Abstract: An IC card has a card information memory area wherein there are written a master public key nA, card secret keys pU and qU, a card public key nU, a card identification number IDU, and a first master digital signature SA1 for information including the card identification number. An IC card terminal has terminal information memory area wherein there are written a master public key nA, terminal secret keys pT and qT, a terminal public key nT, a terminal identification number IDT, and a second master digital signature SA2 for information including the terminal identification number IDT. When inserted into the IC card terminal, the IC card sends thereto the data nU, IDU, and SA1. The IC card terminal verifies the digital signature SA1 by the master public key nA and, if it is valid, transmits the data nT, IDT and SA2 to the IC card.

Abstract: An IC card has a card information memory area wherein there are written a master public key nA, card secret keys pU and qU, a card public key nU, a card identification number IDU, and a first master digital signature SA1 for information including the card identification number. An IC card terminal has terminal information memory area wherein there are written a master public key nA, terminal secret keys pT and qT, a terminal public key nT, a terminal identification number IDT, and a second master digital signature SA2 for information including the terminal identification number IDT. When inserted into the IC card terminal, the IC card sends thereto the data nU, IDU, and SA1. The IC card terminal verifies the digital signature SA1 by the master public key nA and, if it is valid, transmits the data nT, IDT and SA2 to the IC card.

Abstract: An IC card has a card information memory area wherein there are written a master public key nA, card secret keys pU and qU, a card public key nU, a card identification number IDU, and a first master digital signature SA1 for information including the card identification number. An IC card terminal has terminal information memory area wherein there are written a master public key nA, terminal secret keys pT and qT, a terminal public key nT, a terminal identification number IDT, and a second master digital signature SA2 for information including the terminal identification number IDT. When inserted into the IC card terminal, the IC card sends thereto the data nU, IDU, and SA1. The IC card terminal verifies the digital signature SA1 by the master public key nA and, if it is valid, transmits the data nT, IDT and SA2 to the IC card.

Abstract: In an electronic cash system, K sets of blind signature information are derived from secret information containing identification information of a user, K/2 sets of them are opened and a bank attaches a blind signature to the remaining K/2 sets of information. The user obtains a signed license from the blind signature. The user generates blind signature information from the license and a desired amount of money and gets a blind signature of the bank to the blind signature information and obtains electronic cash signed by the bank from the blind signature. The user presents to a shop a residue power root of a node in a money hierarchial structure and the electronic cash, corresponding to the amount of money to be used, and the shop verifies their validity and, if they are valid, offers inquiry information to the user. The user offers, as response information, a residue power root of the node corresponding to the amount of money to be used to the shop.

Abstract: In an electronic cash implementing method, a user makes a bank apply a blind signature to user information Vi produced, by a one-way function, from secret information Si containing identification information, thereby obtaining signed user information. Further, the user makes the bank apply a blind signature to information containing authentication information Xi produced, by a one-way function, from random information Ri, thereby obtaining signed authentication information. The user uses an information group containing the signed user information, the signed authentication information, the user information and the authentication information, as electronic cash for payment to a shop. The shop verifies the validity of the signed user information and the signed authentication information, and produces and sends to the user an inquiry. In response to the inquiry the user produces a response Yi by using secret information and random information and sends it to the shop.

Abstract: In the case where a prover A proves the validity of a pretender B to a verifier C, B receives an initial response x' created by A, randomizes it with a random component and sends it as x", and randomizes an inquiry .beta. from C with the random component and sends it as .beta.' to A. A proves, for the received randomized inquiry .beta.', the validity of B by a secret key s randomized with a random number r and then sends it as a proved response z to B. B removes the random component from the proved response z and sends it as A's proof to C for verification. B keeps secret the procedures for randomizing the initial response x' and the inquiry, thereby maintaining secret the correlation between A-B interactions (x', .beta.', z) nand B-C interactions (x", .beta., z').

Abstract: On the transmitting side, a signature corresponding to a document to be transmitted is generated using a random number and the document as variables and on the basis of a congruent polynomial of second or higher degree with respect to the random number, secret key information and public key information produced based on the secret key information. The signature and the document are transmitted in digital form. On the receiving side, the congruent polynomial is operated using the received signature and document in place of the random number and the document employed on the transmitting side, and the validity of the received signature and document is verified on the basis of the result of the operation and the public key information.