Abstract: A funding method and apparatus between a monetary account holder and a remote cash provider allows the cash provider to fulfill the request for funding received from the account holder through ordinary electronic communication means by redeeming a load voucher against cash into the account of the requester, without the need for the account holder to share any identification of his/her account with the cash provider and without the cash provider having to share any identification of the load voucher with the account holder. The account holder initiates a request for funding by logging into his/her online monetary account and by providing the email address and/or phone number of the solicited cash provider. The cash provider receives a funding request message including either a printable or displayable cash load voucher, or including a link to a data entry form where he/she will be able to input the identifier of a load voucher obtained locally from a distributor of vouchers of the background art.

Abstract: A card payment system includes a purchases assistance system linking online merchants of goods or services, including digital goods, with the operator of the card issuance system. Merchants can use the purchases assistance system to seek help from the Issuer for resolving disputes related to purchases of digital goods of which the provisioning may have failed, to trade better commercial terms from the Issuer in exchange for providing details of products purchased by cardholders, to verify the balance of debit cards and request a reservation of funds from the Issuer to lower their financial risks prior to certain types of transactions, or to signal to the Issuer special loyalty rewards associated with specific purchases.

Abstract: A transaction system suitable for payment by card includes a child account associated with a parent account. The transaction system receives from the parent a data set representing rules which specify on which purchases the child will benefit from an incentive such as discount, coupon, rebate or gift. Upon a purchase transaction with the child card, the system detects an eligible purchase by producing a result data set from the rules data entered by the parent and the particulars of the purchase transaction, where the result data represents the appropriate incentive granted, if any, and directs the system to charge the incentive cost to the parent account.

Abstract: A card payment system includes a purchases assistance system linking online merchants of goods or services, including digital goods, with the operator of the card issuance system. Merchants can use the purchases assistance system to seek help from the Issuer for resolving disputes related to purchases of digital goods of which the provisioning may have failed, to trade better commercial terms from the Issuer in exchange for providing details of products purchased by cardholders, to verify the balance of debit cards and request a reservation of funds from the Issuer to lower their financial risks prior to certain types of transactions, or to signal to the Issuer special loyalty rewards associated with specific purchases.

Abstract: An authentication system and method between an online service provider accessible via public data networks and end users is provided that has an enrollment system allowing end users to define one or several personal sequences of audio or video content, which the online service provider will stream back selectively to the end users during subsequent access by the end users to the online service provider.

Abstract: A transaction system suitable for payment by card includes a child account associated with a parent account. The transaction system receives from the parent a data set representing rules which specify on which purchases the child will benefit from an incentive such as discount, coupon, rebate or gift. Upon a purchase transaction with the child card, the system detects an eligible purchase by producing a result data set from the rules data entered by the parent and the particulars of the purchase transaction, where the result data represents the appropriate incentive granted, if any, and directs the system to charge the incentive cost to the parent account.

Abstract: The invention relates to exchangeable memory or PC-cards with several integrated circuits for personal computers. These PC-cards are used as a large capacity mass memory for replacing floppy disks and other exchangeable magnetic supports. To protect the content of these PC-cards against unauthorized use, the invention proposes the incorporation into the card (CC) of a specific security integrated circuit chip (MPS), which performs a clearance function for access to the memory chips (MEM). A microcontroller (MPC) also placed in the card communicates with the computer and with the security circuit. It makes the security chip validate a confidential code introduced from the computer, while also supplying memory chip control signals as a function of the validation result.

Abstract: A system for loading an applet and its associated use rights into a smart card having other applets with associated use rights with values that change as the application is used is provided that stores, remotely from said smart card, an applet and use rights with a predetermined initial value, associated with the applet, and has a smart card having a processing unit, and a memory unit, the memory unit being connected to the processing unit and storing a second application having use rights. The smart card may be connected to said remote storage means, and the application, having use rights with a predetermined value, may be loaded from said remote storage means into said smart card.

Abstract: The invention relates to exchangeable memory or PC-cards with several integrated circuits for personal computers. These PC-cards are used as a large capacity mass memory for replacing floppy disks and other exchangeable magnetic supports. To protect the content of these PC-cards against unauthorized use, the invention proposes the incorporation into the card (CC) of a specific security integrated circuit chip (MPS), which performs a clearance function for access to the memory chips (MEM). A microcontroller (MPC) also placed in the card comnunicates with the computer and with the security circuit. It makes the security chip validate a confidential code introduced from the computer, whilst also supplying memory chip control signals as a function of the validation result.

Abstract: A secured system of remote participation in interactive games with verification of the chronology of events relies on the counting, by a secured microprocessor (for example a microcircuit card), of consecutive periods of time of which the first one (Tr12) is initialized by a cryptographically secured message sent by the transmitter and the last one (Tr25) is ended by a connection of the games machine to the central computer of the transmitter for the forwarding thereto of the answer.

Abstract: Methods enabling the use of an office printer connected to a microcomputer in order to print legitimate postal marks. It uses a cartridge of special fonts in which there are stored the franking marks according to the standards laid down for the printer. A known security component is provided, on the one hand to protect access to the memory contained in the cartridge and, on the other hand, to perform the computation, for each printing of a franking mark, of a security mark that contains encrypted information elements that are readable by the postal authority, enabling the franking mark to be authenticated. It provides for the elimination of specific franking machines and limits the handling operations to the handling of a small-sized cartridge.

Abstract: An interface is made for a device for the exploitation of electrical signals between a receiver of this device and a device for the exploitation of these signals. The interface is capable of sending, alternatively, signals received by the receiver to an external circuit and signals delivered by the external circuit to the exploitation circuit. It is shown that this approach can be used to resolve problems of the scrambling and unscrambling of audio-visual signals.

Abstract: An interface is made for a device for the exploitation of electrical signals between a receiver of this device and a device for the exploitation of these signals. The interface is capable of sending, alternatively, signals received by the receiver to an external circuit and signals delivered by the external circuit to the exploitation circuit. It is shown that this approach can be used to resolve problems of the scrambling and unscrambling of audio-visual signals.

Abstract: The invention concerns interface circuits for chip card readers. It consists of providing link connections between this circuit and the reader, these connections being identical to those established between the circuit and the chip card. An internal switch (102) in the circuit is used to link these connections together, or to a control register (101), which is internal to the circuit, and actuated by an additional control connection. With the invention, it is possible to limit the number of connections between the circuit and the reader and to control the circuit with a software interface which is identical to the control interface of a chip card.