Open AccessA secure data backup scheme using multi‐factor authentication
Author(s) -
Liu Yining,
Zhong Qi,
Chang Liang,
Xia Zhe,
He Debiao,
Cheng Chi
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
iet information security
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.308
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1751-8717
pISSN - 1751-8709
DOI - 10.1049/iet-ifs.2016.0103
Subject(s) - backup , computer science , password , key (lock) , authentication (law) , computer security , encryption , scheme (mathematics) , laptop , smart card , computer network , biometric data , biometrics , operating system , mathematical analysis , mathematics
Sensitive data stored in laptops or other mobile devices can easily be lost, stolen, misplaced or corrupted, the remote backup storage technique is used to address these issues; however, the backup server could not be fully trusted, the data should be encrypted in advance. Although the key is more easily protected due to the smaller size compared with the backup data, it is still impossible for ordinary human to remember. A user‐centred design data backup scheme is proposed using multi‐factor authentication. The user firstly selects a symmetrical key and divides it into three shares, then destroys the key. The key can easily be reconstructed by combining the shares stored in the user's smart card and the laptop. Even if the smart card or laptop is lost, the key can still be recovered with the password and biometrics. The proposed scheme not only achieves the required security goals but also is more robust and practical.