JP2010097517A - Usb key - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a USB key which prevents leakage of personal authentication information, key information, and the like and effectively restricts an access to confidential information and personal information even when the USB is stolen or lost. <P>SOLUTION: A connector part of the USB key is accommodated in a body. The body is provided with a dial lock. When the connector part is in a storage position in the body, the dial lock is locked and its movement is restricted, while it is movable to the outside of the body when unlocked. A switch is provided in the body. When the connector part is in the storage position, at least a power supply terminal and a ground terminal of the connector part are connected to stop a function of an information holding part. When the connector part moves to a position to allow connection with the USB terminal, the connection is cut as the connector moves. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention retains authentication information inside and permits log-on to a computer or network only while it is attached, or enables access to shared data on a server (USB (Universal Serial Bus)) Regarding the key.

  Since the enforcement of the Personal Information Protection Law, social responsibility for confidentiality of companies and organizations has increased, and the risk of leakage of information such as confidential information and personal information on the operations and management of organizations and companies is more serious It has become a thing. Under such circumstances, not only countermeasures against external threats such as existing quarantine systems and firewalls, but also information leakage countermeasures such as access to confidential information in the client PC and access to the secret information database from the client PC are strongly desired. It has been.

  As a countermeasure against information leakage, user authentication using IDs and passwords has been conventionally performed. However, in the conventional method using only IDs and passwords, it is frequently necessary to prevent leakage of passwords and maintain higher security. The user's burden becomes extremely large such as forced password change. Therefore, a USB key has been devised as authentication hardware that can be used easily, and a method to prevent unauthorized use by the PC lock function that cannot be accessed unless the USB key is inserted into the USB port (USB terminal) of the client PC has been put into practical use. Yes.

  There are two types of internal structure of such a USB key: a low-cost simple type using a general-purpose secure memory, and a high-function type equipped with a dedicated authentication mechanism and encryption hardware. For simple ones, IDs, passwords, certificates, etc. for authentication are stored in secure memory, so that even more secure ones or parts of non-volatile memory are encrypted so that they cannot be read easily There is something that was done. Highly functional ones include so-called USB tokens, such as those that generate a password inside a USB key, those that implement an encryption mechanism inside the USB key, and those that implement a biometric authentication mechanism.

  In Patent Document 1, a USB key programmed with predetermined key information is inserted into a USB connector of a personal computer, and the OS starts when the key information of the USB key matches information preset in the BIOS. There has been proposed a key authentication device for a computer in which an OS is not started when a USB key is not inserted or when key information does not match.

Patent Document 2 proposes a USB module that generates a password by using a random number as key information, and makes it difficult to predict key information to ensure high security.
JP 2002-251226 A JP 2006-018545 A

  However, with a conventional USB key, all of the security, such as encryption and biometric authentication, is performed by software. In situations where reverse engineering techniques have advanced, the USB key is stolen or lost. In such a case, there is still a great risk that the key is copied by a malicious third party and important customer information and confidential information are accessed and taken out. The USB key has evolved into a secure one against such dangers, and while ensuring safety such as high-level fingerprint authentication has been enhanced, the pursuit of safety has improved convenience. It will be done at the expense.

  The present invention has been devised under such circumstances, and even if the USB key is stolen or lost, it can be more reliably placed inside the USB key by taking measures against the hardware. The purpose is to provide a USB key that prevents leakage of recorded authentication information and key information, maintains high safety, and can be used comfortably on a personal computer without impairing convenience. .

  In order to achieve the above object, the USB key according to the invention of claim 1 is connected to the main body having the information holding unit inside and connected to the information holding unit, and can be stored inside the main unit. A connector part that can be connected to the USB terminal of the computer and connected to the connector part, and is slidable with respect to the main body. A slide portion that moves the connector portion between the housing position of the main body and a position that can be coupled to the USB terminal by moving the slide plate by the grip portion, and the connector portion is in the housing position. If the locking part is locked to restrain sliding of the sliding part and the sliding part can be slid by unlocking, and the connector part is in the storage position, at least the power supply terminal and the grounding terminal of the connector part It stops the function of the information holding portion is connected, if the connector is in a bondable position as USB terminal constitutes a switch unit for interrupting the connection, by.

  A USB key according to a second aspect of the present invention is the USB key according to the first aspect, wherein the slide portion is formed in a flat plate shape inside the main body, and the switch portion is provided on a flat surface of the flat plate-like slide portion. A contact-type open / close switch is configured to be controlled to open / close by a shielding member fixed inside the main body according to the sliding of the slide portion.

  According to the USB key of the present invention, after the use is completed, the connector part is housed inside the main body and locked, so that the mechanical connection with the computer cannot be achieved. For example, the USB key is stolen or lost. Even if the user does not have access authority, the user cannot use the USB key, and the security can be further improved when the USB key is carried before the password is set. Therefore, the accuracy of the personal authentication can be improved by a simple method without particularly impairing the convenience of the user when using the computer, and it is extremely effective in preventing leakage of information stored in the client PC or the like. is there.

  Further, in the state in which the connector unit is housed in the USB main body, the connector unit is configured to be disconnected from the information holding unit, or the information holding unit is configured to hold the function stopped state. It is difficult to obtain authentication information using reverse engineering techniques. In addition, if the function of the information holding unit is stopped by opening and closing the contact type switch according to the sliding of the slide unit and connecting the power supply terminal and the ground terminal of the connector unit, an internal power supply is not required, Also, it is impossible to obtain authentication information from the outside due to power supply from an external power source. Therefore, security can be improved by a simpler and safer method without using a highly accurate leakage prevention apparatus such as information encryption and fingerprint authentication.

  Embodiments of a USB key according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a method of using a USB key 1 conforming to the USB standard. In the figure, the notebook computer 2 has two USB ports 3 on its side surface. The USB port 3 can be mounted with a USB memory, a USB-compatible peripheral device, the USB key 1 according to the present invention, or the like.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of the USB key 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention. The USB key 1 is formed with a main body 10 and a connector portion 20 as main components. The main body 10 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and a gently curved drum-like cross section is molded by mounting the memory member 14 and the base 15 (see FIG. 3) together with the connector portion 20 in a movable manner. The space which accommodates 20 inside is formed. The connector portion 20 is a female terminal having a rectangular cross section, and has a configuration in which four gold-plated terminals are arranged in parallel inside thereof and the periphery is shielded with metal.

  Of the four side surfaces of the main body 10, when mounted on the notebook computer 2, the triple lock 2 rows of the dial locks 11 are arranged on the rear surface of the upper surface (upper surface) as viewed from the connector portion 20 side. ing. Note that the position where the dial lock 11 is disposed is arbitrary, and is not limited to the position of the present embodiment. Also, the number of cylinders can be arbitrarily determined.

  The dial lock 11 is composed of a triplex and double-row cylinder in which one of the numbers from 0 to 9 is selected and six numbers can be combined. In a simpler configuration, it is not necessary to use all the numbers from 0 to 9, and it is not necessary to be a combination of six numbers. How to combine them can be selected freely.

  A window 30 of the slide portion is formed at a portion of the main body 10 that is closer to the connector portion 20 side from the center of the upper surface, and a slide tab 21 protrudes slightly from the upper surface of the main body. The user of the USB key 1 can usually move the slide tab 21 along the frame of the window 30, thereby moving the connector unit 20 in and out of the main body 10. FIG. 2A is a view showing a state in which the connector part 20 is housed in the main body 10, and FIG. 2B is a state in which the connector part 20 is arranged outside the main body 10 and can be used. FIG.

  FIG. 3 is a plan view in which the upper surface of the main body 10 of the USB key 1 according to the present embodiment is partially broken. FIG. 3A is a view showing a state in which the connector portion 20 is housed inside the main body 10, and FIG. 3B is a view showing a state where the connector portion 20 is disposed outside the main body 10 and can be used. FIG. Note that, in all the drawings, the same number is used for the same part, and the duplicate description of the same part is omitted.

  The slide tab 21 is directly connected to a slide plate 22 on a flat plate formed inside the main body 10, and the slide plate 22 is configured integrally with the connector portion 20. Note that the shape of the slide plate 22 does not necessarily have to be a flat plate shape, and may be connected to the connector portion 20 and does not necessarily have to be integrally configured.

  The connector unit 20 is further directly connected to the substrate 15 on which the memory member 14 is mounted, and each terminal of the connector unit 20 is connected to the memory member 14 through the substrate 15. In addition, the base 15 on which the memory member 14 is mounted is disposed below the slide plate 22 when viewed from the upper surface of the main body 10. For example, an EEPROM or the like is used as the memory member 14. In the present embodiment, the connector portion 20, the slide plate 22, and the memory member 14 mounted on the base 15 are integrated and configured to slide and move in the long axis direction of the main body 10. Needless to say, the memory member 14 and the memory member 14 may be fixed to the main body 10 and connected to the connector portion 20 in a line.

  A switch unit 40 is disposed on the lower surface of the slide plate 22 at the tip of the connector unit 20 side. The switch unit 40 is a contact type open / close switch, and the two lead plates 42 are urged by a coil spring 41 to open and close in a double-speech manner. In the switch unit 40, when the connector unit 20 is housed in the main body 10 (in the case of FIG. 3A), the urging force of the coil spring 41 is released, and the contact point between the two lead plates 42 is Although it is in a closed state, as the connector portion 20 slides toward the outside of the main body, the wall-shaped protrusion 43 provided inside the lower surface of the main body 10 serves as a shielding material to open the switch portion 40. While the connector part 20 is located outside the main body 10, the two lead plates 42 of the switch part 40 are opened to the left and right by the wall-shaped protrusions 43 and are opened in the state of being biased by the coil spring 41. maintain. Both terminals of the two lead plates 42 are connected to the power supply terminal and the ground terminal of the connector part 20, respectively. When the switch part 40 is closed, the memory function is also stopped.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the mechanism of the locking part of the USB key. In this embodiment, the dial locks 11 are arranged in two rows and three rows on both sides of the main body 10, but it goes without saying that the dial locks 11 can be provided only in one row on one side. In this embodiment, since both sides have the same function, only one side is illustrated to explain the locking mechanism, and the other side is not shown and described. FIG. 4A is a diagram showing a locked state, and FIG. 4B is a diagram showing a state in which the lock is released.

  A locking portion 23 is formed in a T shape at the end of the slide plate 22 connected to the connector portion 20. The locking portion 23 engages with a claw portion 52 provided on a stopper 51 that rotates around a rotation support shaft 53, and restricts or enables sliding movement of the slide plate 22. The back side of the surface where the claw portion 52 engages with the locking portion 23 is cornered so that when the T-shaped locking portion 23 is introduced into the locking state with the claw portion 52, the introduction becomes easy. The part is formed in an arc shape.

  Three cylinders 12 having a rod 54 as a central axis are arranged on both sides of the slide plate 22 to form a dial lock 11 as a lock part as a whole. A suppression plate 55 is attached to the tip of the rod 54 to suppress the rotation of the stopper 51. A spring 56 is mounted between the restraining plate 55 and the first cylinder 12 so as to surround the rod 54. In addition, a leaf spring 57 is disposed between the three cylinders 12 to hold the cylinders 12 at a predetermined interval and to apply a constant friction to the rotation operation of each cylinder 12. A stop 58 is disposed at the end of the rod 54, thereby restricting the movement of the cylinder 12 in the rod axis direction, and tension is applied between the cylinders 12.

  Although not shown, the rod 54 is provided with a convex projection in the axial direction on the peripheral surface, and each cylinder 12 is formed with a concave groove at a predetermined number position. When the user aligns the predetermined numbers and the keyways are aligned in the axial direction, the rod 54 is free to move in the axial direction and can be pushed into the cylinder 12 side. When the slide plate 22 is slid in such an open state, the locking portion 23 of the slide plate 22 is disengaged from the claw portion 52 of the stopper 51, and the connector portion 20 can be pulled out of the main body 10. When the connector part 20 moves to the outside of the main body 10, the switch part 40 also moves together with the base 15, and the contact point is opened by the wall projection 43, so that the connector terminal can act effectively.

  The case where the connector part 20 which is the object of the present invention is housed in the main body 10 will be described. When the connector portion 20 is housed inside the main body 10, the slide tab 21 is pushed in with the key grooves aligned in the axial direction. Then, the locking portion 23 of the slide plate 22 pushes the stopper 51 along an arc formed on the back surface of the claw portion 52. The stopper 51 rotates around the rotation support shaft 53, and the claw portion 52 and the locking portion 23 are engaged with each other. At this time, since the movement of the rod 54 is restricted by rotating the cylinders 12 and changing the arrangement of the key grooves, the movement of the connector portion 20 is also restricted. At the same time, the switch unit 40 moves to the rear of the main body 10 together with the slide plate 22, so that the lead plate 42 releases the contact with the wall projection 43. As a result, the lead plate 42 is brought into contact conduction, and the memory function can be shut off by short-circuiting between the power supply terminal and the ground terminal.

  Next, functions and usage of the USB key 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. First, a case where the USB key 1 is used for controlling access to confidential data (shared data) on the WEB server will be described. A server administrator programs and distributes information for authenticating an individual such as an ID, password, and key information of a person having access authority to the USB key 1 in advance. At this time, the number of the dial lock 11 is also determined and distributed for each USB key 1. A person who has authority to access data (hereinafter referred to as authority holder) holds and manages the USB key 1 as unique. Note that access to confidential data can be managed by setting different IDs for each data.

  When the authorized person accesses the data, the dial lock 11 of the USB key 1 is opened and the slide tab 21 is pressed to fix the connector unit 20 to the outside of the main body 10. Then, the USB key 1 is attached to the USB port 3 of the notebook computer 2 (abbreviated as PC2). On the other hand, the device driver and utility software for recognizing the USB key 1 are already installed in the PC 2, and when the USB key 1 is attached, the utility software is executed and the personal authentication information and key information of the USB key 1 are executed. Etc. are referred to.

  When the authorized person accesses the confidential data site on the WEB server, the personal authentication information and key information of the USB key 1 are collated with the personal authentication information and key information registered in the server in advance, and they match. Only the protection is canceled and the confidential data can be accessed. In this way, only the authority holder who holds the USB key 1 can access the server, and leakage of confidential information is prevented. In addition, the server can manage access to confidential data by storing all accessed personal records. Note that if the utility software requests the input of the authority information and password before logging on to the confidential data, even if the PC 2 and USB key 1 are stolen as a set, no password etc. will be required. Can not be accessed, so security can be further improved.

  When the authorized person logs out from the confidential data site on the WEB server, the utility software is terminated and the USB key 1 is removed from the USB port 3. At this time, in order to surely prohibit use of the USB key 1 by others, the slide tab 21 is pushed into the center side of the main body 10 and the connector portion 20 is housed inside the main body 10. In the storage position of the main body 10, the connection between the connector unit 20 and the memory member 14 is blocked so that data analysis cannot be performed. Furthermore, the cylinder 12 of the dial lock 11 is changed to a random position to restrict the movement of the connector unit 20.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the personal identification information and the key information that are carried around the USB key 1 and cannot be used by others even if stolen by the scale, and cannot be recognized by the reverse engineering technique, are used. Therefore, it is difficult to generate authentication keys as well as acquisition of authentication information, and high security can be ensured.

  The USB key 1 according to the present invention can also be used as a PC lock mechanism for preventing other people from using the PC 2 itself. In this case, as an example, the PC user attaches the USB key 1 to the USB port 3 of the PC 2 before turning on the power, and when the power is turned on, the BIOS starts and confirms the attachment of the UEB key 1. Since the key information of the USB key 1 is created on a one-to-one basis with the PC 2, if the USB key 1 is attached to the USB port 3, the key information matches, and the PC 2 can be used only by the owner of the USB key 1. .

  In this case, the user of the key uses the number of the dial lock 11 of the USB key 1 as similar to the ID number or password, but mechanically uses a key that is difficult to use the reverse engineering technique. Since the use of is restricted, security can be ensured even if it is stolen or lost. The form of the USB key 1 of the present invention is one embodiment, and is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that various changes can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. . The usage mode of the USB key 1 is also an example, and the present invention is not limited to this. Many usages are possible.

It is a figure for demonstrating the usage method of a USB key. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance structure of a USB key. It is the top view which fractured | ruptured the upper surface of the main body of the USB key partially. It is a figure for demonstrating the mechanism of the locking part of a USB key.

Explanation of symbols

1 USB key 10 Body 11 Dial lock (locking part)
12 cylinder 14 memory member (information holding unit)
15 Board 20 Connector 21 Slide Tab 22 Slide Plate 30 Slide Window 40 Switch 41 Coil Spring 42 Lead Plate
43 Wall projection (shielding material)
51 Stopper 52 Claw 54 Rod 57 Leaf Spring

Claims (2)

A main body having an information holding unit therein;
A connector part that is connected to the information holding part and can be stored inside the main body, and when used, can be moved to the outside of the main body and coupled to a USB terminal of a computer;
Connected to the connector part, provided to be slidable with respect to the main body, and having a slide plate provided with a grip part exposed to the outside from the peripheral surface of the main body, and the slide plate is moved by the grip part A sliding portion that moves the connector portion between a storage position of the main body and a position that can be coupled to the USB terminal;
A locking portion that locks when the connector portion is in the storage position and restrains sliding of the sliding portion, and allows the sliding portion to slide by unlocking; and
When the connector portion is in the storage position, at least the power supply terminal and the ground terminal of the connector portion are connected to stop the function of the information holding portion, and the connector portion can be connected to the USB terminal. In some cases, a switch unit that cuts off the connection;
USB key with. The slide part is formed in a flat plate shape inside the main body,
The switch part is a contact type open / close switch provided on a flat surface of the flat slide part, and is controlled to be opened and closed by a shielding material fixed inside the main body according to the sliding of the slide part. The USB key according to claim 1, wherein:

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