Patent ID: 7162736

Claim:
An apparatus to unblock a security device issued to an end user, comprising: a client-side transfer agent for securely transferring information among an unblocking service, the end user, and the security device; an agent-side transfer agent for securely transferring information between the unblocking service and a security agent; an Unblock Authorization Code (UAC) generated after verification by the security agent and securely transferred from the agent-side transfer agent to the unblocking service, wherein verification comprises verifying the end user is assigned the security device while the end user is in possession of the security device; an Unblock Code (UBC) securely transferred from the unblocking service to the client-side transfer agent, wherein the client-side transfer agent uses the UBC to unblock the security device; and the unblocking service for establishing a secure gateway and storing the UAC and UBC, wherein the security device is configured to be accessed by a security device reader operatively connected and allowing access to a computer system to provide strong end user authentication, and wherein the security device is a smart card.