meshDETECT® is pleased to announce that it has been granted a seventh wireless blockchain patent for managing inmate financial transactions in prison using blockchain technology.

Our thirteenth patent granted, U.S. Patent 12,212,710 is entitled “Systems and Methods For Blockchain Wireless Services In a Controlled Environment.”

The claims in our latest blockchain patent are directed toward a system for regulating transactions in a controlled environment, a method for controlling inmate blockchain transactions comprised of rules enforced by network nodes/validator software, and a system for overseeing transactions between wallet accounts on a blockchain-protected network in a controlled environment.

This invention aims to provide a secure and regulated system for managing inmate financial transactions in prison using blockchain technology, enforcing compliance rules and obligations via smart contracts while allowing for administrative oversight and control within correctional facilities.

This patent describes a systems for regulating blockchain transactions in a controlled environment, such as a correctional facility.

The key components of the invention include:

1. A blockchain-protected network with an administrative node.
2. Electronic wallets associated with parties inside and outside the controlled environment.
3. Smart contracts that enforce rules for transactions.
4. A validator application that executes on the administrative node.

Key features of the invention include:

1. Ability to handle transactions for detainees in controlled environments.
2. Rules for modifying wallet balances and states.
3. Metadata addition to transactions for tracking and reporting.
4. Administrative override capabilities.
5. Automatic direction of funds for various obligations (e.g., fees due, restitution, debt payment, spousal support, savings accounts, and child support).

The system also includes a method for controlling inmate blockchain transactions:

1. Receiving and inserting smart contracts into the network.
2. Executing rules associated with each smart contract.
3. Validating compliant transactions and rejecting non-compliant ones

Our six previous blockchain patents can be found at US10,694,032, US10,855,838, US11,140,263, US11,425,244, US11,689,658, US12,212,710 and US11,956,383.

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meshDETECT® is pleased to announce that it has been granted a fourth wireless blockchain patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for U.S. Patent 11,425,244 entitled “Systems and Methods For Blockchain Wireless Services In a Controlled Environment.” This is our ninth patent granted overall.

The claims in this latest patent are directed toward:

Prison facility managed custodial, hosted, and DEX based blockchain wallets, which can use sub-wallets and custom tokens for unique services such as commissary, voice and video communications, physical and digital assets, and access to specific applications.

Deploying various address formats in a blockchain network wherein the different address formats have different permissions with the intent of preventing inmate wireless communication devices associated with certain types of address formats from creating transactions with recipients with one of the same and a different type of address in directional transactions, as well as validating certain transactions and having certain transactions created considered valid.

Providing decentralized applications to enable payment for calls, commissary purchases and rentals, and media access via a smart contract that verifies permissions to engage in the calls, commissary purchases and rentals, and media access.

This latest patent protects the intellectual property necessary to enhance inmate wallet functionality, improve transaction security, and expand services rental and payment functionality via smart contracts, dAPPs and custom tokens.

Our previous three blockchain patents can be found at US10,694,032, US10,855,838, and US11,140,263.

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meshDETECT® is pleased to announce that it has recently received a notice of allowance for our third wireless blockchain patent from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for U.S. Patent Application Number 16/953,676 entitled “Systems and Methods For Blockchain Wireless Services In a Controlled Environment.”

A notice of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office is a written notification that a patent application has cleared internal review and is pending issuance.

The claims in this latest patent are directed toward:

• Implementing and managing an inmate-specific smart contract containing granted permissions and rights. The smart contract describes the granted permissions and rights of the inmate and metadata associated with the inmate and the smart contract is used to monitor, track, and record permission usage by the inmate as well as inmate transactions via the blockchain network.
• A system for inmate metadata analysis and the creation of an inmate-specific contract in a blockchain network to monitor, manage and reward the behavior of an inmate. Based on inmate behavior, permissions and rights of the inmate are enhanced or removed via the inmate-specific smart contract.
• Use of the blockchain for inmate management including certification and electronic verification of forms, records, and data requiring action by an inmate. The inmate-specific smart contract is updated in response to completion and verification of the updated forms, records and data.
• A system for providing commissary and virtual asset access privileges to inmates via use of an access token as payment for or as proof of a right by the inmate to consume, view, and listen to physical assets and virtual assets. These virtual assets can be an eBook, an audio file, a software application, a video file, and voice and video call usage minutes.
• A means for inmates to use shared mobile devices to access the blockchain, including the access to individual wallets containing the inmate’s tokens and the inmate-specific smart contract.

Our first two blockchain patents tied together the previously discreet domains of prison commissary providers, correctional banking systems, and the inmate communications services providers.

This latest patent protects the intellectual property necessary to leverage distributed ledger technology to now integrate jail management systems (JMS) data and functionality across these three domains via a shared and common blockchain combined with inmate-specific smart contracts.

Update (10/5/21): The patent (US11,140,263) was issued today by the United States Patent Office. You can view the patent here: Eighth meshDETECT patent

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Here is the latest summary of recent news articles regarding contraband cell phones in prisons around the world. I call these periodic round up of news items, “Wireless Prison Payphone™ Briefs” because this is essentially what smuggled mobile phones in jails have become – a substitute for the current wall mounted prison payphones.

Two years ago, we explored some of the news regarding wireless prison tablet devices; which highlighted how prison payphones were being replaced by a secure wireless device with cell phone capabilities that will reduce the demand for contraband cell phones. These articles demonstrated the fact that regardless of whether the device takes the form factor of a tablet or a cell phone, wireless voice capabilities will be the key service offering in reducing contraband and recidivism.

We thought it might be worthwhile to once again survey the recent news on this wireless technology deployment trend in prisons and jails.

• Inmates are entitled to phone privileges. There are 100 phones in the jail, about six for each cluster of cells known as a pod. Each pod can hold 64 inmates and has six phones — and they don’t always work. In May, all phones in one pod failed for five days. You can see why there would be disputes among inmates trying to make phone calls. Instead of standing in line waiting for a phone and then paying handsomely for the privilege, inmates will have their own tablets to use to make calls. (Source)

• Phone calls on mobile devices make sense. Allowing people to make phone calls from their tablet is basically a good thing. Instead of using a shared phone in a public area (probably with other people waiting in line), callers can now talk in more private locations. (Source)

• The Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) has recently released a plan aimed to lessen the cost of inmates calling loved ones while behind bars, simultaneously increasing access to educational tools for incarcerated individuals. The tablets would also function as telephones. According to WYVY-TV, the plan will be included as part of the inmate telephone contract that will be sent out at the end of the year. (Source)

• All South Dakota DOC inmates who want a tablet now have a tablet. Inmates get longer phone calls with family and easy access to prison documents. (Source)

• According to Captain Stewart, since the inmates have been using the tablet there’s been a drastic decrease in inmate problems. “Our suicide attempts are down 66%, our successful suicides are down 100%, our inmate on staff assaults are down 60%, our inmate on inmate assaults are down” (Source)

• Amanda Michika, who also works for the Pima County Sheriff’s Department noted how the tablets have proven to reduce suicidal ideations and decrease the number of fights, including inmate-on-staff altercations. “All of the inmates that we have here are pre-sentenced inmates. They haven’t been convicted of any crime. We afford them the opportunity to have the same rights they would have outside when it comes to electronics,” Michika said. As Harms put it, the tablets provide an escape, whether its downloading music, reading books or chatting with family. “With over 200 men in one pod, there’s a lot of tension, a lot of testosterone. It means I can receive pictures from my loved ones and talk to my loved ones whenever I want,” Harms said. (Source)

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meshDETECT® is pleased to announce that it has recently received a notice of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for U.S. Patent Application Number 13/931,850, which is a continuation of our first patent entitled “System and method for controlling, monitoring and recording of wireless telecommunications services in penal institutions.” A notice of allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office is a written notification that a patent application has cleared internal review and is pending issuance.

This patent will expand our Secure Prison Cell Phone Solutions™ intellectual property coverage and enhances our position as an innovator in the prison mobile device space. The claims in this patent are directed toward an application on a personal communications device, such as a tablet or cell phone, in the possession of an inmate that controls, monitors, and records voice phone calls. It also covers important security features to insure the device is authentic and is not tampered with or compromised.

Brian Byrne, Managing Partner of meshIP, LLC commented, “A strong intellectual property position has always been a fundamental objective of the company and we are pleased by the Notice of Allowance for this patent application, which will further enhance meshDETECT’s patent portfolio around prison mobile device solutions. Many of our competitors have announced similar solutions subsequent to the issuance of our first patent (US Patent Number 8,478,234), but we believe we are the only inmate communications services company with the specific intellectual property protecting our innovative prison mobile device solutions. We will continue to build on and leverage this strategic advantage.”

Update (2/23/16): The patent (US9,271,145) was issued today by the United States Patent Office. You can view the patent here: Second meshDETECT patent.

Update: meshDETECT was awarded its third patent on 10/17/17.

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Here is the latest summary of recent news articles regarding contraband cell phones in prisons around the world. I call these periodic round up of news items, “Wireless Prison Payphone™ Briefs” because this is essentially what smuggled mobile phones in jails have become – a substitute for the current wall mounted prison payphones.

In this edition, we explore some of the recent news regarding prison tablet devices and how they highlight what we have been promoting for some time now – prison payphones will be replaced by a secure prison device with cell phone capabilities that will reduce the demand for contraband cell phones. Regardless of whether the device takes the form factor of a tablet or a cell phone, wireless voice capabilities will be the key service offering in reducing contraband and recidivism.

• A spokesperson for the correctional technology company GTL, says some jails and prisons are even replacing wall phones with secure tablets that inmates can use not only to make calls, but also for education, entertainment and scheduling. “This is a trend that has only just begun to take shape,” he says. (Source)

• “This is what’s going to replace phones eventually,” the JPay founder told Yahoo Tech. “There are going to be major changes within the prison system environment because of this technology.” (Source)

• Securus Technologies announced today that distribution of its SecureView inmate tablet will top 2,000 units. “Through our initial tablet program, inmates overwhelmingly enjoy the privacy the tablet gives them for phone calls along with the games, music, and access to information such as Law Library and JobView,” (Source)

• “We believe that the Inspire devices are the future of inmate communications, education and entertainment,” said GTL’s chief marketing officer. “They improve a facility’s operational efficiencies by reducing costs and conflicts over access to phones, and have nearly limitless educational possibilities.” The company has already launched its wireless tablet technology in correctional facilities. Alameda County, Calif. currently operates one of the largest deployments of correctional wireless tablet technology in the country, according to GTL, and allows inmates to place calls of up to four hours in length directly from their jail cell. This ability to maintain communication and connection with friends and family has been linked to a reduction in recidivism. (Source)

• Companies with their exclusive focus on education and rehabilitation, are relying on economies of scale and the power of disruption to make a profit while bringing down the cost of technology and communication services. At scale, tablets can be provided at very low cost to facilities. Inmates pay no fees for the content. And there’s no technical barrier to someday replacing expensive telephone calls with much cheaper tablet-based broadband phone service. (Source)

• “At this juncture, we are not persuaded that Wi-Fi is an acceptably secure solution,” said the CEO of America Prison Data Systems in New York City, which helped San Francisco roll out 200 tablet computers at its jail last October. “That time may come down the road, but for now we know Wi-Fi is less secure.” (Source)

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With Global Tel*Link all but announcing at the recent Corrections Technology Association Annual Meeting its intention to offer mobile services in prisons, now may be the time to consider the best technology architecture for such deployments for those prison administrators who see the potential benefits of a secure prison cell phone solution.

There are essentially two ways to provision wireless personal communication devices, such as prisoner tablets, in a prison environment. In its presentation, Global Tel*Link stated that it has chosen to deploy service using WiFi to provide wireless connectivity. We think there are some significant operational challenges and, more importantly, serious security risks in this approach.

Security Risks

There are two main security risks, as highlighted by the recent news articles below. The first is the potential for intentional hacking of the system, either internally by tech savvy prisoners, or externally by those determined to defeat the WiFi security controls in order to gain or grant unfettered access to Global Tel*Link services, connected prison systems (commissary and trust accounts, etc.) or the unfiltered internet. A very real challenge with the decision to deploy a prison WiFi network is external hackers “wardriving” the system from outside the prison facility in order to accomplish this.

The second risk is the unintentional granting of access to the internet due to incompetence, human error and service misconfiguration.

In either case, the deployment of a local access wireless network via WiFi means that a single security breach, password hack or incompetent admin may result in unsecured and unmonitored access to internal prison systems and the outside world for all devices on the network.

In contrast, meshDETECT uses the traditional telco mobile network to provide secure voice and media services. Any breach, should it occur, is limited to a single device. If a device is hacked, a risk Global Tel*Link will also have to manage, one detainee may benefit; but no one can hack AT&T, Verizon, etc. in such a way to give all the meshDETECT mobile devices deployed in a prison unfettered access to the internet, or unmonitored calls to harass outside parties and plan crimes.

Technology choices in the deployment of a secure prison mobile access network service must focus on security, not profitability.

Operational Challenges

Now lets look at the operational challenges associated with deploying WiFi within a prison facility:

• Low powered – hand held devices maximum output is normally 0.4 Watt.

• Signal can suffer interference from other devices such as two way radios used by staff.

• Best when there is line of sight between transponders.

• Does not penetrate solid mass – concrete, brick, metal – the less porous the material the shorter the range and the slower the speed. Prison construction is high density blocks and cell doors are often clad in metal with metal surrounds.

• Tinted / reflective glass contains metal fragments resulting in drop in signal strength.

• Security fencing can act as a Faraday cage and ground the signal.

It is clear that achieving adequate WiFi signal coverage and application data throughput at a reasonable cost of installation is a challenge in this unique environment. Ongoing equipment maintenance expense as well as repair cost due to vandalism must also be considered when looking at the total cost of this approach.

In contrast, as evidenced by the high number of contraband devices and continued use of smuggled cell phones in jails and prisons globally, cellular signal strength and coverage is typically more than adequate, with no onsite equipment required. Additionally, 4G LTE (and soon 5G) cellular may be much faster than a WiFi network with an undersized or overburdened connection to the Internet (designed for coverage versus designed for capacity).

Real World Examples

Securus Finally Admits The Risks Of WiFi Deployment In Prisons

With the recent launch of Securus Technologies’ new inmate tablets utilizing a nationwide cellular network, their press release confirms our analysis and assertions regarding the operational inadequacy and security risks  of deploying WiFi in prisons detailed above. This blog post was written eleven years ago on June 6, 2013.

From the press release:

“Because of the complex implementation requirements in corrections settings, deploying tablet technology can take months, quarters, even years to fully implement, but the infrastructure with our new tablet technology allows for quicker and cost-effective deployment”

“Currently, tablets rely on a complex, on-site setup to connect to cloud-based services, which is costly and time-consuming. EVOTAB and Officer T80 tablets directly connect to a cloud platform using a secure cellular network, which is faster, more secure, and less hardware intensive.”

Source

Mich. DOC updates policy after inmates rig tablets to conduct ‘criminal’ activity

Overall, since October 2024, the Department of Corrections has found that about 5% of the 24,000 JPay tablets, or about 1,200, were compromised after inmates enabled Wi-Fi on the devices, had them in an unauthorized unit or had unauthorized apps.

“(Inmates are) watching movies. They’re watching pornography. They’re communicating with family and or gang members outside the prison system,” Osborn told The Detroit News. “With these tablets in this jailbroke status, they can do whatever the hell they want.”

The Department of Corrections works to find and remove compromised tablets and identify contraband, such as Wi-Fi sticks, used to rig them for internet access.

Source

New Wi-Fi Takeover Attack—All Windows Users Warned To Update Now

Microsoft has confirmed a new and quite alarming Wi-Fi vulnerability in Windows, which has been rated 8.8 out of 10 in terms of severity using the Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vulnerability, assigned as CVE-2024-30078, does not require an attacker to have physical access to the targeted computer, although physical proximity is needed. Exploiting this vulnerability can allow an unauthenticated attacker to gain remote code execution on the impacted device. What’s perhaps most concerning, though, is that this Wi-Fi driver security flaw affects all supported versions of the Windows operating system.

Source

WiFi vulnerability may leave millions of devices open to ‘frag attacks’

A security researcher known for pointing out faults in WiFi security has discovered another vulnerability. The newly unearthed flaws, known as “frag attacks,” are believed to be widespread as they stem from the WiFi standard, with some bugs dating back to 1997. While several additional vulnerabilities are caused by programming mistakes in WiFi products and affect every WiFi device, Belgian security researcher Mathy Vanhoef wrote on his blog.

Theoretically, if exploited, the vulnerabilities would allow an attacker within radio range to steal user information or attack devices. But, the chances of the flaws being abused should be low as the attacks require user interaction or uncommon network settings.

Breaking down how they work, Vanhoef explained that several of the flaws can be abused to “easily inject” plaintext frames into a protected Wi-Fi network,” along with certain devices accepting “plaintext aggregated frames that look like handshake messages.” This can be used to intercept traffic by tricking the victim into using a malicious DNS server, the researcher noted. In experiments, Vanhoef found that two out of four tested home routers were affected by this vulnerability, along with several IoT devices and some smartphones.

Other vulnerabilities are linked to the process by which the WiFi standard breaks and then reassembles network packets, allowing an attacker to siphon data by injecting their own malicious code during this operation.

Source

A Flaw in Billions of Wi-Fi Chips Let Attackers Decrypt Data

Billions of devices—many of them already patched—are affected by a Wi-Fi vulnerability that allows nearby attackers to decrypt sensitive data sent over the air, researchers said on Wednesday at the RSA security conference. Affected devices include iPhones, iPads, Macs, Amazon Echos and Kindles, Android devices, and various Wi-Fi routers.

The vulnerability exists in Wi-Fi chips made by Cypress Semiconductor and Broadcom, the latter a chipmaker Cypress acquired in 2016. The affected devices include iPhones, iPads, Macs, Amazon Echos and Kindles, Android devices, and Wi-Fi routers from Asus and Huawei, as well as the Raspberry Pi 3. Eset, the security company that discovered the vulnerability, said the flaw primarily affects Cypress’ and Broadcom’s FullMAC WLAN chips, which are used in billions of devices. Eset has named the vulnerability Kr00k, and it is tracked as CVE-2019-15126.

Manufacturers have made patches available for most or all of the affected devices, but it’s not clear how many devices have installed the patches. Of greatest concern are vulnerable wireless routers, which often go unpatched indefinitely.

Source

Serious flaws leave WPA3 vulnerable to hacks that steal Wi-Fi passwords

The next-generation Wi-Fi Protected Access protocol released 15 months ago was once hailed by key architects as resistant to most types of password-theft attacks that threatened its predecessors. On Wednesday, researchers disclosed several serious design flaws in WPA3 that shattered that myth and raised troubling new questions about the future of wireless security, particularly among low-cost Internet-of-things devices.

Every Wi-Fi network at risk of unprecedented ‘Krack’ hacking attack

Every Wi-Fi connection is potentially vulnerable to an unprecedented security flaw that allows hackers to snoop on internet traffic, researchers have revealed.

The vulnerability is the first to be found in the modern encryption techniques that have been used to secure Wi-Fi networks for the last 14 years.

In theory, it allows an attacker within range of a Wi-Fi network to inject computer viruses into internet networks, and read communications like passwords, credit card numbers and photos sent over the internet.

The so-called “Krack” attack has been described as a “fundamental flaw” in wireless security techniques by experts. Apple, Android and Windows software are all susceptible to some version of the vulnerability, which is not fixed by changing Wi-Fi passwords.

“It seems to affect all Wi-Fi networks, it’s a fundamental flaw in the underlying protocol, even if you’ve done everything right [your security] is broken,” said Alan Woodward of the University of Surrey’s Centre for Cyber Security.

Source

Wi-Fi software security bug could leave Android, Windows, Linux open to attack

In an e-mail today to the Open Source Software Security (oss-security) mailing list, the maintainer of wireless network client code used by Android, the Linux and BSD Unix operating systems, and Windows Wi-Fi device drivers sent an urgent fix to a flaw that could allow attackers to crash devices or even potentially inject malicious software into their memory. The flaw could allow these sorts of attacks via a malicious wireless peer-to-peer network name.

The end result is that an attacker could corrupt information in memory, causing wpa_supplicant and Wi-Fi service to crash; a crafted SSID could essentially be used as a denial-of-service attack on affected devices simply by sending out responses to Wi-Fi probe requests or P2P network Public Action messages. But it could also expose memory contents during the three-way handshake of a peer-to-peer network negotiation (the GO negotiation) or potentially allow for the attacker to execute code on the target.

Source

Military Cuts Guantanamo Bay WiFi After Alleged Threat by Anonymous

The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is losing all access to wireless internet and social networks due to hacking threats.

U.S. military officials have blocked access to wireless internet and social networks like Facebook and Twitter at Guantanamo Bay because it fears that international hacking group Anonymous will launch an attack to disrupt services at the naval base.

Anonymous launched a global online protest to mark the 100th day of the hunger strike by Guantanamo Bay prisoners. The detainees have been protesting their living conditions and indefinite detention at the base.

The U.S. military said it has been receiving online hacking threats amid the hunger strike, which were allegedly from Anonymous.

Source

Prisoners Accessed Internet Through Faulty Computer Kiosks

Prisoners in privately run Mt Eden Corrections Facility were able to access the internet through faulty computer kiosks a security review of public sector computer systems has found.

The security breach was one of 12 “weak points” identified in Government Chief Information Officer Colin McDonald’s review of the security of 215 publicly accessible state sector agency IT systems released this morning.

Serco, the company which operates Mt Eden said that on November 26 last year, “an administrative error made it possible to open a web browser session” on kiosks provided to prisoners to allow them to “take responsibility for organizing their day-to-day lives and helps to develop literacy and numeracy skills”.

Serco’s Director of Operations Scott McNairn said the error “allowed for limited access to the internet, policed by a web filter which blocked access to inappropriate sites”.

“No email, social media or adult sites were accessed.”

The internet access was “limited” and “at no time was it possible to access any other systems or information”.

Serco has not said how long prisoners were able to access the internet for.

Mr McNairn said the company had improved security for the kiosks and was “confident” that the likelihood of further problems was “extremely low”.

Source

Jailed Hacker Hacks Prison Network

It’s almost comical, but an incarcerated hacker has hacked into his prison’s computer network.

According to Naked Security (Sophos), Nicholas Webber, who operated the GhostMarket.Net cybercrime website, signed-up for the prison’s IT class. Webber, who was 18 at the time of his arrest for bank frauds and identity theft scams, apparently go onto the network but was unable to access personal information files.

The prison issued a statement to the Register: “At the time of this incident in 2011 the educational computer system at HMP Isis was a closed network. No access to personal information or wider access to the internet or other prison systems would have been possible.”

The incident, which occurred in 2011, only came to light because of a wrongful termination suit by the instructor leading the class.

Source

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