JP2008067264A - Electronic certificate management apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To describe a method for verifying validity of an electronic certificate during a certain electronic process when a plurality of electronic processes each using an electronic certificate are performed without initiating an apparatus for acquiring a second CRL. <P>SOLUTION: For each electronic process, a latest CRL during the electronic process is acquired and held, and a state management table records information about a time of the electronic process and the held CRL. When verifying validity of an electronic certificate at an electronic process time A at a following time (at a verification time), the state management table is referred to retrieve electronic processes performed from the electronic process time A to the verification time. On the assumption that the verification time is subsequent to T3, information about a CRL acquired at an electronic process time B is recorded in the state management table, so that the validity of the electronic certificate in the electronic process A can be verified using a CRL-b acquired in the electronic process B. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention assumes that an electronic certificate such as an electronic signature or authentication during encrypted communication is performed using an electronic certificate at a certain time, and the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing is valid at the electronic processing time. When a plurality of electronic certificate revocation lists (CRL: Certificate Revocation List; information on revoked electronic certificates is described; hereinafter referred to as CRL) is acquired. In particular, the present invention relates to an electronic certificate management device for reducing labor and time cost when developing resources and devices required by the device by reducing the number of CRL acquisition times.

  Conventionally, an electronic certificate has been used for electronic processing such as an electronic signature or authentication for encrypted communication. In order to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at the time of electronic processing, the identification information of the revoked electronic certificate managed by a certificate authority (CA: Certificate Authority; hereinafter referred to as CA) that issued the electronic certificate is included. The CRLs described are generally used.

  However, since the CRL is distributed after the CRL issuance period determined by the CA, the CRL that can be obtained at the same time as the electronic processing cannot verify the validity of the electronic certificate during the electronic processing. This is because, in FIG. 1, assuming that CA issues a CRL at the timing from time T1 to time T5, when electronic processing such as an electronic signature is performed at time Ta between time T2 and time T3, it is acquired at time Ta. A possible CRL_a is a CRL issued at time T2, and only describes identification information of an electronic certificate revoked until time T2 (time region A). Therefore, since there is a possibility that the electronic certificate has expired from time T2 to time Ta, CRL_a is not sufficient to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at time Ta. The validity of the electronic certificate at time Ta requires a CRL after time T3 (time domain B) including the revocation information of the electronic certificate at time Ta.

In the conventional method, the CRL is acquired at the time Ta when the electronic processing is performed, and the validity of the electronic certificate is provisionally verified. At time T3 derived from the acquired CRL, the identification information of the revoked electronic certificate at Ta is obtained. Is used to acquire a new CRL including the number and to truly verify the validity of the electronic certificate at time Ta (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this conventional method, the validity of an electronic certificate at the time of electronic processing is verified by acquiring two CRLs for provisional validity verification and true validity verification for one electronic processing. .
JP 2002-23627 A

  However, there is a problem with the method of acquiring two CRLs for provisional validity verification and true validity verification for one electronic processing as in the conventional method. As shown in FIG. 2, if electronic processing A using an electronic certificate is performed at time Ta, the conventional method obtains CRL_a at time Ta and performs temporary validity verification of the electronic certificate, and at time Ta. In order to verify the true validity of the electronic certificate, CRL_a ′ is further acquired at time T2. For this reason, the apparatus is activated only to acquire the CRL at a time T2 different from the time Ta at which the electronic processing A is performed.

  Therefore, in order to start the apparatus at a time T2 different from the time Ta at which the electronic processing A, which is the purpose of using the original electronic certificate, is performed, the apparatus is continuously started from the time Ta to the time T2, or the time When T2 is reached, a mechanism for starting the apparatus is required. If the device is continuously started up, the power consumption will increase. Therefore, in a small portable device in which the battery capacity for supplying the device power is limited, the operation time is shortened. In the case where the device is activated by using a time at which CRL is issued as a trigger, as at time T2 in FIG. 2, the device autonomously acquires CRL_a ′ via the network. As a result of measures against unexpected network failures and designing and constructing the device so that the device operates correctly and autonomously, the labor and time cost of device development increase. Of course, it is conceivable that the device is manually activated instead of autonomously. In this case, the human cost increases.

  In the conventional method, if electronic processing A, electronic processing B, electronic processing C and electronic processing are performed n times as shown in FIG. 2, 2n CRL acquisitions are required. Since the electronic data size of CRL is proportional to the number of revoked electronic certificates within the validity period, a CA that issues many electronic certificates or a CA that has a long validity period However, it is conceivable that the data size of the CRL becomes large, and there is also a CRL having an electronic data size close to 30 kbytes. Therefore, acquiring two CRLs for temporary validity verification and true validity verification for verifying the validity of an electronic certificate at one electronic processing time means that the resources in the storage area It is fatal for a limited device.

  That is, in the conventional method of acquiring two CRLs for provisional validity verification and true validity verification for each electronic processing, the resources required for the apparatus to acquire the second CRL, It is thought that the labor and time cost for developing the device are generated excessively.

  The present invention obtains two CRLs for temporary validity verification and true validity verification for verifying the validity of an electronic certificate at one electronic processing time in the past. A function to solve the increase in labor and time cost required to develop resources and devices required for devices, and to enable verification of the validity of electronic certificates at a certain electronic processing time However, the object is to reduce the labor and time cost in developing resources and devices required for the above-mentioned devices by reducing the number of CRL acquisitions.

  To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an electronic certificate holding means, an electronic processing execution means for executing electronic processing using an electronic certificate, and an electronic certificate used for electronic processing at the time of executing the electronic processing. A CRL acquisition means for acquiring a CRL; a CRL storage means for holding the acquired CRL; and an electronic certificate validity verification means for verifying the validity of the electronic certificate using the CRL. There is provided an electronic certificate management apparatus that performs verification of the validity of the used electronic certificate by using the CRL acquired during the second electronic processing performed after the first electronic processing.

  With this configuration, the CRL is acquired and held for each electronic processing, so that the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing at a certain time can be verified at the time of the electronic processing performed after that certain time. This can be done using CRL. Since CRLs are acquired only during electronic processing, the number of CRL acquisitions is reduced and resources for holding CRLs are reduced. In addition, since the CRL is acquired only at the time of electronic processing, it is only necessary to activate the apparatus only at the time of electronic processing, thereby reducing power consumption.

  The CRL is acquired and held for each electronic processing of the present invention, and the CRL acquired at the time of the electronic processing performed after the certain time is verified for the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing at a certain time. By using it, it becomes possible to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at the electronic processing time which only activates the apparatus only during electronic processing, and the power consumption is reduced. In addition, the number of CRL acquisitions is reduced in order to acquire CRLs only during electronic processing, and resources for holding CRLs are also reduced. Furthermore, since a mechanism for acquiring a second CRL for one electronic process as in the conventional method is not required for the apparatus, the labor and time cost for developing the apparatus are reduced.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic certificate holding means, an electronic processing execution means for executing electronic processing using the electronic certificate, and a CRL of the electronic certificate used for electronic processing at the time of executing the electronic processing. A CRL acquisition unit that acquires the CRL, a CRL storage unit that stores the acquired CRL, and an electronic certificate validity verification unit that verifies the validity of the electronic certificate using the CRL. An electronic certificate management apparatus is provided that verifies the validity of the electronic certificate that has been used, using the CRL acquired during the second electronic processing performed after the first electronic processing.

  According to this configuration, the CRL is obtained and held for each electronic processing, and the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing at a certain time is obtained at the time of the electronic processing performed after the certain time. By using the CRL, it becomes possible to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at the electronic processing time that only activates the apparatus during electronic processing, and the power consumption is reduced. In addition, the number of CRL acquisitions is reduced in order to acquire CRLs only during electronic processing, and resources for holding CRLs are also reduced. Furthermore, since a mechanism for acquiring a second CRL for one electronic process as in the conventional method is not required for the apparatus, the labor and time cost for developing the apparatus are reduced.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a CRL validity determining unit for determining the validity of the CRL, and the CRL held by the CRL holding unit is determined by the CRL validity determining unit. The electronic certificate management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electronic certificate management apparatus acquires a CRL when it is determined to be invalid.

  According to this configuration, since the CRL is acquired only when the CRL held by the CRL holding unit is invalid during electronic processing using the electronic certificate, the number of CRL acquisition is reduced, and the CRL is held. Less resources. Further, since the number of CRLs to be held is reduced, when searching for a CRL for verifying the validity of an electronic certificate at a certain time, the ease of searching and the speed for searching are improved.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the first aspect, the present invention has a state management table for managing an electronic processing time using an electronic certificate and identification information of the electronic certificate, and uses the state management table. An electronic certificate having electronic certificate expiration detection means for detecting a period until the expiration date of one or more electronic certificates for one or more electronic certificates held in the electronic certificate holding means A management device.

  According to this configuration, it is possible to detect an electronic certificate that has been electronically processed from the identification information of the electronic certificate recorded in the state management table, and for one or more electronic certificates that have been electronically processed Thus, the period until the expiration date can be detected, and an electronic certificate with a near expiration date can be found. By finding an electronic certificate with a near expiration date, a CRL for verifying the electronic certificate at the time of the last electronic processing in the first invention of the previous period is obtained before the expiration date of the electronic certificate. be able to. This is useful because the CRL for confirming revocation of the electronic certificate needs to be acquired while the electronic certificate is within the validity period. This is because the revoked electronic certificate information written in the CRL is not written in the CRL when the expiration date of the target revoked electronic certificate has passed. In addition, the electronic certificate is valid only within the expiration date, and it will not be valid again when the expiration date has passed. It is also useful as an index for issuing a new electronic certificate before it passes.

  FIG. 3 is an operation conceptual diagram of the present invention. In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3, a CRL is stored for each electronic process using an electronic certificate. Therefore, the validity of the electronic certificate used for electronic processing A performed at time Ta is obtained by acquiring a CRL at time T2 for electronic processing A as in the conventional method shown in FIG. Can be performed using the CRL_b acquired during the electronic processing B performed at the time Tb. Also, the validity of the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing B performed at time Tb can be verified using the CRL_c acquired during the electronic processing C performed at time Tc. The validity of the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing C performed at the time Tc can be verified using the CRL acquired during the electronic processing performed after the time T5.

  Hereinafter, specific contents of the present invention will be described with reference to examples.

(Example 1)
Embodiment 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the overall configuration of the first embodiment to which the present invention is applied, and FIG. 5 is a diagram describing items that are closely related to the first embodiment in the structure of an electronic certificate based on RFC3280. FIG. 7 is a diagram describing items deeply related to the first embodiment in the CRL structure based on RFC3280, FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the structure of the state management table in the first embodiment, and FIG. 8 is an electronic diagram in the first embodiment. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a signature process, and FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a process for verifying the validity of an electronic certificate used for an electronic signature process at a certain time when a plurality of electronic signature processes are performed in the first embodiment. FIG. 10 shows a process for detecting the period until the expiration date for each electronic certificate held in the storage device in the electronic certificate management apparatus used for the electronic signature in the first embodiment. It is a low chart. Hereinafter, it demonstrates along drawing.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the overall configuration to which the electronic certificate management apparatus according to the present invention is applied. The electronic certificate management apparatus 401 can communicate with the CA 403 through the network 402. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the electronic certificate management apparatus 401 includes an input device unit 404, an output device unit 405, a time information unit 406, a communication unit 407, a program control unit 408, a memory unit 409, a storage device unit 410, an arithmetic operation unit. A device unit 411 is provided.

  The CA 403 is an institution that issues an electronic certificate, and has the function of recording the identification information of the revoked electronic certificate on the CRL and distributing the CRL through the network 402 with respect to the simultaneously issued electronic certificate.

  The input device unit 404 is an input for holding the electronic certificate issued from the certificate authority 403 in the electronic certificate holding unit 413 which is a partial storage area in the storage device unit 410 in the electronic certificate management device 401. Device. The input device unit 404 corresponds to the electronic certificate holding unit according to claim 1 and has a function of inputting the electronic certificate to the electronic certificate management device 401. The input device unit 404 has a function of inputting an instruction so that a user who uses the electronic certificate management device 401 executes the programs 1001 to 1013 stored in the storage device unit 410.

  When the programs 1001 to 1013 stored in the storage device unit 410 are controlled and executed by the program control unit 408, the output device unit 405 displays the information stored in the memory unit 409 as electronic certificate as necessary. This is an output device for outputting outside the document management device 401. In the first embodiment, when the validity period of the electronic certificate has expired at the time of electronic signature, an indication that the electronic certificate is out of validity is displayed, or the electronic certificate is verified when the electronic certificate is revoked from the information described in the CRL. Indication that the certificate has expired. In addition, when the electronic certificate expires after a certain period (hereinafter referred to as a grace period), it is displayed that the electronic certificate will expire after the grace period.

  The time information unit 406 is a device that holds time information used in the electronic certificate management device 401.

  The communication unit 407 is a device that transmits and receives information when the electronic certificate management device 401 communicates with the CA 403 through the network 402.

  The program control unit 408, the memory unit 409, and the arithmetic device unit 411 are devices for executing programs 1001 to 1013 for operating the electronic certificate management device 401. The programs 1001 to 1013 stored in the storage device unit 410 are read into the memory unit 409 by the program control unit 408 and calculated by the arithmetic device unit 411. The devices existing in the electronic certificate management device 401 such as the input device unit 404 and the output device unit 405 are controlled by the calculation result.

  The storage unit 410 stores a program for operating the electronic certificate management device 401, and includes an electronic certificate acquisition program 1001, an electronic signature program 1002, a CRL acquisition program 1003, an electronic certificate validity verification program 1004, CRL search program 1005, CRL validity determination program 1006, CRL acquisition determination program 1007, state management table management program 1008, time management program 1009, input / output device control program 1010, electronic certificate expiration period detection program 1011, electronic certificate An expiration date detection program 1012 and an electronic data identification information creation program 1013 are stored. The storage unit 410 also has a storage area for holding an electronic certificate, CRL, and state management table managed by the electronic certificate management device 401. The electronic certificate holding unit 412, the CRL holding unit 413, and the state management table A holding portion 414 is provided. The electronic certificate holding means according to claim 1, the CRL holding means for holding the acquired CRL, and the electronic processing time using the electronic certificate according to claim 3 and state management for managing the identification information of the electronic certificate It corresponds to a device that holds a table.

  The electronic certificate acquisition program 1001 corresponds to the electronic certificate holding means described in claim 1, and has a function of controlling the input device unit 404 and storing the electronic certificate in the electronic certificate holding unit 412.

  The electronic signature program 1002 corresponds to electronic processing execution means for executing electronic processing using the electronic certificate according to claim 1, and a secret stored in the electronic certificate held in the electronic certificate holding unit 412. It has a function of making an electronic signature using a key item.

  The CRL acquisition program 1003 corresponds to a CRL acquisition unit that acquires the CRL of the electronic certificate according to claim 1 and a CRL holding unit that holds the acquired CRL, and corresponds to the electronic certificate stored in the electronic certificate. The CRL is acquired from the distribution location of the CRL to be stored and retained.

  The digital certificate validity verification program 1004 corresponds to a digital certificate validity verification unit that verifies the validity of a digital certificate using the CRL according to claim 1, and stores the CRL held in the CRL holding unit 413. Used to verify the validity of the electronic certificate. In addition, two items of a time item for starting the validity period and a time item for ending the validity period in the digital certificate held in the digital certificate holding unit 412, and the time referenced using the time management program 1009. It has a function to verify from the information whether the electronic certificate is within the valid period.

  The CRL search program 1005 performs verification of the validity of the electronic certificate used for the first electronic processing according to claim 1 by using the CRL acquired during the second electronic processing performed after the first electronic processing. The CRL acquired during the second electronic processing is retrieved.

  The CRL validity determination program 1006 corresponds to CRL validity determination means for determining the validity of the CRL according to claim 2, and the item of the time when the validity period of the CRL stored in the CRL starts and the CRL is the next time. The time information stored in the time information unit 406 is compared with two of the time items to be updated to determine whether the CRL is invalid.

  The CRL acquisition determination program 1007 corresponds to an operation of acquiring a CRL when the CRL held by the CRL holding unit is determined to be invalid by the CRL validity determining unit according to claim 2, When the CRL held in the unit 413 is determined to be invalid by the CRL validity determination program 1006, the CRL has a function of determining to acquire the CRL.

  The state management table management program 1008 is configured to store the electronic processing time and the electronic certificate on the state management table for managing the electronic processing time using the electronic certificate according to claim 3 and the identification information of the electronic certificate. It has a function of storing and managing identification information in a state management table.

  The time management program 1009 has a function of referring to time information held in the time information unit 406.

  The input / output device control program 1010 controls the output device unit 405 to display information that the electronic certificate detected by the electronic certificate validity verification program 1004 or the electronic certificate expiration detection program 1012 has expired or expired. It has the function to do. The electronic certificate holding unit corresponds to the electronic certificate holding unit described in claim 1 and has a function of holding the electronic certificate in the electronic certificate holding unit 412 by controlling the input device unit 404.

  The electronic certificate validity period detection program 1011 uses one or more electronic certificates for one or more electronic certificates held in the electronic certificate holding means using the state management table according to claim 3. It corresponds to an electronic certificate expiration detection means for detecting a period until the expiration date of the certificate, and detects the electronic certificate used for the electronic processing by using the state management table stored in the state management table holding unit 414. And a function for detecting a period from the time information recorded in the validity period end time 503 and the time information unit 406 of the detected electronic certificate to the validity period.

  The electronic certificate expiration detection program 1012 compares the period information until the expiration date of the electronic certificate detected by the electronic certificate expiration period detection program 1011 and the grace period information recorded in the state management table. When the period information until the expiration date becomes shorter in time series than the grace period, the electronic certificate has a function of detecting that the expiration date has expired after the grace period.

  The electronic data identification information creation program 1013 has a function of creating electronic data called a hash that is uniquely generated from electronic data constituting an electronic certificate or CRL using a one-way function.

  Regarding the electronic certificate, information stored in the electronic certificate will be described with reference to FIG. The electronic certificate in the first embodiment is an electronic certificate defined in RFC3280, and includes an item 502 for the time when the validity period of the electronic certificate starts, an item 503 for the time when the validity period ends, and an electronic certificate. The item 504 of the issuer that issued the certificate, the item 505 of the identification number given to the electronic certificate, the item 506 of the issue destination of the electronic certificate, and the distribution location of the CRL corresponding to the electronic certificate are described. 507, a public key item 508 associated with the electronic certificate, an electronic signature item 509 performed on the electronic certificate by the issuer who issued the electronic certificate, and a secret associated with the electronic certificate There is a key item 510.

  Regarding the CRL, information stored in the CRL will be described with reference to FIG. The CRL in the first embodiment is a CRL defined in RFC3280. The CRL issuer item 602, the CRL valid period start time item 603, and the time when the CRL is updated next time. There are as many items 604 and revoked digital certificate identification information items (605 to 607) as the number of revoked electronic certificates.

  Regarding the state management table, information stored in the state management table will be described with reference to FIG. In the first embodiment, the state management table 701 has an electronic certificate identification information storage area (702 and 703) for storing the identification information of the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature held by the electronic certificate management apparatus 401. . In addition, an electronic processing time storage area (704 to 706 and 712) that stores the electronic signature processing time for each electronic signature processing in association with the electronic certificate identification information storage area (702 and 703), and the electronic signature processing It sometimes has a CRL identification information storage area (707 to 709 and 713) for storing a holding name when the latest CRL corresponding to the electronic certificate is held in the storage unit 410. Also, there are grace period information storage areas (710, 711, 714, and 715) for storing grace period information calculated from the validity period of the CRL corresponding to the electronic certificate.

  Next, the operation of the electronic certificate management apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. It is assumed that the electronic certificate has been issued in advance by the CA 403. The electronic certificate management apparatus 401 holds the electronic certificate in the electronic certificate holding unit 412 through the input device 404. The user executes an electronic signature processing operation using an electronic certificate, which will be described later, and performs electronic signature processing using the electronic certificate held in the electronic certificate holding unit 412. The electronic signature processing is performed a plurality of times in response to a user instruction (assuming n is assumed (n: 2, 3, 4,...)). Here, in the electronic signature performed n times, the validity of the electronic certificate used for the i-th (i: 1, 2, 3, ..., n-1) electronic signature is confirmed. Think about it. The user can confirm the validity of the i-th electronic signature using a method for verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time described later. Further, during the electronic signature processing, an electronic certificate expiration period check processing operation described later is performed, and after the electronic signature processing is completed, the electronic certificate held in the electronic certificate holding unit 412 in the electronic certificate management apparatus Therefore, there is an electronic certificate that detects the period until the expiration date for each electronic certificate that had been digitally signed up to the time of the electronic signature processing, and whose expiration date has passed after the grace period for each electronic certificate. For example, the output device unit 405 displays that there is an electronic certificate whose expiration date has passed after the grace period.

  Here, the operation at the time of electronic signature processing by the electronic certificate management apparatus 401 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the digital certificate management apparatus to which the digital certificate management apparatus according to the present invention is applied at the time of digital signature processing. The electronic certificate management device 401 operates the electronic signature program 1002 in the storage device unit 410 by the program control unit 408 to start the steps of the electronic signature processing.

  When the electronic signature processing step starts, in step 20101, the validity period of the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature processing is verified. The validity period verification of the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature processing in step 20101 is valid with the time 502 when the validity period of the electronic certificate written in the electronic certificate starts using the electronic certificate validity verification program 1004. The two items of time 503 at which the period ends are compared with the time information in the time information unit 406, and the time in the time information unit is before the time when the effective period starts on the time series or the time when the effective period ends If it is later than that, it is regarded as out of the validity period, otherwise it is determined that the electronic certificate is within the validity period.

  If it is determined in step 20101 that the electronic certificate is not valid, the process proceeds to step 20102. In step 20102, the input device control program 1011 is used to display on the output device unit 405 that the electronic certificate is not valid, and the digital signature processing step is terminated.

If it is determined in step 20101 that the electronic certificate is within the validity period, the processing proceeds to step 20103. In step 20103, a hash of the electronic certificate is calculated using the electronic data identification information creation program 1013 to identify the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature. After calculating the hash of the electronic certificate in step 20103, the process proceeds to step 20104. In step 20104, it is checked whether a state management table exists in the state management table holding unit 414.

  If the state management table does not exist in the state management table holding unit 414 in step 20104, the process proceeds to step 20105. In step 20105, a state management table is created using the state management table management program 1008. After creating the state management table in step 20105, the process proceeds to step 20106. In step 20106, the CRL distribution location 507 corresponding to the electronic certificate is acquired from the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature, and the CRL is acquired using the CRL acquisition program 1003. After obtaining the CRL in step 20106, the process proceeds to step 20107.

  In step 20107, the validity of the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature by the acquired CRL is verified using the electronic certificate validity verification program 1004. The validity verification of the electronic certificate using the CRL in step 20107 is performed by identifying the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature in the items (605 to 607) of the identification information of the revoked electronic certificate recorded in the acquired CRL. If the identification information 505 is written, it is determined that the electronic certificate has expired, and if not, it is determined that the electronic certificate is valid.

  If it is determined in step 20107 that the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature has expired, the process advances to step 20108. In step 20108, the fact that the electronic certificate has expired is displayed on the output device unit 405 using the input / output device control program 1011, and the digital signature processing step is terminated.

  If it is determined in step 20112 that the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature is valid, the process advances to step 20109. In step 20109, the electronic signature is executed by the electronic signature program 1002. After completion of the electronic signature using the electronic certificate in step 20109, the processing proceeds to step 20110. In step 20110, the time of the time information unit 406 is acquired as the electronic signature time using the time management program 1009. After obtaining the electronic signature processing time in step 20110, the process proceeds to step 20111.

  In step 20111, the CRL obtained from the CA is hash-calculated as CRL identification information using the electronic data identification information creation program 1013, and combined with the electronic signature processing time obtained in step 20110, the obtained CRL is stored in the CRL holding unit 413. Create a CRL storage name for holding the file. A CRL storage name is created by concatenating a hash representing a character string and an electronic signature processing time represented by a character string with an underscore (_) (hash value: 1A0B3C ... 9A, electronic signature processing time: 20XX / If YY / ZZ, a character string of 1A-0B-3C ...- 9A — 20XX / YY / ZZ.crl is created). However, if it is determined in step 2011 that the CRL is the latest and the CRL has been acquired from the CRL holding unit 413 in the storage device, the CRL storage name when stored in the CRL holding unit 413 is changed. Create as CRL save name.

  After creating the CRL storage name in step 20111, the process proceeds to step 20112. In step 20112, using the state management table management program 1008, the hash calculated from the electronic certificate, the electronic signature processing time, and the CRL storage name are stored in the state management table. For example, the hash calculated from the electronic certificate is AB-CD-EF ... 00-11, the electronic signature processing time is 200X / 7/30, and the CRL storage name is 3F-5A ... 1C_200X_07_30. If it is crl, as shown in FIG. 7, the hash of the electronic certificate is stored in the electronic certificate identification information storage area 702, the electronic signature processing time is stored in the electronic signature processing time storage area 704, and the CRL storage name is It is stored in the CRL identification information storage area 707. Here, if an electronic signature has already been performed with the same electronic certificate (that is, an electronic certificate in which the hash of the electronic certificate is AB-CD-EF... 00-11), the electronic signature The processing time and the CRL storage name are continuously stored under the electronic signature processing time field and the CRL storage name field stored in the past. For example, consider the case where an electronic book name is given in 200X / 7/30 in the above-described example and an electronic signature process is performed using the same electronic certificate in 200X / 8/4. In this case, since the electronic certificate identification information 702 is already stored, the hash of the electronic certificate is not newly stored, but the electronic signature processing time 200X / 8/4 is the last stored electronic signature processing time 704. Is stored in the electronic signature processing time storage area 705 below the field of, and stored in the CRL identification information storage area 708 below the field of the last CRL storage name 707 in which the CRL storage name is also stored. Thereafter, the electronic signature processing time and the CRL storage name are stored in the same manner in the form of being added below the field stored at the time of the last electronic processing each time the electronic signature processing is performed. After storing the hash of the electronic certificate, the electronic signature processing time, and the CRL storage name in the state management table, the acquired CRL is stored in the CRL storage unit 413 with the name of the CRL storage name. In step 20112, the information is stored in the state management table and the acquired CRL is stored in the CRL holding unit 413.

  In step 2011, an electronic certificate expiration date check process operation described later is performed, and the digital signature process step is terminated.

  If it is determined in step 20104 whether or not the state management table exists, the process proceeds to step 20114 if the state management table exists. In step 20114, the electronic certificate identification information storage area 702 in the state management table 701 in FIG. 7 is checked to see if an item equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature exists. For example, if the hash calculated from the electronic certificate is ABCDEF ... 0011, the electronic certificate identification information storage area 702 has AB-CD-ED ... 00-11 as shown in FIG. If it is, it is determined that there is an item equal to the hash. If the hash calculated from the electronic certificate is BCDEF0... 5678, the items 702 and 22-33 of AB-CD-EF. -44 ... Since there is only the item 703 of AA-CC, it is determined that there is no item equal to the hash.

  If it is determined in step 20114 that there is no item in the state management table that is equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature, the process advances to step 20106. The steps after step 20106 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20106, and the digital signature processing step ends.

  If there is an item in the state management table equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature in step 20114, the process proceeds to step 20115. In Step 20115, in the state management table shown in FIG. 7, the CRL storage name stored in association with the lowest electronic signature processing time is acquired at the electronic signature processing time corresponding to the hash of the electronic certificate (electronic Since the signature processing time is stored below the last digital signature processing time, the last stored electronic signature processing time is the last digital signature processing time). For example, if the hash calculated from the electronic certificate is ABCDEF... 0011, the electronic signature processing time (704 to 706) of the electronic certificate identification information 702 is associated with the lowest electronic signature processing time 706. The CRL storage name 709 stored is acquired. After acquiring the CRL storage name 706 in step 2011, the process proceeds to step 2011.

  In step 2011, the CRL corresponding to the CRL storage name 706 acquired from the CRL holding unit 413 is acquired. After obtaining the CRL in step 2011, the process proceeds to step 2011. In step 2011, the CRL validity determination program 1006 is used to determine whether the acquired CRL is the latest one. The determination in step 2011 is that the CRL is the latest when the item 604 of the time updated next written in the CRL is later than the time information held in the time information unit 406 in time series. Otherwise, it is determined that the CRL is old.

  If it is determined in 2011 that the acquired CRL is old, the process proceeds to step 20106. The steps after step 20106 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20106, and the digital signature processing step ends.

  If it is determined in 2011 that the acquired CRL is the latest, the process proceeds to step 20107. The steps after step 20107 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20107, and the digital signature processing step ends.

  Here, a method for verifying the validity of an electronic certificate at a digital signature processing time in the past by the electronic certificate management apparatus 401 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation of verifying the validity of an electronic certificate at the time of past electronic signature processing of the electronic certificate management apparatus to which the electronic certificate management apparatus according to the present invention is applied. The electronic certificate management device 401 operates the state management table management program 1008 stored in the storage device unit 410 by the program control unit 408 to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past. Start.

  When the step of verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past is started, the process first proceeds to step 20201. In step 20201, it is determined whether or not a state management table exists in the state management table holding unit 414 using the state management table management program 1008.

  If it is determined in step 20201 that the state management table does not exist in the state management table holding unit 414, the process proceeds to step 20202. In step 20202, the validity of the electronic certificate at the past electronic signature processing time cannot be verified, and the step ends.

  If it is determined in step 20201 that a state management table exists, the process advances to step 20203. In step 20203, a hash of the electronic certificate is calculated from the electronic certificate to be verified using the electronic data identification information creation program 1013. After the hash is calculated from the electronic certificate in step 20203, the process proceeds to step 20204. In step 20204, the CRL search program 1005 is used to search the electronic certificate identification information storage area 702 stored in the state management table for an item that is equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, when electronic certificate identification information 702, electronic processing time (704 to 706), and CRL identification information (707 to 709) are stored in the state management table, an electronic certificate to be verified When the hash of the certificate is calculated as ABCDEF... 0011, it matches with the electronic certificate identification information 702, so it is determined that there is an item that is equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate and that the search has been completed. If the hash of the electronic certificate to be verified is 543210... FEDC, the electronic certificate identification information described in the state management table shown in FIG. 7 is 702 and 703, respectively AB- CD-EF ... 00-11 and 22-33-44 ... AA-CC, and 543210 ... FEDC, there is no item equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate, Judge that it could not be searched.

  If it is determined in step 20204 that an item equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate cannot be retrieved from the state management table, the process advances to step 20202. The steps after step 20202 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20202 described above, and the verification of the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past fails and the step ends.

  If it is determined in step 20204 that an item equal to the hash calculated from the electronic certificate can be retrieved from the state management table, the process advances to step 20205. In step 20205, the CRL search program 1005 is used to check whether the electronic signature processing is performed after a past electronic signature processing time for which the validity of the electronic certificate is to be verified. For example, it is assumed that the hash of the electronic certificate is an electronic certificate with ABCDEF... 0011 and the state management table stores information as shown in FIG. At this time, it is assumed that it is desired to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at the electronic signature processing time 704 performed on 200X / 7/30 as the electronic signature processing performed in the past. In this case, since the electronic signature processing time 705 in 200X / 8/4 and the electronic signature processing time 706 in 200X / 8/29 exist after the electronic signature processing time 704 in 200X / 7/30, the electronic signature to be verified It is determined that the electronic signature processing is performed after the processing time. If it is desired to verify the validity of the electronic certificate at the electronic signature processing time 706 of 200X / 8/29 as the electronic signature processing performed in the past, the electronic signature of 200X / 8/29 or later is stored in the state management table. Since the processing time information is not described, it is determined that the electronic signature processing is not performed after the electronic signature processing time to be verified.

If it is determined in step 20205 that the electronic signature processing has been performed later in time series than the past electronic signature processing time, the processing proceeds to step 20206. In step 20206, using the CRL search program 1005, it is determined whether there is a CRL capable of verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the CRL held in the CRL holding unit 413. Search for. Specifically, the CRL storage name at the electronic signature processing time that is to be verified described in the state management table is different from the CRL storage name at the time of the electronic signature processing performed after the electronic signature processing time. (If the CRL storage name is different, the CRL retained at the time of the subsequent electronic signature is updated after the CRL at the time of the electronic signature processing to be verified). For example, assume that the hash calculated from the electronic certificate is ABCDEF... 0011 and the state management table is stored as shown in FIG. At this time, if it is desired to verify the electronic certificate at the time of the digital signature processing in 200X / 7/30, the CRL CRL storage name 707 obtained in 200X / 7/30 and stored in the CRL holding unit 413 is 3F- 5A -...- 1C_200X_07_30. crl. Then, after 200X / 7/30, the electronic signature processing is performed on 200X / 8/4 and 200X / 8/29, and the CRL storage name (708 ~) of the CRL acquired and stored at the time of either of the electronic signature processing. 709) is also AC-96 -...- 3D_200X_08_29. crl, 3F-5A -...- 1C_200X_07_30. Different from crl. Therefore, in this case, it is determined that there is a CRL having a different CRL storage name in the CRL storage name at the electronic signature processing time later than the electronic signature processing time to be verified. If the electronic signature processing time to be verified is 200X / 8/4, the electronic signature processing is performed on 200X / 8/29, but the CRL storage name 708 at the time of 200X / 8/4 Since the CRL storage name at the time of 200X / 8/29 is the same, it is determined that there is no CRL having a different CRL storage name in the CRL storage name at the electronic signature processing time later than the electronic signature processing time to be verified If the CRL storage name is not different in 20206, the process proceeds to step 20207.

  In step 20207, using the CRL storage name 708 determined to be different from the CRL storage name 707 at the electronic signature processing time to be verified in step S206, the CRL storage unit 413 in the storage device uses the CRL acquisition program 1003. Get the stored CRL. If the CRL held in step 20207 is acquired, the process proceeds to step 20208.

  In step 20208, the CRL validity determination program 1006 is used to determine whether or not the held CRL is valid (determines whether or not it is the latest CRL issued by the CA). Whether the CRL is valid is determined by comparing the CRL next update time 604 with the time information in the time information unit 406 among the items described in the CRL shown in FIG. If it is past in the time series from the next update time 604, it is judged that the CRL is invalid (old), and if it is not over, it is judged that the CRL is valid (latest).

  If it is determined in step 20208 that the CRL is valid, the process proceeds to step 20202. The steps after step 20202 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20202 described above, and the verification of the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past fails and the step ends.

  If it is determined in step 20208 that the CRL update time has passed and the CRL is invalid, the process proceeds to step 20209. In step 20209, the latest CRL is acquired from the CRL distribution location 507 described in the electronic certificate by using the CRL acquisition program 1003. After obtaining the latest CRL in step 20209, the process proceeds to step 20210.

  In step 20210, when the CRL has been acquired from the CRL distribution location 507 described in the electronic certificate, the validity period of the electronic certificate is verified using the electronic certificate validity verification program 1004 (step S213 and step S213). From 20209). If the CRL has been acquired from the CRL holding unit 413 of the storage device unit, the process proceeds to step 20211 without doing anything (from step 20212). The electronic certificate validity verification program 1004 uses the electronic certificate validity verification program 1004 to verify the validity period of the electronic certificate described in the electronic certificate and the time when the validity period ends. The two items 503 and the time information in the time information unit 406 are compared, and the time in the time information unit is before the time when the effective period starts or after the time when the effective period ends in the time series. If it is not, it is regarded as not valid, otherwise the electronic certificate is determined to be valid.

  If it is determined in step 20210 that the electronic certificate is not valid, the process proceeds to step 20202. The steps after step 20202 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20202 described above, and the verification of the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past fails and the step ends.

  If it is determined in step 20210 that the electronic certificate is within the validity period, the process proceeds to step 20211. In step 20211, the validity of the electronic certificate at the time of the past electronic signature processing by the acquired CRL is verified using the electronic certificate validity verification program 1004. In step 20211, the validity of the electronic certificate is verified by identifying the identification information of the electronic certificate used for the electronic signature in the items (605 to 607) of the identification information of the revoked electronic certificate recorded in the acquired CRL. If 505 is written, it is determined that the electronic certificate has expired, and if not, it is determined that the electronic certificate is valid. When the verification of the validity of the electronic certificate is completed, the step of verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time is ended.

  If the CRL storage name is different in step 20206, the process proceeds to step 20212. In step 20212, the CRL acquisition program 1003 is used to acquire a CRL that matches the CRL storage name determined to be different in step 20206 from the CRL holding unit 413. After acquiring the CRL from the CRL holding unit 413 in step 20212, the process proceeds to step 20210. The steps after step 20210 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20210 and end the step of verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past.

  If it is determined in step 20205 that the electronic signature processing has not been performed later in time series than a certain electronic signature processing time in the past, the processing proceeds to step 20213. In step 20213, the latest CRL is acquired from the CRL distribution location 507 described in the electronic certificate by using the CRL acquisition program 1003. After obtaining the latest CRL in step 20213, the process proceeds to step 20210. The steps after step 20210 perform the same operation as the steps after step 20210 and end the step of verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at a certain electronic signature processing time in the past.

  Here, if the expiration date expires after a certain period (grace period) of the electronic certificate held in the electronic certificate management device 401, the output device unit 405 displays that the expiration date will expire after the grace period. The operation will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 10 shows an electronic certificate management apparatus to which the electronic certificate management apparatus according to the present invention is applied, when an electronic certificate that expires after a grace period exists after performing an electronic signature processing operation. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for performing an operation of detecting this and displaying using the output device unit 405 (hereinafter referred to as an expiration period detection operation). The electronic certificate management apparatus 401 starts the step of detecting the expiration period after the above-described step 20112 at the time of the electronic signature processing is completed.

  When the step of the expiration date detection operation starts, the process proceeds to step 20301. In step 20301, the state management table management program 1008 is used to determine whether or not the state management table exists in the state management table holding unit 414.

  If it is determined in step 20301 that the state management table does not exist, the step of the expiration period detection operation is ended.

  If it is determined in step 20301 that the state management table exists, the process proceeds to step 20302. In step 20302, the status management table management program 1008 is used to determine whether the electronic certificate identification information is stored in the electronic certificate identification information storage area in the status management table. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, when the state management table includes items 702 of AB-CD-EF... 00-11 and 22-33-44... AA-CC as electronic certificate identification information. Determines that the electronic certificate identification information is described.

  If it is determined in step 20302 that the electronic certificate identification information is not described, the step of detecting the expiration date is ended.

  If it is determined in step 20302 that the electronic certificate identification information is described, the process proceeds to step 20303. In step 20303, the status management table management program 1003 is used to determine whether there is grace period information corresponding to the electronic certificate identification information in the status management table. For example, in the status management table shown in FIG. 7, the grace period information 711 corresponding to the item 702 whose electronic certificate identification information is AB-CD-EF... 00-11 is 62, and there is grace period information. to decide. If the electronic certificate identification information is an item 703 that is 22-33-44... AA-CC, the corresponding grace period information 715 is 28.

  If it is determined in step 20303 that there is no grace period information corresponding to the electronic certificate identification information, the process proceeds to step 20304. In step 20304, the CRL held in the CRL holding unit 413 is acquired using the CRL acquisition program 1003 from the CRL storage name at the last digital signature processing time corresponding to the electronic certificate identification information. For example, when the state management table is described as shown in FIG. 7, there are three electronic signature processing times (704 to 706) in the electronic certificate identification information AB-CD-EF. In this case, the last electronic signature processing time is the last electronic signature processing time 706 described at the bottom, and the CRL storage name at the last electronic signature processing time 706 is performed. From 709, the CRL held in the CRL holding unit 413 is acquired.

  In step 20304, after obtaining the CRL from the storage device unit 413, the process proceeds to step 20305. In step 20305, the time information of the CRL next update time 604 and the time information of the CRL validity period start time 603 among the items described in the acquired CRL using the electronic certificate expiration date detection program 1011. Take the difference and calculate the CRL issue interval. Then, a period twice as long as the calculated CRL issuance interval is calculated as a grace period. For example, AC-96-... -3D_200X_08_29.C indicated by the CRL storage name 711 described in the state management table of FIG. If the CRL valid period start time 603 described in crl is 200X / 8/1 and the next update time 604 of the CRL is 200X / 9/1, the time information difference is calculated and the 31st CRL is issued. It becomes an interval. Since the CRL issuance interval is 31 days, the grace period is doubled, and 62 days becomes grace period information. After calculating the grace period in step 20305, the process proceeds to step 20306.

  In step 20306, the calculated grace period time information is stored in the grace period information storage area of the state management table using the state management table management program 1008. For example, in FIG. 7, assuming that no grace period information is stored in the electronic certificate whose electronic certificate identification information is AB-CD-EF... 00-11, the position of the grace period information storage area 710 Is stored with a character string of a grace period, and the calculated grace period 62 is stored at the position of the grace period information storage area 711. After the grace period information is stored in the state management table in step 20306, the process proceeds to step 20307.

  In step 20307, using the calculated grace period information or the grace period information acquired from the state management table, the electronic certificate expires after the grace period using the electronic certificate expiration period detection program 1011. Judge whether. Specifically, if the result of adding the grace period and the time information of the time information unit 406 is past the time information of the validity period end time 503 of the certificate described in the electronic certificate, the electronic certificate is displayed after the grace period. It is determined that the expiration date of is expired, otherwise it is determined that the expiration date has not passed. For example, when the electronic certificate identification information 702 in the state management table of FIG. 7 is an electronic certificate represented by AB-CD-EF... When the validity period end time 503 of the electronic certificate is 200X / 9/1, 62 days between the grace period is added to the electronic signature processing time 200X / 8/4 to become 200X / 10/5. Since the validity period end time 503 of the electronic certificate has passed, it is determined that the validity period of the electronic certificate has passed. If only the validity period end time 503 of the electronic certificate is 200X / 12/31 under the same conditions, it is determined that the validity period of the electronic certificate has not expired because the validity period end time 503 is not exceeded. To do.

  If it is determined in step 20307 that the validity period of the electronic certificate has passed after the grace period, the process proceeds to step 20308. In step 20308, the input / output device control program 1010 is used to display on the output device unit 405 that the expiration date of the electronic certificate has passed after the grace period. If it is displayed that the expiration date has passed after the grace period, the process proceeds to step 20309.

  In step 20309, the state management table management program 1008 is used to determine whether there is any electronic certificate identification information described in the state management table that has not been subjected to the expiration date detection operation. Specifically, it is determined whether there is electronic certificate identification information next to the electronic certificate identification information for which the expiration date detection operation has been performed. For example, assuming that it is described as in the state management table shown in FIG. 7, the expiration date detection operation of the electronic certificate identification information 702 described as AB-CD-EF... If it is performed in the step, it is determined whether there is electronic certificate identification information 703 described as 22-33-44... AA-CC as the next electronic certificate identification information. In this case, since there is the electronic certificate identification information 703, it is determined that the next electronic certificate identification information exists. If the previous steps were the electronic certificate identification information 703 described as 22-33-44... AA-CC, the next electronic certificate identification information 703 does not exist, so the next electronic certificate It is determined that the document identification information does not exist.

  If it is determined in step 20309 that the next electronic certificate identification information does not exist, the step of the expiration period detection operation is ended.

  If it is determined in step 20309 that the next electronic certificate identification information exists, the process proceeds to step 20303 via step 20310. Step 20310 is a step point where the iterative process in the expiration date detection operation starts, and is repeatedly passed by the number of pieces of electronic certificate identification information described in the state management table. In step 20303 and subsequent steps, the same operations as those in step 20303 and subsequent steps are performed.

  If it is determined in step 20307 that the validity period of the electronic certificate has not passed after the grace period, the process proceeds to step 20309. In step 20309 and subsequent steps, the same operations as those in step 20309 and subsequent steps are performed.

  If it is determined in step 20303 that there is grace period information corresponding to the electronic certificate identification information, the process proceeds to step 20311. In step 0311, a grace period corresponding to the electronic certificate identification information described in the state management table is acquired. For example, assuming that the status management table is as shown in FIG. 7, if the electronic certificate identification information 702 is AV-CD-EF... 00-11, 62 is set as the grace period information 711. get. 22-33-44... If the electronic certificate identification information 703 is indicated by AA-CC, 24 is acquired as the grace period information 715. In step 20311, after the grace period information is acquired, the process proceeds to step 20307. After step 20307, the same operation as the steps after step 20307 is performed.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the latest CRL corresponding to the electronic certificate is stored in the electronic certificate management apparatus for each electronic signature processing with the above configuration. If the latest CRL already exists in the electronic certificate management apparatus, the CRL is not acquired. Further, the CRL storage name when the CRL is stored is stored in the state management table for each electronic certificate and each date and time when the CRL is stored. Therefore, the electronic certificate management apparatus can hold the latest CRL corresponding to the electronic certificate for each electronic signature process in a state where it can be easily searched.

  Also, instead of acquiring the first CRL and the second CRL for each electronic signature processing as in the conventional method, the latest CRL at the electronic signature processing time is acquired for each electronic signature processing or equivalent to the latest CRL. The CRL is grasped from the state management table and the CRL is held in the electronic certificate management apparatus, thereby verifying the validity of the electronic certificate at the time of the electronic signature processing at a later time. Therefore, the number of CRL acquisitions can be reduced. Since the number of CRLs acquired is reduced, the amount of storage area required for the CRL holding unit is reduced. Furthermore, since the CRL is acquired only for each electronic signature process, it is not necessary to always start the apparatus, leading to a reduction in power consumption. Furthermore, in the first embodiment, since it is not necessary for the apparatus to spontaneously or manually activate the apparatus by detecting that the CRL is newly updated as in the conventional method, Thus, the cost for starting up the apparatus is no longer necessary.

  In the first embodiment, an electronic signature process is taken as an example of an electronic process related to an electronic certificate. However, in the case of an electronic process using information of an electronic certificate, reference to information stored in the electronic certificate or an electronic certificate is performed. Electronic processing using items stored therein, or encryption processing using an electronic certificate may be used. In the first embodiment, a hash is calculated from the electronic certificate and used as the identification information of the electronic certificate as a method of creating the identification information of the electronic certificate. However, if the electronic certificate can be specified, the electronic certificate The item stored in the electronic certificate management device may be used, the random number value generated only once in the electronic certificate management device may be used, or the random number value generated outside the electronic certificate management device may be generated only once. It is also possible to use electronic data that is generated outside the electronic certificate management device and modified only by performing calculations in the electronic certificate management device from electronic data generated only once.

  Also, in the first embodiment, as a method for creating CRL identification information, a hash is calculated from the CRL, and a character string created from the electronic processing date and hash is created and used as a CRL storage name for holding the CRL. The name is used as the CRL identification information. If the CRL can be specified, the CRL identification information may be an item stored in the CRL, or may be generated only once generated in the electronic certificate management apparatus. It may be a random value, a value of electronic data generated only once generated outside the electronic certificate management device, or an electronic data generated only once generated outside the electronic certificate management device. The electronic data may be electronic data that has been modified by performing calculations in the certificate management apparatus.

  In order to verify whether or not the electronic certificate has expired, the latest CRL is acquired from the CA in the first embodiment. If the CRL is the latest CRL that can be obtained, the acquisition destination of the CRL is obtained. May be a database connected to a network connected to the electronic certificate management apparatus, or a CRL may be input directly from the input device unit of the electronic certificate management apparatus. In the first embodiment, the storage unit in the electronic certificate management apparatus has an area for storing the acquired CRL, an area for storing the electronic certificate, and an area for storing the state management table. The storage area may be stored outside the electronic certificate management device, for example, in an external database through a network, or may be an external storage medium in which such information can be input by an input device unit in the electronic certificate management device. Good.

  In the first embodiment, when the time is compared in time series, the time information held in the time information unit in the electronic certificate management apparatus is used for comparison. Time managed in the network, for example, the time information from the time distribution station through the network may be used, or may be an external storage medium capable of inputting such information by the input device unit in the electronic certificate management device, It may be a time derived by performing electronic processing on electronic data stored in a storage unit in the electronic certificate management apparatus.

  The electronic certificate management apparatus according to the present invention determines the validity of an electronic certificate at the time of electronic processing when electronic processing such as electronic book name and encryption is performed a plurality of times using the electronic certificate. Since it can be verified later, it is not necessary to always start the electronic certificate management device, so the power consumption is reduced and the resources of the storage area required for the device are also reduced. In comparison, since the number of CRL acquisitions is reduced, access to the network is reduced. Therefore, it can be said that the present invention is useful for a device that requires low power consumption, has limited storage area resources, and requires less network access. For example, it can be used for a mobile phone or an embedded device using an electronic certificate.

A diagram for explaining the relationship between an electronic certificate and CRL during electronic processing The figure explaining the CRL acquisition method for the electronic certificate verification in the conventional method The figure explaining the CRL acquisition method for electronic certificate verification in this invention The figure explaining the whole structure of Example 1. The figure explaining the structure of the electronic certificate based on RFC3280 The figure explaining the structure of CRL based on RFC3280 Diagram explaining the configuration of the status management table Flow chart of electronic signature processing Flowchart of digital certificate validity verification processing Flowchart of electronic certificate expiration period detection process

Explanation of symbols

401 Electronic certificate management device 402 Network 403 Certificate Authority (CA)
404 Input Device Unit 405 Output Device Unit 406 Time Information Unit 407 Communication Unit 408 Program Control Unit 409 Memory Unit 410 Storage Device Unit 411 Arithmetic Unit Unit 412 Electronic Certificate Holding Unit 413 CRL Holding Unit 414 Status Management Table Holding Unit 501 Electronic Certificate 501 Effective period start time of electronic certificate 501 Effective period end time of electronic certificate 501 Issuer of electronic certificate 501 Identification number of electronic certificate 501 Issuing destination of electronic certificate 501 Distribution location of electronic certificate CRL 501 Electronic certificate Public key 501 Signature by the issuer of the electronic certificate 501 Private key of the electronic certificate 601 CRL
601 CRL issuer 601 CRL valid period start time 601 CRL next update time 601 Revoked digital certificate identification information 1 written in CRL
601 Revoked digital certificate identification information 2 recorded in CRL
601 Revoked digital certificate identification information 3 recorded in CRL
701 State management table 702 Electronic certificate identification information storage area 1
703 Electronic certificate identification information storage area 2
704 Electronic processing time storage area 1
705 Electronic processing time storage area 2
706 Electronic processing time storage area 3
707 CRL identification information storage area 1
708 CRL identification information storage area 2
709 CRL identification information storage area 3
710 Grace period information storage area 1
711 Grace period information storage area 2
712 Electronic processing time storage area 4
713 CRL identification information storage area 4
714 Grace period information storage area 3
715 Grace period information storage area 4

Claims (3)

Electronic certificate holding means, electronic processing execution means for executing electronic processing using the electronic certificate, CRL acquisition means for acquiring CRL of the electronic certificate used for electronic processing at the time of executing the electronic processing, and It has a CRL holding means for holding the CRL and an electronic certificate validity verification means for verifying the validity of the electronic certificate using the CRL, and verifies the validity of the electronic certificate used in the first electronic processing. An electronic certificate management apparatus that uses the CRL acquired during the second electronic processing performed after the first electronic processing. 2. The CRL validity judging unit for judging the validity of the CRL, and acquiring the CRL when the CRL held by the CRL holding unit is judged to be invalid by the CRL validity judging unit. Electronic certificate management device. One or more electronic certificates having a state management table for managing an electronic processing time using the electronic certificate and identification information of the electronic certificate, and held in the electronic certificate holding unit using the state management table The electronic certificate management apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an electronic certificate expiration detection unit that detects a period until the expiration date of one or more electronic certificates for the certificate.

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