Patent Publication Number: US-2007123305-A1

Title: Method For Securing a Near Field Communication Device of a Mobile Phone

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      The present invention relates to a method for securing a mobile phone, and more particularly, to a method for securing a near field communication device of a mobile phone.  
      2. Description of the Prior Art  
      A near field communication (NFC) technology is a type of close range wireless technology utilized for exchanging data within a predetermined distance. A near field communication interface and protocol (NFCIP-1) have passed international standards ISO/IEC IS 18092. The frequency of the NFC technology is 13.56 MHz, which is lower than a frequency of 2.4 GHz such as Bluetooth or a wireless network, therefore, the frequency of the NFC is not easily interrupted. When devices having NFC cards come within a predetermined range, the devices can identify one another and exchange data.  
      Devices having an NFC card do not require any physical contact to sense other cards, therefore, the NFC technology is advantageous when applied to the areas of mobile commerce, e-commerce, and user identification. NFC cards are currently being installed into mobile phones. As mobile phones become more common, this provides more convenience for consumers. For example, a mobile phone that has an NFC card can utilize the NFC card as an electronic wallet to purchase goods, or utilize the NFC card as an identification card. Therefore, a consumer needs only bring a mobile phone when the consumer goes out eliminating the need for bringing a wallet or identification card.  
      However, the current NFC technology applied to the mobile phone does not include any corresponding security mechanism. When the mobile phone is lost, the consumer faces the consequences of the electronic wallet and identification card being misused.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      The claimed invention discloses a method for securing a near field communication device of a mobile phone. The method comprises reading an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) of a subscriber identity module (SIM) card and an identity number of a near field communication (NFC) card of the mobile phone; detecting if the IMSI number matches first data stored in memory of the mobile phone; detecting if the identity number matches second data stored in the memory of the mobile phone; and enabling a sensing function of the NFC card when the IMSI number and the identity number respectively match the first and the second data in the memory of the mobile phone.  
      These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings.  
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  illustrates a diagram of a mobile phone having a near field communication (NFC) card according to the present invention.  
       FIG. 2  illustrates a flowchart of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      Please refer to  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 1  illustrates a diagram of a mobile phone  100  having a near field communication (NFC) card according to the present invention. The mobile phone  100  of the present invention includes a slot for placing a subscriber identity module (SIM) card  120  and reading data of the SIM card  120  and the NFC card  110 . The SIM card  120  stores data such as telephone numbers, phone books, and personal identification numbers (PIN). When a global system for mobile communication (GSM) is utilized, a valid SIM card  120  is required to connect to a communication network of the GSM system to perform data exchange. Each SIM card  120  has an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI) number for identifying an individual user, thus each IMSI number is unique. Furthermore, each NFC card  110  includes a unique identity number. Therefore, the present invention utilizes the unique characteristic of the IMSI number and the identity number to provide a method for securing a near field communication device of the mobile phone  100 .  
      For example, when the mobile phone  100  having the NFC card  110  is switched on for the first time, a system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will read the IMSI number of the SIM card and the identity number of the NFC card  110  and store the IMSI number and the identity number into memory  140 . Subsequently, each time the mobile phone  100  is switched on, the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will automatically read and compare an IMSI number of the SIM card and a identity number of the NFC card  110  with the IMSI number and the identity number previously stored in the memory  140 . If the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  matches the IMSI number stored in the memory unit  140 , and the identity number of the NFC card  110  matches the identity number stored in the memory unit  140 , then the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will enable a sensing function of the NFC card  110 . On the contrary, when the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  does not match the IMSI number stored in the memory unit  140 , or the identity number of the NFC card  110  does not match the identity number stored in the memory unit  140 , for instance, the SIM card  120  or the NFC card  110  is changed, the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will not enable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 . In this case, a user is required to input a password to verify the user&#39;s identity. If the password is accurate, the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will then enable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 .  
      Furthermore, if during the operation period after the mobile phone  100  is switched on it is detected that the SIM card  120  is being withdrawn from the mobile phone  100  (i.e., the SIM card  120  is not detected), the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will immediately terminate the sensing function of the NFC card. The above-mentioned comparison sequence is then executed again to prevent the mobile phone  100  from misused. In an embodiment of the present invention, the memory  140  directly stores the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  and the identity number of the NFC card  110 , however the present invention can also generate first data and second data according to the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  and the identity number of the NFC card  110 , and the first and second data can be stored into the memory  140  to be utilized for comparison with the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  and the identity number of the NFC card  110 .  
      However, the NFC card  110  can also be misused if the user loses the mobile phone  100 . Therefore, when the mobile phone of the present invention having the NFC card  110  is switched on for the first time, the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  requests that the user input and store a first predetermined message and a second predetermined message into the memory  140 . The user can self-select the predetermined messages. Later, when the mobile phone  100  receives a content that matches the first predetermined message, the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will disable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 . When the mobile phone  100  receives a content that matches the second predetermined message, the system  130  of the mobile phone  100  will enable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 . Therefore, when the user discovers that the mobile phone  100  is lost, in order to prevent the NFC card  110  from misuse, the user can remotely transmit a message that matches the first predetermined message to the mobile phone  100  to disable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 . If the user finds the mobile phone  100 , the user can transmit a message that matches the second predetermined message to the mobile phone  100  to enable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 . Furthermore, if the mobile phone  100  is stolen and currently switched off, the mobile phone  100  is unable to receive text messages, however, according to the short message service (SMS) protocol, the text message will be temporarily stored in a message center. Once the mobile phone  100  is switched on later, the text message will be transmitted to the mobile phone  100  from the message center. Therefore, the remote control security mechanism of the mobile phone  100  cannot be evaded by switching off the mobile phone  100 . Regardless of a text message for enabling NFC function or a text message for disabling NFC function (e.g., to enable or disable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 ), the mobile phone  100  stores an operation status of the NFC card  110 , therefore if the mobile phone  100  is switched off, the mobile phone  100  will maintain the previous operation status of the NFC card  110 . For example, if the sensing function of the NFC card  110  has been disabled, the mobile phone  100  will maintain the disable status even if the mobile phone  100  is switched on again, or vice versa.  
      To further explain the method of the present invention,  FIG. 2  provides a flowchart  200  of the present invention. Please refer to  FIG. 2 , and at the same time refer to  FIG. 1 . The flowchart  200  of  FIG. 2  includes the following steps:  
      Step  210 : switch on the mobile phone  100 ;  
      Step  212 : read the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  and the identity number of the NFC card  110 ;  
      Step  214 : compare the IMSI number of the SIM card  120  and the identity number of the NFC card  110  to data stored within memory  140 , if they match, proceed to step  222 , if not proceed to step  216 ;  
      Step  216 : the mobile phone  100  requests a user to input a password;  
      Step  218 : analyze if the password matches, if so proceed to step  222 , if not proceed to step  220 ;  
      Step  220 : disable a sensing function of the NFC card  110  and proceed to step  212 ;  
      Step  222 : enable the sensing function of the NFC card  110 ;  
      Step  224 : detect whether the SIM card is being withdrawn, if so proceed to step  226 , if not proceed to step  228 ;  
      Step  226 : disable the sensing function of the NFC card and proceed to step  212 ;  
      Step  228 : determine if the mobile phone  100  has received a message, if so proceed to step  230 , if not proceed to step  224 ;  
      Step  230 : analyze if the message matches a predetermined message, if so proceed to step  232 , if not proceed to step  224 ;  
      Step  232 : analyze if the message matches with a first predetermined message, if so proceed to step  234 , if not proceed to step  238 ;  
      Step  234 : disable the sensing function of the NFC card  110  and proceed to step  236 ;  
      Step  236 : store an operation status of the NFC card  110  and proceed to step  228 ;  
      Step  238 : enable the sensing function of the NFC card  110  and proceed step  240 ; and  
      Step  240 : store the operation status of the NFC card  110  and proceed to step  224 .  
      It is not necessary to sequentially follow the steps of the flowchart  200  to achieve the same result. In other words, each of the steps is not required to be exactly adjacent as shown. Other steps can be successfully inserted between the above steps while maintaining the operation according to the present invention. Furthermore, the method of the present invention of utilizing the message to enable or disable the sensing function of the NFC card  110  can be applied to other mobile phones of other non-GSM systems. Mobile phones operating without a SIM card can also utilize the above method of remote control by text message. The present invention can be realized through software, software with firmware, hardware, or any combination of the above-mentioned components.  
      In comparison to the prior art, the present invention provides a method for securing a near field technology application utilized in the mobile phone  100  such that a consumer can feel more secure when utilizing the NFC card  110 .  
      Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.