Mastercard adds blockchain card verification patent

US Patent & Trademark Office – Method and system for payment card verification via blockchain

“The present disclosure provides a description of systems and methods for the conveyance and receipt of payment credentials to and at a point of sale device through the use of a third party data source. The use of a third party data source enables an individual to transact safely without concern for their payment credentials being skimmed from their payment instrument, or without having to even carry a payment instrument entirely.”

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the verification of payment credentials via the use of blockchains or other publicly accessible data sources, specifically the use of encryption and the transmission of data between a computing device and a point of sale to accommodate the retrieval and usage of verified payment credentials without the use of a traditional payment instrument.

BACKGROUND

For many consumers, convenience can be just as important as security when it comes to paying for purchases. Accommodating consumer convenience has led to the creation and rise of payment cards and other payment instruments that utilize near field communication and other transmission techniques for conveying payment credentials from a payment instrument to a point of sale with minimal effort by the consumer. Such methods often enable a consumer to simply press a button on their mobile computing device or wave their payment card near a point of sale terminal to transmit payment credentials, simplifying the user experience.

However, the wireless transmission of payment credentials can be subject to intercept. Skimming devices have been developed that enable a nefarious actor to pull the payment credentials from a payment instrument, even when securely located in the consumer’s wallet or purse, or to intercept the payment credentials as they are being wirelessly transmitted to the point of sale device. As a result, many consumers may feel unsafe to utilize more convenient methods of conveying payment details, instead opting for more secure methods that require additional time and actions to be performed by the consumer.

Thus, there is a need for a technological solution to enable the conveyance of payment credentials to a point of sale device that requires minimal participation by the consumer, while still maintaining a high level of security, particularly against skimming. This presents technical difficulties in trying to accomplish both security and convenience. What is presented herein provides a technical solution that improves the technology used in conveying payment card credentials from plastic cards, chip enabled cards and mobile computing devices.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure provides a description of systems and methods for the conveyance and receipt of payment credentials to and at a point of sale device through the use of a third party data source. The use of a third party data source enables an individual to transact safely without concern for their payment credentials being skimmed from their payment instrument, or without having to even carry a payment instrument entirely. The transaction may be conducted via the display of a machine-readable code to the point of sale device, which may further prevent skimming as the reading of such a code can be more easily controlled via control of the underlying display; the display can be easily shielded and is often obscured when in a pocket or purse.

A method for conveyance of payment credentials through a third party data source includes: storing, in a memory of a computing device, at least a first public key and payment credentials associated with a transaction account; generating, by a generation module of the computing device, a machine-readable code encoded with at least the first public key; displaying, by a display device interfaced with the computing device, the generated machine-readable code; generating, by the generation module of the computing device, a key pair comprised of at least a private key and a second public key; encrypting, by an encryption module of the computing device, the payment credentials using the private key; and electronically transmitting, by a transmitting device of the computing device, the encrypted payment credentials to a publicly accessible data source.

A method for retrieval of payment credentials from a third party data source includes: reading, by an input device of a point of sale device, a machine-readable code displayed by a computing device; decoding, by a decoding module of the point of sale device, the machine-readable code to identify at least a public key; receive, by a receiving device of the point of sale device, encrypted payment credentials from a publicly accessible data source; decrypting, by a decryption module of the point of sale device, the encrypted payment credentials using the public key; and electronically transmitting, by a transmitting device of the point of sale device, the decrypted payment credentials and transaction data for processing in a payment transaction.

A system for conveyance of payment credentials through a third party data source includes: a memory of a computing device configured to store at least a first public key and payment credentials associated with a transaction account; a generation module of the computing device configured to generate a machine-readable code encoded with at least the first public key, and a key pair comprised of at least a private key and a second public key; a display device interfaced with the computing device configured to display the generated machine-readable code; an encryption module of the computing device configured to encrypt the payment credentials using the private key; and a transmitting device of the computing device configured to electronically transmit the encrypted payment credentials to a publicly accessible data source.

A system for retrieval of payment credentials from a third party data source includes: an input device of a point of sale device configured to read a machine-readable code displayed by a computing device; a decoding module of the point of sale device configured to decode the machine-readable code to identify at least a public key; a receiving device of the point of sale device configured to receive encrypted payment credentials from a publicly accessible data source; a decryption module of the point of sale device configured to decrypt the encrypted payment credentials using the public key; and a transmitting device of the point of sale device configured to electronically transmit the decrypted payment credentials and transaction data for processing in a payment transaction.