Magnetic stripe reader tamper protection
US9203546B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 4, 2014 |
| Grant date | Dec 1, 2015 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 4, 2034 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04K2203/20
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A technique for tamper protection of incoming data signal to an electronic device is disclosed. An intentional interference signal is generated and modulated onto the incoming data signal as one composite input signal, to prevent unauthorized acquisition of valid data from the incoming data signal. The magnitude of the interference signal is adjusted to correspond to the magnitude of the incoming data signal, thereby preventing an attacker from properly differentiating the two different signals and/or decoding the valid data from the composite input signal. Once the composite input signal is safely received within the device, the interference signal can be filtered out in either analog mode or digital mode.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.