Blockchain based wireless access point password management

Abstract

Credentials, such as passwords for wireless access points, are managed and shared using blockchain technology. For instance, a transaction may be generated using information and a set of conditions. A requester user device seeking access to a wireless access point may request the password from the blockchain fabric using a unique identifier for the wireless access point and may satisfy other conditions from the set of conditions which determines access to the password by the requester.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method, comprising:
 receiving, by network equipment comprising a processor, a request for a password for an access point, wherein the request comprises a unique identifier for the access point and a cellular telephone number associated with a user equipment;   determining, by the network equipment, whether the request satisfies a condition from a first transaction stored in a portion of a blockchain for management of passwords for access points, wherein the blockchain comprises a group of blocks, and wherein blocks of the group of blocks comprise respective transactions;   in response to determining that the request satisfies the condition:
 sending, by the network equipment, a response comprising an encrypted version of the password to the user equipment, and 
 storing, by the network equipment, the request and the response in a second transaction in the blockchain. 
   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the encrypted version of the password and the unique identifier are stored in the first transaction. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the encrypted version of the password expires after a pre-determined period of time. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises the cellular telephone number belonging to a particular group based on a digital certificate provided by the user equipment. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises validation of a blockchain smart contract. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises receiving a payment for accessing the access point. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises the cellular telephone number corresponding to an allowed user of the access point. 
     
     
         8 . Network equipment, comprising:
 a processor; and   a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:
 receiving a request for a password for a base station, wherein the request comprises a unique identifier for the base station and a telephone number associated with a user equipment; 
 determining whether the request satisfies a condition defined in a first transaction stored in a portion of a blockchain for management of passwords for base stations, 
   wherein the blockchain comprises a group of blocks, and wherein blocks of the group of blocks comprise respective transactions;
 in response to determining that the request satisfies the condition:
 transmitting a reply comprising an encrypted password for the base station to the user equipment, and 
 storing the request and the reply in a second transaction in the blockchain. 
 
   
     
     
         9 . The network equipment of  claim 8 , wherein the encrypted password is stored in the first transaction along with the unique identifier. 
     
     
         10 . The network equipment of  claim 8 , wherein the encrypted password expires after a determined period of time. 
     
     
         11 . The network equipment of  claim 8 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises the telephone number belonging to a particular group based on a digital certificate corresponding to the user equipment. 
     
     
         12 . The network equipment of  claim 8 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises validation of a blockchain smart contract. 
     
     
         13 . The network equipment of  claim 8 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises receiving a payment to access the base station. 
     
     
         14 . The network equipment of  claim 8 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises the telephone number corresponding to a permitted entity for use of the base station. 
     
     
         15 . A non-transitory machine-readable medium, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, facilitate performance of operations, comprising:
 receiving a request for a password for a wireless access point, wherein the request comprises an identifier corresponding to and identifying the wireless access point and a telephone number associated with a mobile device;   determining whether the request satisfies a condition defined in a first transaction stored in a portion of a blockchain for managing passwords for wireless access points, wherein the blockchain comprises a group of blocks, each block of the group of blocks comprises a respective group of transactions;   in response to determining that the request satisfies the condition:
 transmitting an answer comprising an encrypted password for the wireless access point to the mobile device, and 
 storing the request and the answer in a second transaction in the blockchain. 
   
     
     
         16 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 15 , wherein the password and the identifier are stored in the first transaction. 
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 15 , wherein the encrypted password expires after a specified period of time. 
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 15 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises the telephone number belonging to a specified group based on a digital certificate associated with the mobile device. 
     
     
         19 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 15 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises validation of a blockchain contract. 
     
     
         20 . The non-transitory machine-readable medium of  claim 15 , wherein the condition being satisfied comprises receiving a payment applicable to accessing the wireless access point.