Patent ID: 8825688

Claim:
Method for searching for an entity, comprising: searching for an entity belonging to a set of entities using a verifier device, the verifier device and the entities of said set of entities being arranged so as to exchange items of information via at least one communication channel, each entity of said set of entities having a first respective identifier, from which a plurality of representatives can be obtained, wherein searching comprises: obtaining, in the verifier device, a first identification word, related to an entity for which a search is carried out, the first identification word being formed by applying a first encoding function to the first identifier of the entity for which the search is being carried out, so as to depend on a sub-portion of the plurality of representatives that can be obtained from said first identifier, said sub-portion being determined by at least one variable parameter, said value of the variable parameter determining the sub-portion of the plurality of representatives that can be obtained from said first identifier being chosen, by the verifier device, at random or almost at random; and transmitting, from the verifier device, the first identification word, obtained over the communication channel.