IBM is developing a cloud service for the security of data transmissions over mobile networks. This allows developers to develop applications in which data is always protected.
IBM won a patent called, “Pushing secure notifications to mobile computing devices,” for a cloud-based security protocol that will help developers create apps that enable organizations to safely send critical information through service providers to third parties. The new cloud service will reduce the risk of data being exposed in mobile to mobile devices push notifications by coming up with a way to encrypt service so that information providers and others cannot actually see any data related to the user’s mobile device.
The patent invented at IBM Labs by Benjamin Fletcher, software engineering researcher, and Caleb Barlow, IBM director of application data and mobile security, say the patented technology is based on the idea of a cloud-based service that lets developers create applications that can encrypt data notifications via unique identifiers in the message that is then cloud securely transmitted to a mobile device via a third-party service provider. When the end user’s device authorizes the message, the encrypted message content is pushed down from the cloud.
The company says this patented invention will enable developers and service providers to design and build applications that ensure sensitive or personal information is not inadvertently exposed across mobile networks. Regardless of the nature of data being pushed to or from a mobile device, it should never be exposed to third parties since they cannot always guarantee the security and confidentiality to customers.
As an example, IBM points out it could be used by a credit card company notifying a customer of suspicious account activity. The company didn’t say exactly how and when this new patented technology might roll out as commercial service or a toolkits in the future, but it’s part of a larger mobile security strategy at IBM that also includes the acquisitions of Fiberlink and Trusteer.
Due to lack of security protocol, companies do not want to communicate sensitive information to their customers through their mobile devices. This is a big limitation to enterprises which are looking at sending mobile notifications. With the breakthrough technology, IBM is addressing service providers, developers and end users, who are looking for a secure mobile environment for maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of data shared.
Cloud computing and big data represent one of the core businesses of IBM. The company’s objective is to accelerate the time to market of a new class of software, services and applications capable of learning and responding to complex questions managing a large amount of information. Last year, IBM won another important patent of securing data in cloud computing environments. The patent will overcome barriers to adoption of cloud solutions by ensuring that client data is secured before transferring it for processing by cloud computing services. IBM has an ecosystem of 6,000 industry partners, 4000 analytics patents and 1,000 university partnerships around the world.