RU2213994C1 - Method for concluding legally significant electronic transaction - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: electronic commerce systems; conclusion of legally significant electronic transactions. SUBSTANCE: in proposed method one party of transaction selects type of transaction on trust center server, writes down document in the form of contact text, and disposes his proposals on trust center server. If other party agrees with proposals of first party, both parties sign contract by digital electronic signatures; if other party does not agree with proposals of first party, contract is negotiated by both parties and then negotiated contract is signed by digital electronic signatures. Information about transactions is saved in trust center, contract text is converted together with digital electronic signatures into bar code, and document including converted information about document text and digital electronic signatures is enabled to be printed on peripheral devices of parties. Text of concluded contract is published in printed mass media. EFFECT: provision for preventing falsification of contract upon its conclusion. 3 cl, 1 dwg

Description

 The invention relates to electronic commerce systems, in particular to methods for conducting transactions on the Internet, and can be used to conclude legally significant electronic transactions.

 A known method of electronic transactions (US Pat. RF 2138848, 09/03/98; G 06 F 17/60), in which the seller organizes a computer server and access to it from remote computers of potential buyers. The seller creates on its server a system for identifying customers who are network users and protects communication channels with customers from unauthorized access using individual codes.

 Prior to the electronic transaction, the seller makes and actually sells to the buyer the material medium with a code hidden on it, inaccessible for use without an explicit and irreversible change in the state of the medium or its packaging. As a code carrier use a floppy disk, CD, plastic card.

 The buyer removes the protective coating from the material medium and learns his access code, enters this code into the computer and sends it to the seller’s server. The seller identifies the received code from the buyer and gives him access to information on the server, after which the buyer has the opportunity to purchase the necessary product or service and pay for the purchase.

 After receiving a good quality product (service), the buyer must return the medium with the code to the seller, and in the event of a dispute between the seller and the buyer (for example, regarding the quality of the goods sold), the buyer leaves the medium with the code in his possession and can use it as a basis for making claims to the seller.

 However, the code carrier is only tangible evidence of the payment being made and is not legal evidence of the conclusion of the transaction, since such tangible medium contains only the buyer's individual access code to the seller’s server and does not contain the essential conditions of the transaction.

 This method allows only certain types of transactions (transactions of sale of goods and services).

 In addition, the buyer does not have the ability to change the terms of the transaction if they do not suit him.

 Due to the fact that this method provides for the mandatory purchase of a tangible code carrier from the seller before the transaction is concluded, this significantly reduces the efficiency of the transaction and creates additional inconvenience to the buyer. In addition, it makes sense of e-commerce, when the buyer can make a purchase without leaving home. In this method, he needs to leave home in order to purchase a code carrier, and then return home and conclude a virtual deal. The average buyer will instead prefer to go to a real store and make a real purchase.

 US Pat. No. 5,750,972 (September 6, 1996; G 06 F 17/60) describes a method for conducting an electronic transaction and a method for creating a payment document for a buyer to pay for goods and services of a seller.

 In accordance with this method, the buyer generates a payment document in electronic form using a personal computer. In this case, part of the text information on the generated payment document, namely: seller and buyer data, payment amount, route code, information about the buyer's bank, real signature of the originator of the payment document, etc., is converted to a barcode, which is placed on special fields in the same document. Thus, the payment document contains both text information and information in the form of a barcode. The buyer forms the payment document generated in this way, by fax, to the seller, another copy to the bank serving him (the buyer's bank), and the seller sends the copy to his bank (seller’s bank). The seller’s bank presents the payment document to the buyer's bank for payment. In this case, the buyer's bank decodes the barcode and compares the information contained in the payment document received from the buyer with the information contained in the payment document received from the seller’s bank.

 A payment document generated by the method described above is legally binding and meets all the requirements for a negotiable credit document. However, in case of improper fulfillment by the parties of the obligations under the transaction, this document cannot serve as material evidence in court, since it does not contain essential conditions for its conclusion.

 In addition, when sending the generated payment document via electronic networks, unauthorized access to the intruder’s network is possible, which can modify the information contained in the payment document, including the signature of the individual who generated the payment document.

 It is widely known that to protect against modification of information transmitted over electronic networks and to identify the author of an electronic document, an electronic digital signature (EDS) is used.

 The well-known "Method of identifying the authenticity of a controlled object" (RF patent 2132569, 11/13/98, G 06 K 9/00). This method consists in the fact that the text information about the controlled object, namely: the type of object, manufacturer, object number, accompanying document to the object, is converted into digital form, signed with its digital signature, the received information is converted to a barcode and applied to a material carrier, fixed on the object or on the object itself. When reading information, the barcode is converted into digital form and an EDS is extracted from it, after which the authenticity of the EDS and information about the object is verified.

 However, the considered method is not used to conclude electronic transactions, but has a different purpose.

 Closest to the claimed method is the method of concluding an electronic transaction described in RF patent 2158956 "System for managing transactions" (08.20.90; G 06 F 17/60). This method is selected for the prototype.

 The method according to RF patent 2158956 consists in organizing a control center, which is a server connected to the global Internet, and a network of users having peripheral devices. Users who wish to conclude a transaction must register on the server of the control center by transmitting their details in electronic form. At the same time, the user and the control center conclude an agreement on registration in the system, which can be concluded in electronic and / or in paper form. Access to the control center server is carried out by identifying the user, for which they use their own certificate containing the following information: key code (public key), date of issue of the certificate and its expiration date, information about the organization that issued the appropriate software for generating the certificate, name of person , in whose name the certificate is formed, a class corresponding to the access level allowed for this user in the system. Certificates are generated by the users themselves. The certificate generated in this way is transmitted by the user in encoded electronic form to the input of the storage and certificate verification center of the control center. The control center verifies user certificates and, if yes, allows access to the server. After gaining access, the user-seller places his offers on various types of transactions on the server of the control center, formulating their essential conditions. The user-buyer has the opportunity to study the seller’s offers on the server of the control center and, if the buyer agrees with the essential terms of the transaction proposed by the seller, both parties sign an agreement with their digital signature.

 At the same time, the control center provides storage of information on transactions and parties to the contract. When implementing the described method there are no restrictions on the types of transactions and the number of participants in transactions.

 In order to insure risks of concluded transactions, an insurance company is registered as a user on the server of the control center, which concludes insurance contracts with participants in transactions.

 The use of electronic digital signature when signing the text of the contract, as well as the encoding of the transmitted information, allows you to protect information transmitted over electronic networks.

 However, in this method, in the event of a conflict, none of the parties to the transaction has a legally significant text of the agreement signed by both parties, which would confirm the fact of the conclusion of an electronic transaction.

 In case of accidental or malicious destruction on the server of the trust center of information on transactions concluded, including information on the electronic digital signature of the parties, the participants in the transaction are not able to legally prove the fact of the transaction.

 This problem is especially relevant when one of the parties to the transaction paid under the contract, and the other side violated the obligations and did not fulfill the delivery of goods or did not provide services.

 An object of the invention is the exclusion of the possibility of falsification of the contract after its conclusion.

 The problem is solved by the following method of concluding a legally significant transaction. The method includes the organization of a trust management center, which is a server connected to the global Internet, and at least two registered users connected to the server who are parties to the transaction and have peripherals that allow them to make transactions on the server of the trust control center. At the same time, one party to the transaction has the opportunity to select the type of transaction that it wishes to conclude on the server of the trust center, form a document in the form of the text of the contract, formulate its essential conditions and place its offers on the server of the trust center, and the other party to the transaction has the opportunity to study the offers of the first side. If the other party agrees with the proposals of the first party, then both parties sign the agreed contract by electronic digital signatures; if the other party does not agree with the proposals of the first party, the parties have the opportunity to agree on the terms of the contract on the server of the trust center, after which both parties sign the agreed contract by electronic digital signatures. The trust center provides storage of information about the transactions concluded and the parties to the transaction; converts the text of the concluded contract or its fragment together with electronic digital signatures of the parties to the transaction into a barcode; it provides an opportunity for the parties to the transaction to print on their peripheral devices a document containing the converted information about the text of the contract and electronic digital signatures, and also publishes the text of the concluded contract converted to barcode in the print media.

 An additional feature of the method is that the parties to the transaction are given the name of the print media in which the barcode of the contract and the date of its release are published.

 Also, a feature of the contract is the additional encoding of the text of the contract before converting it into a barcode, which allows you to keep the published contracts confidential.

 In accordance with the claimed method of concluding a legally significant transaction, users, for example, the supplier (user A) and the buyer (user B), who wish to enter into an electronic transaction, are registered at the entrance to the system of the trust management center. The supplier, having selected the type of transaction that he wishes to conclude, places his commercial offers on the server of the trust management center. If the buyer agrees with the seller's offers, the parties enter into a transaction.

 If the buyer does not agree with the seller’s offers, the parties agree on the terms of the contract, then enter into a transaction and sign the contract with their electronic digital signatures (EDS). The trust management center converts the text of the concluded agreement or its fragment together with the digital signature of the supplier and buyer into a barcode.

 The trust management center stores information about transactions and payment documents.

 The method provides the formation and prints on the peripheral devices of users of the electronic image of the contract and the electronic image of the electronic digital signature in the form of a barcode, and also certifies the authenticity of the transaction at the request of the parties to the transaction.

 Reading the barcode and its inverse transformation allows you to enter a document into the electronic document management system of the trust management center. After authentication of the electronic digital signature of the parties to the transaction, the trust management center certifies this information, which indicates the absence of changes in the contract (or other document), and thereby confirms the authenticity of this document. This information can be generated both in electronic form and signed by the EDS of the trust management center, and on paper and made out in accordance with the requirements for official documents.

 After that, a barcode with information about the contract is published in the print media (newspaper).

 When one of the parties tries to change the terms of the agreement in collusion with the trust center, the injured party as arguments in its defense cites a barcode published in a million copies, which it will not be possible to remove or counterfeit.

 The barcode takes up a small print space and its publication is inexpensive.

 In order to ensure the confidentiality of the contract, its text is additionally encoded before being converted to a barcode.

 In addition, the name of the printed publication (magazine, newspaper) and the date of its release (publication) are reported to the parties to the agreement.

 Any limited storage of materials (information) prefers its leakage or distortion, the publication of this information in an open form eliminates the possibility of distortion of information in the future.

Claims (3)

 1. A method of concluding a legally significant electronic transaction, including the organization of a trust management center, which is a server connected to the global Internet, and at least two registered users associated with it, who are parties to the transaction, having peripheral devices that allow them to conclude transactions on the trust center’s server, while one side of the transaction has the opportunity to select the type of transaction that it wants to conclude on the trust center’s server, form up to a document in the form of the text of the contract, having formulated its essential conditions, and posting its offers on the server of the trust center, and the other party to the transaction has the opportunity to study the proposals of the first side, if the second side agrees with the proposals of the first side, both parties sign the contract with electronic digital signatures, if the second side does not agree with the proposals of the first side, the parties have the opportunity to agree on the terms of the contract on the server of the trust center, after which both parties sign an agreement the contract by electronic digital signatures, the trust center provides storage of information about transactions and parties to the transaction, and the trust center converts the text of the contract or a fragment of it together with electronic digital signatures of the parties to the transaction in a barcode and provides the parties to the transaction to print its peripheral devices a document containing converted information about the text of the contract and electronic digital signatures, and also publishes ikation converted into barcode text of the concluded contract in the print media.  2. The method of concluding a legally significant electronic transaction according to claim 1, characterized in that the parties to the transaction are given the name of the print media in which the barcode of the contract is published, and the date of its release.  3. The method of concluding a legally significant electronic transaction according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that they additionally encode the text of the agreement before converting it into a barcode.