is not stored in the terminal1100.

FIGS. 3A and 3Brespectively illustrate a method of registering information generated based on biometric information and a method of authenticating a user based on the registered information.

FIG. 3Aillustrates a flowchart of a biometric information registration method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Referring toFIG. 3A, a terminal may obtain a template based on biometric information and store the obtained template.

The terminal acquires a user's biometric information (S311). The user's biometric information may vary based on biometric capability information of the terminal.

The terminal may obtain a PI and AD based on the acquired biometric information (S321). In detail, the terminal may extract feature values from the acquired biometric information by using a feature extractor. The terminal may obtain a PI and AD constituting a renewable biometric reference (RBR) by using a PI encoder (PIE), wherein the RBR is a biometric information authentication reference that is renewable from feature values.

A PI is a renewable individual's identifier. A PI is obtained based on biometric information as a hash value containing information acquired based on a feature value extracted from the biometric information. However, because the PI does not contain information used to reconstruct the biometric information, it is possible to prevent leakage of the user's biometric information even when the PI is leaked outside. AD is diversification data that allows creation of multiple PIs and for example, may contain a random number or a generated key. In other words, AD helps to generate multiple PIs from the same biometric characteristic. When the PI and corresponding AD are obtained, the terminal may delete biometric information and an extracted feature value.

The terminal stores the obtained PI and AD (S331). The PI and AD obtained based on the user's biometric information may be used as a reference for authenticating a user when the user subsequently requests authentication.

FIG. 3Billustrates a flowchart of a biometric information authentication method according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

The terminal acquires a user's biometric information (S312). The user's biometric information may vary based on biometric capability information of the terminal. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, when authentication is requested by the user, the terminal may request the user to select, based on biometric capability information, biometric information to be used for authentication from among pieces of supported biometric information and acquire the selected biometric information via a biometric information inputter. The terminal may obtain a recognized PI (hereinafter, referred to as ‘PI*’) based on the biometric information and stored AD by using a PI recorder (PIR) (S322). PI* is a PI obtained at the time of authentication to perform user authentication, i.e., to verify the true identity of the user. Unlike when acquiring a PI from the user's biometric information, PI* is generated based on biometric information and AD pre-acquired together with a PI.

The terminal performs a biometric authentication procedure based on a result of comparison between the PI* and the stored PI (S332). The terminal may compare PI* with PI by using a PI comparator (PIC) and provide an authentication result based on a comparison result.

FIG. 4illustrates a flowchart of a biometric information registration method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Referring toFIG. 4, a terminal may transmit obtained PI and AD to a server.

The terminal may transmit biometric capability information of the terminal to the server while requesting the server to register information related to a user's biometric information (S410).

The terminal may receive biometric capability information of the server (S420). The biometric capability information of the server may be information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal. The biometric technology may be selected from among a plurality of biometric technologies supported by the server based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server.

The terminal may acquire the user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the server (S430). The terminal may acquire the biometric information from the user via a biometric information inputter. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may request the user to select, based on the biometric capability information of the server, biometric information to be used for authentication from among pieces of supported biometric information and acquire the selected biometric information via the biometric information inputter.

The terminal obtains a PI and corresponding AD based on the acquired user's biometric information (S440). The PI and AD may be determined in various ways based on an algorithm used by the terminal to obtain them. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may obtain the PI and AD via a biometric information client.

The terminal transmits the obtained PI and AD to the server (S450). The server may complete a biometric information registration procedure by storing the PI and AD received from the terminal.

FIG. 5illustrates a flow diagram for explaining a biometric information registration method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. In detail,FIG. 5is a flow diagram for explaining operations of a biometric information authentication system including a terminal and a server in the biometric information registration method according to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 4.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S501). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

The I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S502). The connection request may be made using a HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) protocol. A transport layer security (TLS) channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S503).

The I/O interface1120may transmit to the server1210biometric capability information of the terminal and a registration request requiring the transmission of a user BioEnroll request (S504). The registration request may include an ID for identifying the user10.

The server1210determines a biometric capability of the server1210S505). In detail, the server1210may select, based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server1210, information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal from among a plurality of biometric technologies supported by the server1210. The server1210may acquire biometric capability information of the server1210based on the selected information.

When the biometric technologies supported by the server1210do not include a biometric technology supported by the terminal, the server1210transmits a FAIL signal to the I/O interface1120and terminates the registration procedure (S506).

The server1210may transmit a user's ID to a bioserver1220while requesting the bioserver1220to create a user BioEnroll request (S507). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server1210may transmit biometric capability information of the server1210to the bioserver1220or autonomously manage the biometric capability information without transmitting the same.

The bioserver1220may transmit the user BioEnroll request to the server1210(S508). The server1210may transmit the user BioEnroll request to the I/O interface1120(S509). In this case, the user BioEnroll request transmitted by the server1210may include the biometric capability information of the server acquired in operation S505. The I/O interface1120may transmit the user BioEnroll request to the biometric information client1110(S510).

The biometric information client1110requests the user10to select biometric technology and input biometric information with respect to the selected biometric technology (S511). In detail, when a plurality of biometric technologies are supportable based on the biometric capability information of the server, the biometric information client1110may allow the user to select his or her desired biometric technology (S512) and acquire biometric information based on the selected biometric technology (S513).

The biometric information client1110may generate a PI and corresponding AD based on the acquired biometric information (S514). The biometric information client1110may select an algorithm to be used to generate the PI and AD based on the biometric technology selected by the user10in operation S512.

The biometric information client1110transmits a user BioEnroll response to the I/O interface1120(S515). The user BioEnroll response may include the PI and AD generated in operation S514.

The user BioEnroll response including the PI and AD is transmitted to the bioserver1220through the server1210(S516and S517).

The bioserver1220may store the received PI and AD (S518). The bioserver1220may store the received PI and AD in association with the user's ID. In other words, according to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 5, the biometric information authentication system may create a database for biometric information authentication in the bioserver1220by using a user's personal terminal instead of a dedicated terminal.

FIG. 6illustrates a flowchart of a biometric information authentication method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Referring toFIG. 6, a terminal may transmit an obtained PI* to a server.

The terminal may transmit biometric capability information of the terminal to the server while requesting the server to authenticate a user by using information related to the user's biometric information (S610).

The terminal may receive biometric capability information of the server and AD from the server (S620). The biometric capability information of the server may be information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal. The biometric technology may be selected from among biometric technologies related to user information stored by the server based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server. AD may be registered according to a biometric information registration procedure and be acquired based on a selected biometric technology. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server may select a biometric technology suitable for authentication and a user's AD corresponding thereto and provide the selected biometric technology and user's AD to the terminal.

The terminal may acquire the user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the server (S630). The terminal may acquire biometric information from the user via the biometric information inputter. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may request the user to select, based on the biometric capability information of the server, biometric information to be used for authentication from among pieces of supported biometric information and acquire the selected biometric information via the biometric information inputter

The terminal obtains a PI* based on the acquired biometric information and the AD transmitted by the server (S640). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may obtain a PI* via a biometric information client.

The terminal transmits the obtained PI* to the server (S650). The server may then compare the PI* received from the terminal with a PI stored during registration to return an authentication result to the terminal.

FIG. 7illustrates a flow diagram for explaining a biometric information authentication method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. In detail,FIG. 7is a flowchart for explaining operations of a biometric information authentication system including a terminal and a server in the biometric information authentication method according to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 6.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S701). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

The I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S702). The connection request may be made using an HTTP protocol. A TLS channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S703).

The I/O interface1120may transmit to the server1210biometric capability information and an authentication request requiring the transmission of a user BioAuth Request) (S704). The authentication request may include an ID for identifying the user10who requests authentication.

The server1210determines its biometric capability (S705). In detail, the server1210may select, based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server1210, information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal from among a plurality of biometric technologies that are supported by the server1210and correspond to registered information of the user10. The server1210may acquire biometric capability information of the server1210based on the selected information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server1210may acquire a biometric technology suitable for authentication. Alternatively, according to another embodiment of the disclosure, the server1210may transmit biometric capability information based on a plurality of biometric technologies to a bioserver1220(S707) and receive from the bioserver1220information for selecting a biometric technology suitable for registered information about the user10and AD corresponding to the selected biometric technology.

When biometric technologies that are supported by the server1210and correspond to registered information of the user10are not supported by the terminal, the server1210transmits a FAIL signal to the I/O interface1120and terminates the authentication procedure (S706).

The server1210may transmit a user's ID to the bioserver1220while requesting the bioserver1220to create a user BioAuth request (S707). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, as described with reference to operation S705, the server1210may transmit biometric capability information to the bioserver1220or autonomously manage the biometric capability information without transmitting the same.

The bioserver1220may transmit the user BioAuth request to the server1210(S708). The user BioAuth request may include at least one AD corresponding to a biometric technology selected based on the biometric capability information of the server1210.

The server1210may transmit the user BioAuth request to the I/O interface1120(S709). In this case, the user BioAuth request transmitted by the server1210may include the biometric capability information of the server acquired in operation S705. The I/O interface1120may transmit the user BioAuth request to the biometric information client1110(S710).

The biometric information client1110requests the user10to select biometric technology and input biometric information with respect to the selected biometric technology (S711). In detail, when a plurality of biometric technologies are supportable based on the biometric capability information of the server1210, the biometric information client1110may allow the user10to select his or her desired biometric technology (S712) and acquire biometric information based on the selected biometric technology (S713).

The biometric information client1110may generate a PI* based on the acquired biometric information and the AD received from the server1210(S714). The biometric information client1110may select an algorithm to be used to generate the PI* based on the biometric technology selected by the user10in operation S712.

The biometric information client1110transmits a user BioAuth response to the I/O interface1120(S715). The user BioAuth response may include the PI* generated in operation S714.

The user BioAuth response including the PI* is transmitted to the bioserver1220through the server1210(S716and S717).

The bioserver1220may compare the received PI* with a registered PI to determine a result of user authentication (S718). The bioserver1220may transmit information about the authentication result to the terminal through the server1210(S719and S720).

FIG. 8illustrates a flowchart of a biometric information registration method according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring toFIG. 8, a terminal may securely transmit acquired PI and AD to a server by using public key and certificate authentication.

The terminal may transmit biometric capability information of the terminal to the server while requesting the server to register information related to a user's biometric information (S810).

The terminal may receive biometric capability information of the server, a server's public key certificate, and challenge information (S820). The biometric capability information of the server may be information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal. The biometric technology may be selected from among a plurality of biometric technologies supported by the server based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server. The server's public key certificate may be a certificate for a server's private key, which is issued by the certification authority (CA). The challenge information may be information generated and stored by the server to verify the reliability and integrity of information transmitted by the terminal.

The terminal may acquire a user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the server (S830). The terminal may acquire biometric information from the user via a biometric information inputter. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may request the user to select, based on the biometric capability information of the server, biometric information to be used for authentication from among pieces of supported biometric information and acquire the selected biometric information via the biometric information inputter.

The terminal obtains a PI and corresponding AD based on the acquired user's biometric information (S840). The PI and the AD may be determined in various ways based on an algorithm used by the terminal to obtain them. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may obtain the PI and AD via a biometric information client.

The terminal may encrypt the obtained PI and AD and the challenge information received from the server by using a public key acquired based on the server's public key certificate (S850). In detail, the terminal may obtain a server's public key from the server's public key certificate received from the server by using a certificate issued by the CA. The terminal may encrypt the PI and AD and the challenge information received from the server, based on the obtained server's public key.

The terminal transmits the encrypted PI, AD, and challenge information to the server (S860). The server may decrypt with its private key the encrypted PI, AD, and challenge information received from the terminal. The server may verify the reliability and integrity of the received information by using the challenge information and when the verification is successful, store the PI and AD to complete the biometric information registration procedure.

FIG. 9illustrates a flow diagram for explaining a biometric information registration method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. In detail,FIG. 9is a flow diagram for explaining operations of a biometric information authentication system including a terminal and a server in the biometric information registration method according to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 8.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S901). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

The I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S902). The connection request may be made using an HTTP protocol. A TLS channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S903).

The I/O interface1120may transmit to the server1210biometric capability information and an enrollment request requiring the transmission of a user BioEnroll request (S904). The authentication request may include an ID for identifying the user10who requests authentication.

The server1210determines its biometric capability (S905). In detail, the server1210may select, based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server1210, information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal from among a plurality of biometric technologies that are supported by the server1210and correspond to registered information of the user10. The server1210may acquire biometric capability information of the server1210based on the selected information.

When biometric technologies supported by the server1210do not include a biometric technology supported by the terminal, the server1210transmits a FAIL signal to the I/O interface1120and terminates the authentication procedure (S906).

The server1210may transmit a user's ID to a bioserver1220while requesting the bioserver1220to create a user BioEnroll request (S907). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server1210may transmit biometric capability information to the bioserver1220or autonomously manage the biometric capability information without transmitting the same.

The bioserver1220may generate challenge information CH (S908). The challenge information CH may be information generated by the server1210to verify the reliability and integrity of information transmitted by the terminal.

In addition, the bioserver1220may generate its public key pair consisting of a private key S_SK and a public key S_PK for data transmission and reception. The bioserver1220may transmit the public key S_PK to a CA1230(S909). The CA1230may provide the bioserver1220with a public key certificate including the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220encrypted with a private key of the CA1230(S910). The bioserver1220transmits a user BioEnroll request to the server1210(S911). In this case, the user BioEnroll request may include information, which is obtained by encrypting the challenge information CH generated in operation S908and the biometric capability information with the private key S_SK of the bioserver1220, and the public key certificate issued by the CA1230. The server1210transmits the user BioEnroll request to the I/O interface1120(S912).

The I/O interface1120transmits the user BioEnroll request to the biometric information client1110(S913).

The biometric information client1110may verify the public key certificate of the bioserver1220contained in the user BioEnroll request (S914). In detail, the biometric information client1110may hold a certificate including a CA's public key and issued by the CA1230. The biometric information client1110may verify and acquire the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220from the public key certificate of the bioserver1220by using the CA's certificate. The biometric information client1110may decrypt the encrypted challenge information CH and biometric capability information by using the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220.

The biometric information client1110requests the user10to select biometric technology and input biometric information with respect to the selected biometric technology (S915). In detail, when a plurality of biometric technologies are supportable based on the biometric capability information of the server, the biometric information client1110may allow the user10to select his or her desired biometric technology (S916) and acquire biometric information based on the selected biometric technology (S917).

The biometric information client1110may obtain a PI and corresponding AD based on the acquired biometric information (S918). The biometric information client1110may select an algorithm to be used to generate the PI and AD based on the biometric technology selected by the user10in operation S916.

The biometric information client1110may encrypt the obtained PI and AD and the challenge information CH transmitted from the server1210by using the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220acquired based on the public key certificate (S919).

The biometric information client1110transmits a user BioEnroll response to the I/O interface1120(S920). The user BioEnroll response may include the PI, AD, and challenge information CH encrypted in operation S919.

The user BioEnroll response including the encrypted PI, AD, and challenge information CH are transmitted to the bioserver1220through the server1210(S921and S922).

The bioserver1220decrypts the encrypted PI, AD, and challenge information CH with its private key S_SK (S923).

The bioserver1220verifies the reliability and integrity of received information by using the challenge information CH acquired in operation S923(S924). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the bioserver1220may verify the integrity of received information by comparing the challenge information CH acquired in operation S923with stored challenge information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, challenge information stored by the bioserver1220may vary over a predetermined time period. The bioserver1220may compare the challenge information CH acquired in operation S923with the stored challenge information and determine, when they do not match each other, that the user enrollment response has expired.

When the verification is successful in operation S924, the bioserver1220may store the received PI and AD (S925). The bioserver1220may store the received PI and AD in association with a user's ID. According to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 9, a biometric information authentication system may create a database for biometric information authentication in the bioserver1220by using a user's personal terminal instead of a dedicated terminal while ensuring security of information between the terminal and the server1210.

FIG. 10illustrates a flowchart of a biometric information authentication method according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring toFIG. 10, a terminal may securely receive AD and transmit PI* to a server by using public key and certificate authentication.

The terminal may transmit biometric capability information of the terminal to the server while requesting registration of information related to a user's biometric information from the server (S1010).

The terminal may receive from the server biometric capability information of the server, a server's public key certificate, AD, and challenge information (S1020). The biometric capability information of the server may be information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal. The biometric technology may be selected from among a plurality of biometric technologies related to information stored by the server with respect to the user based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server. AD may be registered according to a biometric information registration procedure and be acquired based on a selected biometric technology. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server may select a biometric technology suitable for authentication and a user's AD corresponding thereto and provide the selected biometric technology and user's AD to the terminal. The server's public key certificate may be a certificate for a server's private key, which is issued by CA. The challenge information may be information generated and stored by the server to verify the reliability and integrity of information transmitted by the terminal.

The terminal may acquire a user's biometric information based on the biometric capability information of the server (S1030). The terminal may acquire biometric information from the user via a biometric information inputter. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may request the user to select, based on the biometric capability information of the server, biometric information to be used for authentication from among pieces of supported biometric information and acquire the selected biometric information via the biometric information inputter.

The terminal obtains a PI* based on the acquired user's biometric information and the AD received from the server (S1040). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the terminal may obtain a PI* via a biometric information client.

The terminal may encrypt the obtained PI* and the challenge information received from the server by using a public key acquired based on the server's public key certificate (S1050). In detail, the terminal may obtain a server's public key from the server's public key certificate received from the server by using a certificate issued by the CA. The terminal may encrypt the PI* and the challenge information received from the server by using the acquired server's public key.

The terminal transmits the encrypted PI* and challenge information to the server (S1060). The server may decrypt with its private key the encrypted PI* and challenge information received from the terminal. The server may verify the reliability and integrity of the received information by using the challenge information and, when the verification is successful, compare the received PI* with a PI stored during registration to return an authentication result to the terminal.

FIG. 11illustrates a flowchart of a biometric information authentication method according to an embodiment of the disclosure. In detail,FIG. 11is a flow diagram for explaining operations of a biometric information authentication system including a terminal and a server in the biometric information authentication method according to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 10.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S1101). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

The I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S1102). The connection request may be made using an HTTP protocol. A TLS channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S1103).

The I/O interface1120may transmit to the server1210biometric capability information and an authentication request requiring the transmission of a user BioAuth request (S1104). The authentication request may include an ID for identifying the user10who requests authentication.

The server1210determines its biometric capability (S1105). In detail, the server1210may select, based on the biometric capability information transmitted from the terminal to the server1210, information related to a biometric technology supported by the terminal from among a plurality of biometric technologies that are supported by the server1210and correspond to registered information of the user10. The server1210may acquire biometric capability information of the server1210based on the selected information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server1210may acquire a biometric technology suitable for authentication. Alternatively, according to another embodiment of the disclosure, in operation S1107, the server1210may transmit biometric capability information that is based on a plurality of biometric technologies to a bioserver1220and receive from the bioserver1220information for selecting a biometric technology suitable for the registered information of the user10and AD corresponding to the selected biometric technology.

When biometric technologies that are supported by the server1210and correspond to the registered information of the user10do not include a biometric technology supported by the terminal, the server1210transmits a FAIL signal to the I/O interface1120and terminates the authentication procedure (S1106).

The server1210may transmit a user's ID to the bioserver1220while requesting the bioserver1220to create a user BioAuth request (S1107). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the server1210may transmit biometric capability information to the bioserver1220or autonomously manage the biometric capability information without transmitting the same.

In addition, the bioserver1220may generate its public key pair consisting of a private key S_SK and a public key S_PK for data transmission and reception. The bioserver1220may transmit the public key S_PK to a CA1230(S1109). The CA1230may provide the bioserver1220with a public key certificate including the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220encrypted with a private key of the CA1230(S1110). The bioserver1220transmits a user BioAuth request to the server1210(S1111). In this case, the user BioAuth request may include information, which is obtained by encrypting with a private key S_SK of the bioserver1220the challenge information CH generated in operation S1108, the biometric capability information of the server, and at least one AD corresponding to a biometric technology selected based on the biometric capability information, and the public key certificate issued by the CA1230. The server1210transmits the user BioAuth request to the I/O interface1120(S1112).

The I/O interface1120transmits the user BioAuth request to the biometric information client1110(S1113).

The biometric information client1110may verify the public key certificate of the bioserver1220contained in the user BioAuth request (S1114). In detail, the biometric information client1110may hold a certificate including a CA's public key and issued by the CA1230. The biometric information client1110may verify and acquire the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220from the public key certificate of the bioserver1220by using the CA's certificate. The biometric information client1110may decrypt the encrypted challenge information CH and biometric capability information by using the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220.

The biometric information client1110requests the user10to select biometric technology and input biometric information with respect to the selected biometric technology (S1115). In detail, when a plurality of biometric technologies are supportable based on the biometric capability information of the server, the biometric information client1110may allow the user10to select his or her desired biometric technology (S1116) and acquire biometric information based on the selected biometric technology (S1117).

The biometric information client1110may generate a PI* and corresponding AD based on the acquired biometric information and the AD received from the server1210(S1118). The biometric information client1110may select an algorithm to be used to generate the PI* based on the biometric technology selected by the user10in operation S1116.

The biometric information client1110may encrypt the obtained PI* and the challenge information CH transmitted from the server1210by using the public key S_PK of the bioserver1220acquired based on the public key certificate (S1119).

The biometric information client1110transmits a user BioAuth response to the I/O interface1120(S1120). The user BioAuth response may include the PI* and challenge information CH encrypted in operation S1119.

The user BioAuth response including the encrypted PI* and challenge information CH are transmitted to the bioserver1220through the server1210(S1121and S1122).

The bioserver1220decrypts the encrypted PI* and challenge information CH with its private key S_SK (S1123).

The bioserver1220verifies the reliability and integrity of received information by using the challenge information CH acquired in operation S1123(S1124). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the bioserver1220may verify the integrity of received information by comparing the challenge information CH acquired in operation S1123with stored challenge information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, challenge information stored by the bioserver1220may vary over a predetermined time period. The bioserver1220may compare the challenge information CH acquired in operation S1123with the stored challenge information and determine, when they do not match each other, that the user BioAuth response has expired.

When the verification is successful in operation S1124, the bioserver1220may compare the received PI* with a registered PI to determine a result of user authentication. The bioserver1220may transmit information about the authentication result to the terminal through the server1210(S1126and S1127).

According to the embodiment of the disclosure described with reference toFIG. 11, the biometric information authentication system may perform an authentication procedure based on biometric information while ensuring security of information between the terminal and the server1210.

FIG. 12illustrates diagram for explaining a method of registering and transferring biometric information, according to an embodiment of the disclosure. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, a biometric information authentication system1000may perform registration and authentication on biometric information by using a Fast Identity Online (FIDO) Universal Authentication Framework (UAF) defined by a FIDO Alliance. Referring toFIG. 12, a user may access the biometric information authentication system100based on a FIDO by using a first terminal1100and then additionally or exclusively using a second terminal1300as a new terminal, as described in more detail below with reference toFIG. 12.

The user may log in to a service via the first terminal1100by using ID and password authentication. In detail, the first terminal1100may generate its public key pair consisting of a public key and a private key to store the private key and transmit the public key to an authentication server1200. The authentication server1200may complete the registration procedure by storing the received public key together with ID information of the user. Thereafter, when the user is authenticated through a login, etc., the first terminal1100may sign the user authentication request received from the authentication server1200by using the stored private key and transmit the signed user authentication request to the authentication server1200. The authentication server1200may verify the signed user authentication request with the stored public key and determine an authentication result.

In this case, to change an authentication modality to biometric information authentication or add the same, the user may initiate a biometric information registration procedure, and after the biometric information registration procedure is completed, the user authenticate himself or herself based on the biometric information.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the first terminal1100may transmit only an authentication result to the authentication server1200by using public key authentication without transmitting a template associated with biometric information thereto. In detail, the user may input biometric information to the first terminal1100via a biometric information inputter of the first terminal1100. The first terminal1100may obtain a template based on the biometric information and store the obtained template.

When the user is authenticated using ID information and a password, the first terminal1100may generate a new public key pair for biometric information authentication to store a private key and transmit a public key to the authentication server1200The authentication server1200may store the received public key together with ID information of the user to complete the registration procedure.

In addition, the user who has completed the registration procedure for biometric information authentication may request authentication based on biometric information to access a service. When the authentication is requested by the user, the first terminal1100may request the authentication from the authentication server1200, and the authentication server1200may transmit, in response to such a request, a user authentication request to the first terminal1100.

The first terminal1100may receive biometric information from the user in response to the user authentication request from the authentication server1200, and authenticate the user by comparing a template obtained based on the received biometric information against a stored template. When the user is authenticated, the first terminal1100may sign the user authentication request received from the authentication server1200by using the stored private key and transmit the signed user authentication request to the authentication server1200. The authentication server1200may verify the signed user authentication request with the stored public key and determine an authentication result.

According to another embodiment of the disclosure, during registration, the first terminal1100may transmit at least a part of a template associated with biometric information to the authentication server1200.

In detail, the user may input biometric information to the first terminal1100via the biometric information inputter of the first terminal1100. The first terminal1100may obtain a template based on the biometric information and store the obtained template.

When the user is authenticated using ID information and a password, the first terminal1100may create a new public key pair for biometric information authentication to store a private key and transmit a public key to the authentication server1200, together with information about biometrics that is a part of the stored template. The authentication server1200may complete the registration procedure by storing the received public key and information about biometrics, together with ID information of the user.

In addition, the user who has completed the registration procedure for biometric information authentication may request authentication based on biometric information to access a service. When the authentication is requested by the user, the first terminal1100may request the authentication from the authentication server1200, and the authentication server1200may transmit, in response to such a request, a user authentication request to the first terminal1100. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the authentication server1200may include the stored information about biometrics in the user authentication request for transmission.

The first terminal1100may receive biometric information from the user in response to the user authentication request from the authentication server1200, and authenticate the user by comparing a template obtained based on the received biometric information with the stored template. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the first terminal1100may obtain a new template based on the stored template and the biometric information, or based on the information about biometrics received from the authentication server1200and the biometric information. When the user is authenticated, the first terminal1100may sign the user authentication request received from the authentication server1200by using the stored private key and transmit the signed user authentication request to the authentication server1200. The authentication server1200may verify the signed user authentication request with the stored public key and determine an authentication result.

In addition, when the user desires to be authenticated using biometric information via the second terminal1300that is a new terminal, it is necessary to revoke the public key of the first terminal1100from the authentication server1200and register a public key of the second terminal1300with the authentication server1200.

FIG. 13Aillustrates a flowchart of a method of registering and transferring biometric information, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

After logging in to a service by using ID information and a password via a first terminal performing authentication based on biometric information, the user registers, via the first terminal, a public key of the first terminal with an authentication server (S1311). A detailed description thereof is already provided above with reference toFIG. 12.

The user revokes, via the first terminal, the public key of the first terminal from the authentication server (S1321). When the public key is removed from the authentication server, the first terminal may revoke its stored private key.

After logging in to a service by using ID information and a password via a second terminal performing authentication based on biometric information, the user registers, via the second terminal, a public key of the second terminal with the authentication server (S1331). A detailed description thereof is already provided above with reference toFIG. 12.

FIG. 13Billustrates a flowchart of a method of registering and transferring biometric information, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

After logging in to a service by using ID information and a password via a first terminal performing authentication based on biometric information, the user registers, via the first terminal, a public key of the first terminal and information about biometrics generated based on biometric information with an authentication server (S1312). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information about biometrics may be a part of a template generated based on the biometric information. For example, the information about biometrics may be a PI and corresponding AD. A detailed description thereof is already provided above with reference toFIG. 12.

The user transmits, via a second terminal, the information about the biometrics generated based on the biometric information to the authentication server, together with the public key of the second terminal (S1322). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the information about biometrics transmitted by the user may be PI*.

In operation S1332, the authentication server may authenticate the user based on the registered information about biometrics. After the authentication is completed, the authentication server may revoke the public key of the first terminal and register the public key of the second terminal with the authentication server itself. Referring toFIG. 13B, a biometric information authentication system may provide transfer of a service between a plurality of terminals without entering a user's ID information and password.

FIG. 14illustrates a flow diagram for explaining a biometric information registration method according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S1401). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

The I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S1402). The connection request may be made using an HTTP protocol. A TLS channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S1403).

The user10may request authentication by using a legacy authentication method, e.g., by inputting ID information such as a user's ID and password (S1404).

Information input by the user10is then transmitted to the server1210(S1405).

The server1210authenticates the user10based on the ID information input by the user10(S1406). For example, the server1210may authenticate the user by verifying ID and password input by the user10.

The server1210transmits, based on a FIDO protocol, a registration request requesting transmission of a UAF registration request to the bioserver1220.

The bioserver1220creates a policy to be used by the terminal for authentication based on biometric information (S1408). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the policy may include information about a biometric technology to be used, such as items of biometric information (e.g., each user's face shape, iris, retina, veins, fingerprint, DNA, etc.) and information about an algorithm performed to obtain a template based on the biometric information.

The bioserver1220transmits a UAF registration request to the server1210based on a FIDO protocol (S1409). The UAF registration request may include the policy created in operation S1408.

The server1210transmits a UAF registration request to the I/O interface1120(S1410). The I/O interface1120transmits the UAF registration request to a biometric information client1110(S1411).

The biometric information client1110selects a biometric technology to be used for authentication, based on the policy contained in the UAF registration request (S1412). In detail, when a plurality of biometric technologies are supportable based on the policy, the biometric information client1110may request the user10to select and input his or her desired biometric technology (S1413). When the biometric information client1110itself selects or a single biometric technology is supportable, the biometric information client1110may request the user10to input biometric information corresponding to the biometric technology selected in operation S1413.

The user10provides the biometric information client1110with biometric information acquired based on the selected biometric technology (S1414).

The biometric information client1110generates a public key pair consisting of a private key and a public ley (S1415). Furthermore, the biometric information client1110obtains a template based on the biometric information acquired based on the selected biometric technology According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the biometric information client1110may generate a PI and corresponding AD based on the acquired biometric information. The biometric information client1110may select an algorithm to be used to generate the PI and AD, based on the selected biometric technology.

The biometric information client1110stores the generated private key in a security storage1140(S1416).

The biometric information client1110transmits a UAF registration response to the I/O interface1120(S1417). The UAF registration response may include the PI, AD, and public key generated in operation S1415.

The UAF registration response including the PI, AD, and public key is transmitted to the bioserver1220through the server1210(S1418and S1419).

The bioserver1220may store the received PI and AD (S1420). The bioserver1220may store the received PI and AD in association with the user's ID.

FIG. 15illustrates a flow diagram for explaining a method of transferring biometric information, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S1501). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

The I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S1502). The connection request may be made using an HTTP protocol. A TLS channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S1503).

The user10may input via the I/O interface1120a device transfer request (transfer device) requiring transfer of the used terminal to a current terminal (S1504). The device transfer request may include ID information of the user10.

The device transfer request input by the user10is transmitted to the server1210(S1505).

The server1210transmits a request requesting transmission of a transfer request to the bioserver1220(S1506).

The bioserver1220generates challenge information and a policy to be used by the terminal for authentication based on biometric information (S1507). The challenge information may be information generated and stored by the server1210to verify the reliability and integrity of information transmitted by the terminal.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the policy may include information about a biometric technology to be used, such as items of biometric information (e.g., each user's face shape, iris, retina, veins, fingerprint, DNA, etc.) and information about an algorithm performed to obtain a template based on the biometric information. In addition, because a policy previously generated during registration has been registered with the bioserver1220, the bioserver1220may use the registered policy intactly.

The bioserver1220may extract AD corresponding to a biometric technology selected by the policy in information related to the user's biometric information, which is stored during registration (S1508).

The bioserver1220transmits a transfer request to the server1210based on a FIDO protocol (S1509). The transfer request may include the policy and the challenge information generated in operation S1507as well as the AD extracted in operation S1508.

The server1210transmits the transfer request to the I/O interface1120(S1510). The I/O interface1120transmits the transfer request to the biometric information client1110(S1511).

The biometric information client1110selects a biometric technology to be used for authentication, based on the policy contained in the transfer request (S1512). In detail, when a plurality of biometric technologies are supportable based on the policy, the biometric information client1110may request the user10to select and input his or her desired biometric technology (S1513). When the biometric information client1110itself selects a biometric technology or a single biometric technology is supportable, the biometric information client1110may request the user10to input biometric information corresponding to the biometric technology selected in operation S1513.

The user10provides the biometric information client1110with biometric information acquired based on the selected biometric technology (S1514).

The biometric information client1110generates a public key pair consisting of a private key and a public ley (S1515).

The biometric information client1110obtains a PI* based on the biometric information acquired based on the selected biometric technology and the AD transmitted from the server1210(S1516).

The biometric information client1110stores the generated private key in a security storage1140(S1517).

The biometric information client1110transmits a transfer response to the I/O interface1120(S1518). The transfer response may include the PI*, the public key, and the challenge information.

The transfer response including the PI*, the public key, and the challenge information is transmitted to the bioserver1220through the server1210(S1519and S1520).

The bioserver1220verifies the reliability and integrity of received information by using the challenge information (S1521). According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the bioserver1220may verify the integrity of the received information by comparing the challenge information transmitted by the terminal with stored challenge information. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the challenge information stored by the bioserver1220may vary over a predetermined time period. The bioserver1220may compare the received challenge information with the stored challenge information and determine, when they do not match each other, that the transfer response has expired.

When the verification is successful in operation S1521, the bioserver1220may compare the received PI* with a registered PI to determine whether to grant the transfer (S1522). When the transfer is granted, the bioserver1220may store the public key (S1523).

The bioserver1220may transmit information about a transfer result from the bioserver1220to the server1210(S1524).

FIG. 16illustrates a flow diagram for explaining a method of revoking biometric information, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

A user10may request a service connection from an I/O interface1120of a terminal (S1601). The user's request for the service connection may be made by executing an application or a web browser.

An I/O interface1120may request a connection from a server1210(S1602). The connection request may be made using an HTTP protocol. A TLS channel may be created as a secure communication channel between the I/O interface1120and the server1210(S1603).

After receiving information about a transfer result indicating that the transfer has been performed successfully and thus new public key has been registered, the I/O interface1120may request user authentication from a biometric information client1110in order to request authentication from the user10(S1604). The biometric information client1110may request the user10to input biometric information (S1605).

The biometric information input by the user10is transmitted to the biometric information client1110(S1606). When the user10is authenticated based on the user's biometric information, the biometric information client1110signs challenge information with a stored private key (S1607).

The biometric information client1110transmits a transfer response to the I/O interface1120(S1608). The transfer response may include the signed challenge information.

The transfer response including the signed challenge information is transmitted to a bioserver1220via the server1210(S1609and S1610).

The bioserver1220verifies the challenge information signed with the private key by using a public key stored therein (S1611).

When the verification is completed, the bioserver1220revokes the stored public key (S1612). The bioserver1220transmits to the server1210a UAF deregistration request indicating revocation of the public key (S1613) The UAF deregistration request is transmitted to the biometric information client1110via the I/O interface1120(S1614and S1615).

The biometric information client1110deletes a private key stored therein (S1616). Therefore, the registered public key and private key may be both revoked.

The biometric information client1110transmits a UAF deregistration response to the I/O interface1120(S1617). The UAF deregistration response is then transmitted to the bioserver1220via the server1210(S1618and S1619).

The terminal1100described above may be implemented using hardware components, software components, and/or a combination thereof. For example, the devices and their components illustrated in the embodiments of the disclosure may be implemented using one or more general-purpose or special-purpose computers, such as a processor, a controller, an arithmetic logic unit (ALU), a digital signal processor, a microcomputer, a field programmable array (FPA), a programmable logic unit (PLU), a microprocessor, or any other device capable of responding to and executing instructions