CONVERSATIONAL USER EXPERIENCE

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present principles relate generally to user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) technology and, more particularly, to user interface technology involving natural language from spoken or verbal commands.

BACKGROUND

Any background information described herein is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art, which may be related to the present embodiments that are described below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light.

Conversational user experience (UX) or user interfaces (e.g., Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, Google Home) are becoming more prevalent in everyday life. One area of interest is to use natural language to aid in authentication problems. For example, the user has forgotten their password. This can help prevent costly customer service calls.

Unfortunately, conversational interfaces are not yet accurate enough to successfully authenticate a unique user by speech, and access to these interfaces is fairly open. For example, an Amazon Echo might be in the center of a living room with access by anyone in the house. One response by a system such as an Amazon Echo to a verbal request for secret information such as a password could be an audio presentation of the secret information. For example, a user might state, "Alexa, what is the password for the home WiFi network?" The Amazon Echo system could respond, "Your home WiFi network password is 'password' ." However, providing an audio broadcast of secret information in the clear may undesirably make such information available to unintended or unauthorized parties.

SUMMARY

In accordance with an aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method including receiving a voice command; detecting from the voice command a request for secret information; retrieving the secret information; identifying a trusted device associated with the secret information; determining contact information for the trusted device; and sending the secret information to the trusted device using the contact information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein sending the secret information is preceded by determining whether the trusted device is authorized to receive the secret information; and responsive to the trusted device being authorized, enabling the transmission of the secret information to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein determining whether the trusted device is authorized includes determining at least one factor associated with the trusted device; processing the factor to determine an authentication score; and evaluating the authentication score to determine whether the trusted device is authorized to receive the secret information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein the at least one factor comprises one or more of a location of the trusted device, a history of usage of the trusted device, an IoT behavior associated with the trusted device, and whether a device to which the secret information applies or provides access is on the same network as the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise any of the above-described methods wherein sending the secret information is preceded by parsing the secret information into a non-secure portion and a secure portion; and wherein sending the secret information comprises providing the non-secure portion in the clear and sending the secure portion to only the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein delivering the non-secure portion in the clear includes producing an audio output representing the non-secure portion.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein producing the audio output includes synthesizing a speech signal representing a verbal presentation of the non-secure information; and audibly reproducing the speech signal via an audio reproduction device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein the request for secret information includes a request for a single-use identifier; retrieving the secret information includes generating the single-use identifier; and sending the secret information includes sending the single-use identifier to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described in the preceding paragraph wherein generating the single-use identifier includes one of selecting the single-use identifier from a list and random generation of the single-use identifier.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein sending the single-use identifier to the trusted device is followed by receiving a second voice command including the single-use identifier and requesting second secret information; recognizing the single-use identifier; providing the second secret information to the trusted device responsive to recognizing the single-use identifier; and disabling further recognition of the single-use identifier.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein receiving the voice command comprises receiving the voice command via a first device enabled to communicate on a communication network comprising one or more of a WiFi network, a Bluetooth network, an Ethernet network, and a mobile phone network.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein sending the secret information includes sending a text message including the secret information to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described above wherein sending the secret information to the trusted device is preceded by sending a lock signal to the trusted device to disable operation of the trusted device until an authorized user of the trusted device enters an unlock code.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus including a communication module configured to receive a voice command and to transmit a text message; and a processor configured to: process the voice command to identify a verbal request for secret information; access the secret information; identify a trusted device authorized to receive the secret information; and provide to the communication module the text message including the secret information for transmission to the trusted device. In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus including a communication module configured to receive a voice command and to transmit a message; a memory; and a processor configured to: process the voice command to identify a request for secret information; access the secret information from the memory; identify a trusted device authorized to receive the secret information; determine contact information for the trusted device; and provide to the communication module the message including the secret information for transmission to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein the processor is further configured to, prior to transmission of the secret information: determine whether the trusted device is authorized to receive the secret information; and responsive to the trusted device being authorized, enable the communication module to transmit the secret information to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein the processor is further configured to determine whether the trusted device is authorized by: determining at least one factor associated with the trusted device; processing the factor to determine an authentication score; and evaluating the authentication score to determine whether the trusted device is authorized to receive the secret information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein the at least one factor comprises one or more of a location of the trusted device, a history of usage of the trusted device, an IoT behavior associated with the trusted device, and whether a device to which the secret information applies or provides access is on the same network as the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein transmission of the secret information is preceded by parsing the secret information into a non-secure portion and a secure portion; and wherein the non-secure portion is provided in the clear and the secure portion is transmitted to only the trusted device. In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein providing the non-secure portion in the clear includes producing an audio output representing the non-secure portion.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein the processor is further configured to synthesize a speech signal representing a verbal presentation of the non-secure information; and the apparatus further includes an audio reproduction device to audibly reproduce the speech signal.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein: the request for secret information includes a request for a single-use identifier; accessing the secret information includes generating the single- use identifier; and sending the secret information includes sending the single-use identifier to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein generating the single-use identifier includes one of selecting the single-use identifier from a list and random generation of the single-use identifier.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein sending the single-use identifier to the trusted device is followed by: receiving a second voice command including the single-use identifier and requesting second secret information; recognizing the single-use identifier; providing the second secret information to the trusted device responsive to recognizing the single-use identifier; and disabling further recognition of the single-use identifier.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein receiving the voice command comprises receiving the voice command via a first device enabled to communicate on a communication network comprising one or more of a WiFi network, a Bluetooth network, an Ethernet network, and a mobile phone network.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein sending the secret information includes sending a text message including the secret information to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise apparatus as described above wherein sending the secret information to the trusted device is preceded by sending a lock signal to the trusted device to disable operation of the trusted device until an authorized user of the trusted device enters an unlock code.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a non-transitory storage media having computer readable programming code stored thereon for performing any of the methods described above.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method including: receiving a first voice command; detecting a request for a single- use identifier included in the first voice command; generating the single-use identifier; identifying a trusted device authorized to receive the single-use identifier; determining contact information for the trusted device; sending the single-use identifier to the trusted device using the contact information; receiving a second voice command including the single-use identifier and requesting a secret information; disabling further use of the single-use identifier;

retrieving the secret information; sending a lock signal to the trusted device to disable operation of the trusted device until an authorized user of the trusted device enters an unlock code; and sending the secret information to the trusted device using the contact information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described in the preceding paragraph wherein sending the secret information is preceded by: determining whether the trusted device is authorized to receive the secret information; and responsive to the trusted device being authorized, enabling the sending to send the secret information to the trusted device.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described in the preceding paragraph wherein determining whether the trusted device is authorized comprises: determining at least one factor associated with the trusted device; processing the factor to determine an authentication score; and evaluating the authentication score to determine whether the trusted device is authorized to receive the secret information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method as described in the preceding paragraph wherein the at least one factor comprises one or more of a location of the trusted device, a history of usage of the trusted device, an IoT behavior associated with the trusted device, and whether a device to which the secret information applies or provides access is on the same network as the trusted device. These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present principles will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, wherein like reference designators refer to the same or similar features, include:

FIG. 1 showing in block diagram form an apparatus and a system in accordance with one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 2 showing in flowchart form an aspect of one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 3 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 4 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 5 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 6 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 7 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein;

FIG. 8 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein; and

FIG. 9 showing in flowchart form another aspect of one or more embodiments described herein.

It should be understood that the drawings are for purposes of illustrating the concepts of the present disclosure and are not necessarily the only possible configurations for illustrating the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described herein below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail to avoid obscuring the present disclosure in unnecessary detail.

It should be understood that the elements shown in the figures may be implemented in various forms of hardware, software or combinations thereof. Preferably, these elements are implemented in a combination of hardware and software on one or more appropriately programmed general-purpose devices, which may include a processor, memory and input/output interfaces. Herein, the phrase "coupled" is defined to mean directly connected to or indirectly connected with or through one or more intermediate components. Such intermediate components may include both hardware and software based components.

The present description illustrates the principles of the present disclosure. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the disclosure and are included within its scope. Further, other embodiments beyond those described are contemplated and intended to be encompassed within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, additional embodiments may be created by combining, deleting, modifying, or supplementing various features of the disclosed embodiments.

All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for educational purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the disclosure and the concepts contributed by the inventor to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions.

Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the disclosure, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalents thereof. Additionally, it is intended that such equivalents include both currently known equivalents as well as equivalents developed in the future, i.e., any elements developed that perform the same function, regardless of structure.

Thus, for example, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the block diagrams presented herein represent conceptual views of illustrative circuitry embodying the principles of the disclosure. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudocode, and the like represent various processes which may be substantially represented in computer readable media and so executed by a computer or processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.

The functions of the various elements shown in the figures may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware as well as hardware capable of executing software in association with appropriate software. When provided by a processor, the functions may be provided by a single dedicated processor, by a single shared processor, or by a plurality of individual processors, some of which may be shared. Moreover, explicit use of the term "processor" or "controller" should not be construed to refer exclusively to hardware capable of executing software, and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, read only memory (ROM) for storing software, random access memory (RAM), and nonvolatile storage.

Other hardware, conventional and/or custom, may also be included. Similarly, any switches shown in the figures are conceptual only. Their function may be carried out through the operation of program logic, through dedicated logic, through the interaction of program control and dedicated logic, or even manually, the particular technique being selectable by the implementer as more specifically understood from the context.

In the claims hereof, any element expressed as a means for performing a specified function is intended to encompass any way of performing that function including, for example, a) a combination of circuit elements that performs that function or b) software in any form, including, therefore, firmware, microcode or the like, combined with appropriate circuitry for executing that software to perform the function. The disclosure as defined by such claims resides in the fact that the functionalities provided by the various recited means are combined and brought together in the manner which the claims call for. It is thus regarded that any means that can provide those functionalities are equivalent to those shown herein.

Turning now to the drawings, Figure 1 shows, in block diagram form, an exemplary embodiment of an apparatus and/or system in accordance with the present principles. In Figure 1, device 100 may receive, process and output various types of signals and communicate with other devices such as second device 190 and other resources (e.g., memory, processing capability, etc.), devices etc. in the cloud represented by 180. Also, device 190 may communicate directly with resources in the cloud 180. Such communications between device 100, device 190 and the cloud 180 may be by wired and/or wireless means as will be apparent to one skilled in the art. For example, device 100 may be a device providing features similar to that of the Amazon Echo including receiving and processing voice commands. In addition, device 100 may provide input/output such as via a wireless local network (e.g., WiFi, Bluetooth, etc.) and/or a wired network, e.g., Ethernet or cable, and/or via a communication system such as a cellular phone network. For example, device 100 may output and/or receive SMS text signals via an RF communication path (e.g., WiFi, cellular, Internet, etc.). Device 190 may be a device such as a mobile device, e.g., cell phone, tablet, laptop, etc.

Device 100 may include features such as a processor 120 coupled to data storage device 130 generally referred to herein as memory. The processor and data storage may be implemented in various forms such as a system on a chip including memory (RAM and/or ROM and/or EEPROM and/or a hard drive, etc.), a microprocessor, and various other embodiments that will be apparent to one skilled in the art. The processor may access software code stored in memory 130 and execute the code in accordance with aspects and embodiments described herein. In addition, the capability of processor 120 may be supplemented or operate in conjunction with other processors, processing capability such as that which may be available in the cloud 180, e.g., remote servers, head end equipment, service providers, etc. That is, processing as described herein may occur solely within a device such as device 100 using processing capability included in device 100 such as illustrated by processor 120. Also, processing a described herein may occur in resources in cloud 180. Also, processing as described herein may occur using a combination of processing resources in device 100 and resources in the cloud 180. Various combinations and embodiments of processing in accordance with the present principles will be apparent to one skilled in the art.

Device 100 may further include various inputs and outputs. Input signals from the inputs may be received and processed by processor 120. Processor 120 may also produce output signals provided to the various outputs. For example, an input 110 may receive audio signals such as voice signals that are processed by processor 120 to identify an audio command such as "Alexa, what time is it?". Examples of input 110 include but are not limited to a microphone or other form of audio sensor or transducer. One or more inputs 115 may receive various other types of input signals such as from a touch screen, keyboard, etc. Device 100 may also include one or more outputs such as output 140 for generating text signals, e.g., SMS text, suitable for output via a wireless signal such as a cellular signal and/or WiFi, Bluetooth or other wireless format, or via a hardwired connection, e.g., Ethernet, cable, optical, etc. For example, processor 120 may produce a text output signal at output 140 such as "The time is 8 AM" in response to the above-mentioned exemplary audio command and output the text output signal by a wireless network such as a cellular network to device 190. Device 100 of Figure 1 may also produce outputs in other formats such as audio (e.g., an audio output of "The time is 8 AM") via audio output 150 or other output such as a visible image on a display device, email message, etc., represented by other output 160 in Figure 1.

As another example, device 100 may be connected to other resources that may be remote from 100 such as devices, servers, head-end services, etc. that may be considered to be in the cloud 180 and in communication with device 100 via wireless or wired communication. Utilizing such remote resources may involve device 100 forwarding or relaying input signals such as voice signals to the cloud for processing, e.g., by sending an audio file to resources in cloud 180 for processing where the audio file represents a voice command received and stored by device 100. Processing by a processor or resources in the cloud 180 may, for example, process the received audio file, determine how to respond in accordance with the present principles, generate an audio file representing a response (e.g., "The time is 8 AM"), and return the response audio file to device 100. Then, processor 120 of device 100 may process the audio response file and output the response, e.g., by sending a SMS text message to 190 or creating an audio signal that is then output as an audible response, e.g., via audio output 150.

In accordance with the present principles, an exemplary embodiment may comprise a method such as that shown in Figure 2 that may, for example, be implemented in software and/or hardware such as the exemplary embodiment of a system or apparatus shown in Figure 1. For example, a processor such as processor 120 in Figure 1 may execute a software routine stored in memory 130 of Figure 1 to implement an exemplary embodiment such as the method illustrated in Figure 2. An embodiment such as that shown in Figure 2 and other exemplary embodiments of methods in accordance with the present principles as described herein may encompass various steps or operations that, as will be apparent to one skilled in the art, may occur in an order or sequence other than that described. In Figure 2, the exemplary method begins when a voice command is received at 210, e.g., by voice input 110 in the system or apparatus of Figure 1. The voice command is evaluated at 220, e.g., by processor 120 of Figure 1, to determine if the received voice command is a request for secure information such as a password or access code. Such secure information may be referred to hereinafter as secure, secret or sensitive information and any such reference is intended as a general indication broadly encompassing various types of information for which access is, should be or may desirably be restricted or limited. At 220 in Figure 2, if the voice command is or corresponds to a request for secure information then the method continues to block 280 indicated in phantom in Figure 2 that may include various operations as indicated and as described below. If at 220 it is determined that the voice command is not secure information, e.g., the above-described exemplary command "What time is it" then operation of the method in Figure 2 continues to 270 where the system responds to the command, e.g., by producing an audio response "The time is 8 AM" as mentioned above.

In block 280 of Figure 2, operation begins at 230 where a request for secure information results in retrieval of the secure information, e.g., by processor 120 retrieving the secure information from data storage such as memory 130 or other data storage accessible by processor 120, e.g., a database or secure data "vault" that may, for example, store secure information in a secure manner such as in an encrypted format. Operation 230 is followed by 240 where a trusted device associated with the secure information is identified. For example, a database that stores secure information such as a password may include an identifier of a mobile device such as device 190 in Figure 1 that is a trusted device or authorized device in that the device is permitted to access or receive the requested secure information. The identifier may be, for example, a mobile phone number to which secure information may be sent by SMS text message. Other examples of suitable identifiers of a trusted device include but are not limited to a name of the device, e.g., "John's iPad", or an IP address or a local network identifier of the device. Operation 240 is followed by 250 during which contact information associated with the trusted device is determined. For example, contact information such as a mobile phone number or email address associated with an identifier such as a name of a device may be determined, e.g., by accessing contact information that may be stored in the same or a different storage device or location as the identifier. Operation 250 may be unnecessary, for example, if the identifier is itself contact information such as in the case of the identifier being a mobile phone number suitable for receiving communications such as an SMS text message. Operation 250 is followed by delivery of the secure information to the trusted device. Delivery of the secure information occurs in a manner that limits access to the secure information to only the trusted device. For example, the information may be delivered by sending a message such as SMS text message or email to the contact information determined for the trusted device. The above-described exemplary embodiment of Figure 2 involves various processing operations such as processing voice commands, retrieving secure information, and delivery of secure information. In accordance with the present principles, such processing may be performed, for example, by features of device 100 of Figure 1 such as processor 120. Also in accordance with the present principles, such processing may occur using resources such as remote servers in the cloud 180 illustrated in Figure 1. Such processing may also occur using a combination of processing in device 100 and in the cloud. Processing may also occur in the trusted device. As an example of processing using various resources, an exemplary embodiment of the method of Figure 2 may comprise 210 occurring in a device such as an Amazon Echo device, 220 and 270 occurring in servers in the cloud that are associated with Amazon, and 230, 240, 250 and 260 occurring in a second server in the cloud processing customized operations not included as part of the original features of Echo. For example, processing of a command such as "Alexa, what time is it?" would occur in an Amazon server while a command such as "Alexa, what is my gateway password?" would be processed by the second server.

In accordance with the present principles, another exemplary embodiment may comprise a method such as that shown in Figure 3. The method of Figure 3 begins when a voice command is received at 310, e.g., by voice input 110 as shown in Figure 1. The voice command is processed, e.g., by processor 120 as shown in Figure 1, to determine if the voice command is a request for secure information. If not, 320 is followed by 360 where a response to the command is produced such as the above described audio output stating the time of day. The operations occurring at 310, 320 and 360 may be similar to or the same as those described above in regard to 210, 220, and 270, respectively, of Figure 2. However, the exemplary embodiment of Figure 3 illustrates increased or enhanced security features that may be implemented in accordance with the present principles. As shown in Figure 3, determining at 320 that the voice command is a request for secure information is followed at 330 by a determination as to whether or not enhanced security is to be applied.

Applying enhanced security may occur, e.g., as a result of enabling an enhanced security option by a system administrator or network administrator or other party having authorization to configure a system incorporating aspects of the present principles. Such an option might be enabled for a particular time period, or for one command, or a plurality of commands, or until disabled by an authorized party, or for a particular command or category of commands such as a request for a particular type of secure information. For example, in a home environment, enhanced security might be enabled while there are visitors in the home to decrease the likelihood of unauthorized access to secure information by the visitors. As another example, enhanced security might apply if a voice command requests a category of secure information that is highly sensitive information such as a bank account password or a social security number. If 330 determines that enhanced security is not applied, i.e., not enabled, then 330 is followed by 350 where the requested secure information is delivered, e.g., by a procedure such as described above in regard to 280 of Figure 2. If enhanced security is to be applied then 330 is followed by 340 where enhanced security is implemented in accordance with the present principles by one or more of various exemplary embodiments as described further below. Following implementation of enhanced security at 340, the requested secure information is delivered or provided such as by procedure 280 in Figure 2. That is, in some circumstances, providing secure information to a trusted device as in 280 of Figure 2 may provide adequate security. In other situations, enhanced security as described herein provides additional security measures beyond that of procedure 280 to further decrease the likelihood of unauthorized access to secure information such as the above-mentioned category of highly sensitive information.

In accordance with the present principles, an exemplary embodiment of enhanced security may comprise a method such as that shown in Figure 4. In Figure 4, enhanced security begins at 410 and is followed by process 480 indicated in phantom. Process 480 begins at 420 where one or more authentication factors are accessed or determined such as by processor 120 of Figure 1. Authentication factors relate to authenticating the identity of a user. Such factors may include information explicitly provided by a user, e.g., requiring the user to enter a password. Alternatively or in addition to explicit information, authentication factors may include information determined in an implicit manner. An example of an implicit factor is behavior or activity associated with a trusted device. For example, factors such as a current location of a device and/or a history of locations of the device and/or activity or interactions of the device with the Internet, with devices in the home (e.g., Internet of Things (IoT) devices), etc., may provide information sufficient to authenticate a user of a device. Interaction with devices such as IoT devices and the history of such interactions (e.g., history of time of interaction and/or the nature of the interaction) may be referred to herein as IoT behavior. As a specific example, if the device has accessed a particular web site and has done so at the same time on multiple days then the activity may indicate with reasonable certainty that the user is authenticated. As another example, if a trusted device is associated with a user named John and the device is located in his home or in his room in his home then that may be interpreted as an indication that the trusted device is with John or in a location appropriate for John such that a request for secure information is from John and the secure information may be delivered to the trusted device. Another example of an implicit factor is whether a device for which the requested secret information provides access and the device requesting the information are on the same network. If so, the common network indicates the trusted device may be authorized to receive the secret information. For example, if a device requests a password to login to another device on the same network such as a home WiFi network then the requesting device may be authenticated or authorized. As a specific example, authorization or authentication is indicated if a trusted device currently connected to a home network requests secure information from another device on the same home network or requests secure information pertaining to another device on the same home network.

Such explicit and/or implicit factors may be processed to determine an authentication score or rating at 430 in Figure 4. For example, if multiple factors exist, each implicit and/or explicit factor may be weighted and the weighted factors combined to determine the authentication score or rating. As a specific example, if a user is required to enter a password such explicit information may indicate a high likelihood that the user is authorized and given a high weight such as .9 or .95 while implicit factors may be weighted to indicate less confidence, e.g., a weight of .5. The authentication rating is evaluated at 440 where, if the resulting authentication rating is above a threshold or a particular value or meets certain criteria or is within established limits then authentication is confirmed and the requested secure information is provided. If so, the secure information is provided at 460 which may involve providing the requested secure information to a trusted device such as by process 280 of Figure 2. If the evaluation at 440 determines that the authentication rating is not adequate or not within limits then access to the secure information is denied at 450. The authentication score and/or the authentication rating limit may vary depending on the sensitivity of the secure information. For example, if the request for secure information is a request for a home WiFi network password then a relatively low authentication rating or limit may be adequate. An authentication score or rating or limit indicating a greater level of confidence in the identification or authenticity of the requester may be set or required before providing secure information in response to a request for very sensitivity secure information such as a bank account password or ATM pin.

In accordance with the present principles, another exemplary embodiment of enhanced security may comprise a method such as that shown in Figure 5. In Figure 5, enhanced security begins at 510 and is followed by process 580 indicated in phantom. As discussed previously, providing secure information such as a password in the clear is undesirable. However, it may be awkward or tedious or too time consuming to communicate a long highly-secure password. Process 580 provides a compromise by providing or communicating a portion of the secure information in the clear and, for example, keeping a portion or some characters of the secure information as a secure portion, e.g., by making the secure portion blank, hidden or obscured in the communication. Then, the secure portion may be delivered or provided via a trusted device.

In Figure 5, process 580 begins at 520 where lookup of the requested sensitive or secure information occurs such as by processor 120 in Figure 1 accessing or looking up the secure information from data storage such as memory 130 or other data storage device. Data lookup at 520 is followed by 530 where the secure information is parsed into two portions: a secure part and a non-secure part. For example, the request for secure information may be a request for a password such as a local network or WiFi password. The password might be "ak2d_apple_5294". The parsing operation 530 might parse the password into a non-secure portion such as "ak2d_*****_5294" and a secure portion "apple".

The secure portion may be provided in a secure manner at 540, e.g., provided to a trusted device in the same or similar manner as in operation 280 of Figure 2. For example, "apple" may be provided to only the trusted device by SMS text message or other means such as placing a call to the trusted device. The secure portion could be static, i.e., have the same value each time the parsing operation is performed at 530, e.g., by storing the secure part. In such case, parsing as provided at 530 may involve reading both the secure and non-secure portions stored in memory. Alternatively, the secure part could be determined or generated dynamically such as by varying the portion that is considered secure each time the parsing operation at 530 is performed. Dynamic generation of the secure and non-secure parts could involve, for example, a stored list of a plurality of combinations of secure and non-secure portions and each operation of parsing at 530 then accesses a different one of the stored combinations. As will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art, various other approaches are possible for dynamic generation of secure and non-secure parts appropriate for use with the present principles.

The non-secure portion may be provided in the clear. For example, the content of the nonsecure portion could be converted to a voice signal by processor 120 of Figure 1 and broadcast via an audio output such as audio output 150 in Figure 1, e.g., a loudspeaker, enabling anyone in the vicinity of the audio output device to hear and understand the non-secure content described or presented in the audio output. Another example of providing the non-secure information in the clear would be to display the non-secure information on a television or other display device that is observable by anyone in the vicinity of the display device.

In accordance with the present principles, another exemplary embodiment of enhanced security may comprise a method such as that shown in Figure 6. In Figure 6, enhanced security begins at 610 and is followed by process 680 indicated in phantom. Process 680 involves using voice interfaces and the concept of a skill to interact with a specific component. For example, a gateway device included in a home network for managing, receiving and delivering content could be named "Sophia". Therefore, a voice command for a network including a device such as an Amazon Echo could be "Alexa, ask Sophia for my WiFi password" where "Sophia" may be considered to be the skill name. Of course, if the device name or skill name is known, anyone could ask for the password information and thus the information is not secure.

A form of enhanced security in accordance with the present principles and shown in an exemplary embodiment in process 680 of Figure 6 addresses and solves the described problem using a series of single-use skills. A single-use skill as described herein represents a name or code that can be used once and only once to ask for secret or secure information. For example, in the preceding example involving the name Sophia, if Sophia were a single-use skill name then the command "Alexa, ask Sophia for my WiFi password" would work once to obtain the secure information, e.g., the network password, with the single-use skill name. The skill name Sophia would not be recognized or would be ignored after one successful communication of the name Sophia and delivery of the associated secure information. Such single-use skill names may be static, defined by the user, or generated randomly and communicated to a trusted device associated with the single use skill request via means such as SMS text message, a phone notification, email message, etc. As a more specific example, a user could request a single-use skill name, e.g., "Alexa, give me a single-use skill name". The system sends the name "Sophia" to a trusted device associated with single-use skill requests or authorized to request a single-use skill name. For example, the system sends the single-use skill name Sophia to a trusted smartphone by SMS text message or any of other various means of communicating with the trusted device such as phone call, voicemail or email. Then, the user asks "Alexa, ask Sophia to setup a guest network". The system recognizes the single-use skill name and performs the requested function. Afterwards, the skill name Sophia would not be valid.

For a voice command recognition and processing system such as Amazon's Echo/ Alexa system, creating a custom skill that is operational with the system may require registration of the skill and the skill name with the service provider, e.g., Amazon. After registration of custom skills with the service, a system such as Amazon's will recognize custom skills and redirect commands involving the custom skills to a particular server designated for handling such custom skills. As an example, "Alexa, ask Sophia ..." will cause Amazon's system to detect and process the request to Alexa, determine a custom skill named "Sophia" is involved, and forward the command to the server handling the Sophia skill. A system or service requiring registration of custom skills may make creating a single-use skill as described above problematic. That is, the registration process may make it problematic to create a single-use skill immediately in response to a request and to disable the skill after use. If so, another exemplary embodiment of enhanced security utilizing single-use skills in accordance with the present principles, the description above and the exemplary embodiment shown in Figure 6 may comprise the following:

1) The trusted person (i.e. the owner of the trusted device) creates a single use identifier, e.g., an alphanumeric text string such as "Temp".

2) The single-use code "Temp" is sent to the person that needs secure information, e.g., a password to access a protected resource (e.g., Wifi Password).

3) The person asks for the secure information by including the single-use code in the

request. For example, "Alexa, ask Sophia to give me a single-use password for the code Temp" where "Temp" is the single use code.

4) The request is redirected to the server handling Sophia skill. It verifies the single use code, disables it so that it cannot be used again, and then provides access to the protected information

Turning now to Figure 6 and the illustrated exemplary embodiment including process 680, process 680 begins at 620 following the beginning of enhanced security at 610. At 620, a single- use identifier (e.g., a single-use skill name) is generated. As mentioned above, the generation of a single-use skill name or identifier may occur in response to a voice command requesting a single- use identifier. Generation may involve, for example, accessing a single-use identifier from a list of available identifiers or by random generation of a name or by a user creating a single-use identifier such as a code or alphanumeric string. To avoid limiting the number of single-use identifiers available when using a list-based approach to generation, the list of single-use identifiers may be created and maintained (e.g., updated, replaced, etc.) by an authorized user such as a system administrator periodically, when necessary, automatically, etc.

After the identifier is generated at 620, at 630 the single-use identifier is provided to a trusted device associated with, or authorized to use, single-use skill names. The single-use identifier may be provided to the trusted device, for example, using operation 280 of Figure 2 where the single-use identifier may be considered to be the secure information. Following receipt of the single-use identifier by the trusted device, the user of the trusted device may give a voice command using the single-use identifier such as in the example above: "Alexa, ask Sophia to setup a guest network". The voice command is received at 640 and evaluated at 650, e.g., by a processor such as processor 120 in Figure 1, to determine whether the command includes a valid single-use identifier. If so, 650 is followed by 660 where any further use of the single-use identifier is blocked. Then, at 670, the secure information requested by the command including the single-use identifier is provided to the trusted device. For example, a guest network may be established by the system and the guest network access information is provided to the trusted device, e.g., using a procedure such as operation 280 in Figure 2. If the evaluation of the voice command at 650 determines that a valid single-use identifier is not included in the voice command then the voice command is processed further at 675.

In accordance with the present principles, another exemplary embodiment of enhanced security may comprise a method such as that shown in Figure 7. In Figure 7, enhanced security begins at 710 in response to a request for secure information and is followed by process 780 indicated in phantom. As is well known to one skilled in the art, a common security feature of many devices, e.g., a mobile phone, tablet, laptop, etc., is the capability to enter a locked mode based on expiration of a time period or a command to lock. The locked mode prevents or disables access or use of the device until an access code such as a PIN (personal identification number) is entered. The present exemplary embodiment of enhanced security in accordance with the present principles incorporates use of a locked mode of a device. Turning now to Figure 7, process 780 which begins at 720 where a trusted device is identified such as by look-up in memory of identification or contact information for a trusted device associated with the requested secure information. At 730, the system sends a lock command to the trusted device using the identification or contact information determined in 720. A lock command as described herein causes the trusted device to enter the above-described locked mode of the device. Following 730, the trusted device is locked and a user must enter a PIN or other access code generally referred to herein as a PIN. At 740, the system processes the PFN entry by the user of the trusted device and the PFN entry is evaluated at 750. If the PFN is correct or valid then at 760 the secure information is provided to the trusted device, e.g., using process 280 of Figure 2. If the PFN is incorrect or invalid then at 770 the request for secure information is ignored. That is, the system does not provide the requested secure information.

Variations of the enhanced security embodiment illustrated in Figure 7 are possible. For example, the particular PFN required for a successful or valid evaluation at 750 may vary. A particular device may have one PFN to enable general or basic access to the device, e.g., to make phone calls. A PFN having a different or more secure value (e.g., more characters) may be required to obtain access to secure information. Various PFNs of various formats may be used for a single device. For example, a first PFN of four characters may be required for access to basic device operations such as making phone calls. A second, different PFN such as a different combination of four characters or a PFN involving more characters may be required for access to secure information such as a local WiFi network password. A third PFN different from the first and second PFNs (e.g., different four-character combination or including more characters) may be required for highly secure information such as bank account access information.

Another variation may involve selective locking in that the trusted device is locked only as to the secure information. For example, complete locking of a trusted device may be undesirable. A user may be performing an important operation or activity on the trusted device and the activity could undesirably be interrupted if the device received a lock command and proceeded to immediately enter a locked mode. An exemplary embodiment in accordance with the present principles for overcoming the described problem may comprise the following operation: 1) The secure information is received and stored by the trusted device, e.g., stored by an application program, but the secure information is not displayed or otherwise immediately accessible.

2) The user is notified that secure information is available, e.g., notification by SMS text message, email, displaying a message on a screen of the trusted device, etc..

3) To access the secure information, the user must enter an access code, e.g., PIN. The access code or PIN may be generated and/or have characteristics as described above.

In effect, (1) above selectively locks the trusted device with respect to accessing the secure information while other functions of the device remain active or available to a user.

One or more of the various embodiments shown and described such as the various embodiments of enhanced security may be combined or used in a variety of combinations to create other embodiments. For example, Figure 8 shows an exemplary embodiment in accordance with the present principles wherein enhanced security includes a plurality of the above-described exemplary embodiments. In Figure 8, enhanced security begins at 810 and is followed by a first security procedure involving evaluation of authentication factors such as operation 480 of Figure 4 as described above. If the evaluation of authentication factors indicates the user of the trusted device is authorized then operation 480 in Figure 8 may be followed by an additional security procedure involving generation, delivery, use and evaluation of a single-use identifier by the trusted device such as operation 680 in Figure 6 as described above. Receipt of a valid single-use identifier may be followed by a further security procedure involving parsing the secure information such as by using operation 580 in Figure 5 as described above. Before delivering the secure portion of the parsed information, a lock command procedure such as 780 of Figure 7 as described above may be used to lock the trusted device and require the user to enter a valid PIN, thereby confirming the user of the trusted device is the authorized user. If the results of all of these security procedures indicated the user is authorized then the secure information is provided via the trusted device at 820 in Figure 8.

When combining operations such as in Figure 8, not all of the operations described above must be included. That is, none, one, two, or more enhanced security features may be included in any combination. Also, the order of the various enhanced security operations may be different than that indicated in Figure 8. For example, the enhanced security features shown in Figure 8 may be reordered such that a first operation may be 780 for locking a trusted device and requiring a user to enter a PIN as described in regard to Figure 7. Also, security features may be included more than once. For example, the operation illustrated in Figure 8 could begin with the locking procedure 780 of Figure 7 and end with the same locking procedure. Various such modifications will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art based on the principles disclosed herein.

Figure 9 illustrates another exemplary embodiment in accordance with the present principles that combines various features described above. In Figure 9, a voice command is received at 910. At 920, the voice command is evaluated to determine whether the voice command includes a valid single-use identifier such as described previously in regard to Figure 6. If the voice command includes a valid single-use identifier then 920 is followed by 930 where any further use of the particular single-use identifier is blocked. Then, 930 is followed by 940 where the secure information associated with the single use identifier is delivered to a trusted device such as by operation 280 in Figure 2. If the evaluation at 920 determines that the voice command does not include a valid single-use identifier then 920 is followed by 950 where further evaluation of the voice command occurs to determine whether the voice command includes a request for secure information. If not, then the voice command is processed at 980 to provide the appropriate response. If 950 determines that the voice command is a request for secure information then 950 is followed by 960 where the system checks to see if enhanced security is enabled or required. If not, 960 is followed by 940 where the requested secure information is delivered such as by operation 280 of Figure 2. If the system determines at 960 that enhanced security is enabled then enhanced security is applied at 970 prior to delivering the requested secure information at 940. Enhanced security as applied at 970 may be implemented in accordance with one or more of the exemplary embodiments described herein.

Although embodiments which incorporate the teachings of the present disclosure have been shown and described in detail herein, those skilled in the art can readily devise modifications and many other varied embodiments in light of the above teachings that still incorporate these teachings. For example, it is to be appreciated that the various features shown and described may be interchangeable, that is a feature shown in one embodiment may be incorporated into another embodiment. It is therefore to be understood that changes may be made in the particular embodiments of the disclosure disclosed which are within the scope of the disclosure as outlined by the appended claims.