Capital One wants to authenticate users in a Blockchain

The adoption of Blockchain continues to increase in the banking sector, with the news that Capital One has applied for a patent to potentially develop a system based on this technology that authenticates new users in a secure manner.

Capital One is a banking company that specializes in credit cards and bank loans, so security is a primary concern. According to documents published this week, the company applied for a patent entitled "Blockchain systems and methods for user authentication". The patent was filed in Virginia, USA, with Johnathan Weimer and Ryan Fox as inventors of the authentication system.

The patent abstract describes the project in more detail, indicating that computer-implemented methods and systems are provided for blockchain-mediated user authentication and then for enumerating possible applications of a user system, which will include verification messages that indicate that the main system successfully authenticated the user.

The patent, published this week, is a continuation of one filed in June 2017 by Johnathan Weimer, which shows that the company has been working on the technology for quite some time.

It is designed to decongest computer systems by streamlining authentication and improving user experience, citing the resentment they feel when they are forced to respond to repeated authentication requests associated with different institutions as one of the use cases to merge them to all in a collaborative authentication system that handles authentication interactions for multiple institutions.

However, the patent, which continues the work presented in 2017, may be incomplete and may require collaboration to overcome certain technical problems.

From the patent:

"A more desirable authentication system would track authentication interactions for users trying to access the computer systems of the participating institutions. Such an authentication system would be non-repudiable, which would prevent users or institutions from challenging authentication records as false or inaccurate. In addition, such a system would limit the exchange of personal information between users and institutions. "

"The authentication system would also be built in a way that encourages participating institutions to trust the validity of authentication records. Therefore, there is a need for an architecture that addresses these technical problems, "the authors continued.

Capital One is the latest in a series of leading financial institutions and financial services companies that file blockchain patents and integrate technology into their business model. Many of the public banks in China now use the Blockchain technology in some way, and Barclays is also looking for patents of this type for the development of a new cryptocurrency.

Source: CCN