DE19620611A1 - Facsimile transmission method especially for legal documents - Google Patents

Abstract

The method involves integrating parameters in the facsimile process via radio link or telephone line. The parameters are independent and cannot be influenced by the persons who take part in the facsimile process. The parameters are preferably a signal of a radio clock transmitter (Fig.5) including the date and time and is assigned to a continuously changing code using random selection or a program. The coding is traceable by e.g. identifying the radio clock time. Preferably, the local radio clock transmitter radiates the coding and stores the time-varying coding and the verification service.

Description

There is considerable legal uncertainty in courts when documents are sent by fax or PC modem were transmitted, should play a role of evidence in legal disputes.

Dr. Klaus Jürgen Melullis, judge at the Federal Court of Justice, sees the situation as follows: You can trust neither the content nor the sender. This is the remote copy for the completely unsuitable for business transactions.

The manipulation options range from transferring a blank page to fake ones Sender IDs and transmission times up to parallel connections of fax and PC modem.

Before the judge, therefore, the facsimile copy hardly has any legal status.

This blatant lack of evidence is discrediting a communication medium that comes from offices, Practices, courts and authorities can hardly be imagined.

More than 7 million fax pages per hour are sent in Germany with the help of faxing sent.

According to industry estimates, there are between four in German offices, companies and private households and five million fax machines in use.

Many companies handle almost all correspondence, from the estimate to the Order confirmation up to the final settlement by fax.

If you do not take the truth so precisely, you can contact the correspondent at judicial Bringing disputes into a hopeless need for evidence.

Therefore, it is not surprising if the outcome of more and more legal proceedings does not go to the sufficient legal binding fax correspondence remains.

In order to complicate fraudulent activities, the relevant industry now has a new one Fax standard "DTS" developed. At the. "DTS" confirms the transmission report in addition to the date, time, Fax number and page number also the technically perfect reception.

Without a doubt, the "DTS" complicates a variety of manipulation options, but there is still enough scope for counterfeiting, so that the new fax standard also in courts, evidence of the correctness of a document can hardly be derived. Therefore The remote copy remains completely unsuitable for commercial traffic.

information

- Dr. Klaus Jürgen Mellulis, judge at the Federal Court of Justice (BGH)

• - Dr. Martin Notthoff, Hanover - Co-author of a current analysis on the topic Fax and procedural law.
• - Oberlandesgericht (OLG) Munich - Case number: 7 U 5553/92 - "Proof of receipt by fax cannot be provided by proof of the sender".
• - Bundesgerichtshof Karlsruhe BGH - VIII Z R 153/93 - The flawless transmission report with Sender and recipient identification, date, time and "ok" is not even considered an indication for the fact that the documents were sent at all.
• - Dr. Siegfried H. Streitz, IT expert in Brühl and co-founder of the working group IT and law e.V. . "The supposedly reliable transmission protocols are extremely easy to do wrong ". The spectrum ranges from the transmission of a blank page via manipulated senders  identifiers and broadcast times. Professional counterfeiters can by parallel connection of fax and PC modem to create all conceivable protocols and journals.
• - Helmut Mahr, security manager at Rank Xerox and chair of the working group Fax at the Association of German Machine and Plant Manufacturers (VDMA): "Confirmed by DTS the delivery report, in addition to the date, time, fax number and number of pages, also the technical perfect reception ".
• - Peter Waldleitner, editor-in-chief of the telecommunications trade magazine "connect": one hundred percent security when sending documents will also only be available on the Give postal routes - to the bailiff.

solutions

The basic requirement to exclude the possibility of manipulation is a more independent of the people involved in the fax and fax machines and thereby parameters that cannot be influenced and are integrated into the transmission process, the temporal presence of which in the constellation with the date and time when the document was transmitted can be demonstrated.

This parameter would be through the use of real time (radio clock time), supplemented with a realizing simultaneously assigned numbers and / or letter code. From public or private radio time transmitter as well as online or over the telephone line the code will be fed into the fax transmission process.

The parameter is about the exact representation of the non-manipulable real time, the on the other hand in a basic context of a simultaneous parallel, constantly changing and not to be influenced coding.

The absolutely simultaneous transmission of the constantly changing code, the z. B. with the help of a Random selection or a suitable program from a combination of letters and numbers can be created and printed on the document when the fax is sent, must be in the can be traced afterwards.

The non-manipulability of the radio time enables with the z. B. every second or shorter changing simultaneous coding the exact temporal course of the transmission process. If the date and time are specified at the fax exchange (code sender), the code that was relevant at the time can be queried.

So that the relevant code can be requested when a request is made, the Coding can be saved over a longer period of time. To limit the amount of data hold, it makes sense to repeat the randomly determined code at intervals. The Repetition of the code sequence must then, however, be influenced by an uncontrollable time shift respectively. By saving the move mode, the program can then significant codes can be assigned to a specific point in time without the Storage is a major capacitive problem for years.

It is about the absolute and unmanipulbar and thus legally valid proof that the document was dispatched to the second by a specific fax machine. However, this requires the exact date, real time and code in the document to accommodate.  

Since each time unit z. B. every second with its own and therefore different Code is provided, which is printed on the document at a suitable location, z. B. at a legal dispute can be requested from the code sender by specifying the specific time, which digits or numbers / letter combination was also sent during this time. By comparing the code with that of the correspondent in the unmanipulated The coding of both fax documents is identical.

When comparing non-identical document codes with that of the fax broker, that would be manipulated document can be exposed immediately.

Embodiment I (see drawing I)

In order to completely rule out the possibility of manipulation in telecopying, the addition of the Codes outside the sphere of influence of the communicating fax facilities, preferably at an independent fax broker far away.

The transmission procedure would be as follows:

• 1. The text is uncoded with the input device Fig. 4 position ( 1 ) in the RAM memory ( 2 ).
• 2. The connection to the fax machine II Fig. 3 and the own output device Fig. 4 ( 3 ) is established.
• 3. When the line is stopped, the document is simultaneously sent from the RAM memory Fig. 4 ( 2 ) to the fax machine II Fig. 3 and to the own output device Fig. 4 ( 3 ). The transmission from the fax switching service Fig. 2 is provided in parallel with the time coding, which must be the same on both fax documents in the unmanipulated state. It is fundamentally not possible to produce different text with the same coding.
• 4. The real time provided with the coding Fig. 5 is stored at the fax switching service Fig. 2 ( 4 ).
• 5. In the event of a legal dispute, the fax broker or Code sender the time-relevant code are questioned.

Embodiment 2 (see drawing I)

In order to avoid the detour of your own text via the fax switching service Fig. 2 back to your own output device Fig. 4 ( 3 ), a device-internal text return ( 5 ) would be a conceivable option. Here, however, the real time should be compared with an internal radio time receiver Fig. 4 ( 6 ).

If e.g. B. the first and the last transmission signal each by a co-transmitted code the document is fixed, the identity of the codes should also the document content of Sender and recipient must be identical. Claims of other fax content could be based on this Way to be refuted with the highest degree of probability.

Embodiment 3 (see drawing II Fig. 8)

When using commercially available devices, the relevant code can be sent back to the fax recipient ( 8 ) and the sender ( 7 ) and fixed in the document, even when the line is stationary and at the first transmission pulse.

An additional safeguard would be the possibility to retrieve the fax document from the sender can.

Embodiment 4 (see drawing II)

If only commercially available fax machines without a polling option while securing the text content to be used, it is necessary to use several codes in conjunction with the To be fixed in real time during the immediate transmission process in the document.

Since the transmission speed depends on the document content, each line requires and each section of text a certain time, which is significant in relation to real time Code can be assigned.

Since manipulations are particularly conceivable in the RAM memory Fig. 6, this can be made more difficult if not only the coding is also printed out at the beginning and at the immediate end of the document text, but if the respective code number also at text-typical locations or even behind each line on Line margin is printed out sh. Fig. 7.

However, in order not to have to print out an excessive number of code digits when many codes are included in the security process, considering the input time in the RAM memory Fig. 6 it would be conceivable to use a key coding Fig. 7 ( 9 ), which consists of the sum of all codes ( 10 ) is calculated using a mathematical key. A different code in the control column ( 10 ) would result in a different key sum ( 9 ). The visible printout of this key sum at the immediate end of the document text and the sending as a visible printout at the fax recipient offers relative security.

In order that there is sufficient time for the coding of the text, it would make sense to use a sufficiently large buffer memory Fig. 6 before transmission, which is then slowly filled with the coded text lines. The actual transmission can then take place very quickly. The prerequisite here, however, is that the time of the first transmission pulse at the sender or receiver is included in the key sum.

A manipulation would result in a different timing for data entry and thus different codes, i.e. no longer identical key sums of the respective send and Receive document.  

The key code can be confirmed or confirmed by asking the sender stating the time data just not be confirmed.

Combinations or partial combinations of the aforementioned are of course also possible Embodiments 1 to 4 are conceivable and should be examined accordingly.

Fax switching service

The sending of the real time with the code and the subsequent confirmation service at corresponding request can, for. B. as a service of existing private radio or Telephone services are taken over.

This fax brokerage service could be subject to a fee analogous to the usual registered letter are therefore offered at least cost-neutral. The forgery-proof according to the invention Facsimile has compared to the registered mail, which ultimately only the transmission of the envelope can be ensured, the advantage that the specific text content was demonstrably transmitted.

Through the process of this kind "comprehensibly coded real time by radio or Online transmission "can provide legally binding document security for telecopying will. Because in principle there are all declarations for which the law has no specific form prescribes, also effective as a facsimile. Provided you can do fax correspondence too to prove.

In combination with the "DTS", in which the perfect reception is reliably confirmed can, you get an absolutely forgery-proof transmission possibility of documents. The means simplifying many legal proceedings by improving the evidence.

Claims (9)

1. A method for tamper-proof, legally stable faxing of documents, characterized in that when faxing a parameter independent of the persons involved in the faxing and the faxing device and not to be influenced, preferably from the real-time transmission signal of a radio clock transmitter (date and time) - which is assigned a constantly changing number and / or letter code in parallel with the aid of a random selection or a program, and which is integrated into the telecopying process by radio transmission or by telephone line, and which encoding z. B. can be clearly understood by specifying the real time. 2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the local radio clock transmitter the radiation of the coding and if necessary, the necessary services - storage of time-dependent coding and takes over the confirmation service - in whole or in part. 3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that a public or private radio, online or telephone service at least partially the necessary services - storage of the time-dependent coding and the confirmation service - takes over. 4. Devices and devices for performing the method according to one or more of the Claims 2 or 3, characterized in that the uncoded fax document is sent to a fax switching center, there is provided with the coding or coding and real time, to the fax recipient forwarded and returned in parallel to the sender. 5. Devices and devices for performing the method according to one or more of the Claims 2, 3 and / or 4, characterized in that the uncoded fax document in a RAM memory or buffer is given at the same time with the line standing with the appropriate coding and is sent, whereby the return can take place in the same device. 6. Devices and devices for performing the method according to one or more of the Claims 2, 3, 4 and / or 5, characterized in that the uncoded fax document in a RAM memory or buffer is given, with the line at the sender and recipient only the document is provided with an appropriate coding at the same time. 7. Devices and devices for performing the method according to one or more of the Claims 2, 3, 4, 5 and / or 6, characterized in that the fax document is retrieved by the recipient when the line is standing can be issued with the same codes to the sender and recipient at the same time will. 8. Devices and devices for carrying out the method according to one or more of the Claims 2, 3, 4, 5 and / or 7, characterized in that the real time compared with an internal radio time receiver can be.   9. Devices and devices for carrying out the method according to one or more of the Claims 2 to 7 and / or 8, characterized in that the fax standard "DTS" is involved in the transmission process becomes.