Techniques for recovering missing devices

• US 10,181,058 B2
• Filed: 06/08/2017
• Issued: 01/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/02/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
• Inventors: D'sa, Cailen
• Primary Examiner(s): Hirl, Joseph P
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shirazi, Sayed Aresh Beheshti
• Application Number:
  US15/616,939
• Publication Number:
  US 20170270322A1
• Time in Patent Office: 586 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/88 Detecting or preventing theft or loss

Abstract

Techniques are provided for assisting owners to recover missing devices. The missing device automatically performs certain actions proactively in response to detecting conditions that indicate that the device has been lost or stolen. Conditions that indicate the device has been lost or stolen (“triggering conditions”) may include that a password failure has occurred more than a predetermined number of times. Any number and type of recovery-assisting actions may be taken, in response to triggering conditions, to assist owners in recovering a missing device. For example, a device may generate a record that indicates the current location of the device, and synchronize the record with an online service or some other device. The generation and synchronization of such records may be repeated on a periodic basis until either (a) the device becomes disabled, or (b) a user enters an appropriate password.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a particular device, user input that selects for each triggering condition, of a plurality of triggering conditions, a corresponding alert level, of a plurality of different alert levels;

wherein each triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, represents a likelihood that the particular device is lost or stolen;

receiving, at the particular device, user input that associates each alert level, of the plurality of different alert levels, with one or more respective recovery-assisting actions;

wherein a first alert level, of the plurality of different alert levels, is associated with a first set of the one or more respective recovery-assisting actions;

wherein a second alert level, of the plurality of different alert levels, is associated with a second set of the one or more respective recovery-assisting actions;

wherein the first set of the one or more respective recovery-assisting actions is different from the second set of one or more respective recovery-assisting actions; and

in response to the particular device detecting that a particular triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, is satisfied, the particular device automatically performing the steps of;

determining an alert level, from the plurality of different alert levels, that corresponds to the particular triggering condition; and

based on determining the alert level, from the plurality of different alert levels, that corresponds to the particular triggering condition, performing one or more particular recovery-assisting actions that are associated with the alert level that corresponds to the particular triggering condition.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

after performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions, the particular device detecting occurrence of a device-found event; and

in response to detecting occurrence of the device-found event, automatically performing a garbage collection action to recover at least one resource consumed by performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions include creation of a particular content item on the particular device, and the garbage collection action includes deletion of the particular content item.

4. The method of claim 1,

wherein a lower alert level of the plurality of different alert levels corresponds to one or more first triggering conditions that represent a lower likelihood that the particular device is lost or stolen than one or more second triggering conditions that correspond to a higher alert level;

wherein, if the alert level is the higher alert level, the performing of the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions causes the particular device to consume greater amount of computing resources than if the alert level is the lower alert level.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to the particular device detecting that an additional triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, is satisfied after detecting the particular triggering condition was satisfied, the particular device automatically performing one or more additional recovery-assisting actions that are associated with a particular alert level that corresponds to the additional triggering condition.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to the particular device detecting that an additional triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, is satisfied after detecting the particular triggering condition was satisfied, the particular device automatically modifying the alert level to a higher alert level that corresponds to the additional triggering condition; and

wherein the additional triggering condition is a condition indicating a higher likelihood that the particular device is lost or stolen than the particular triggering condition.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

the particular device automatically performing one or more additional recovery-assisting actions that are associated with the higher alert level.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions that are associated with the alert level that corresponds to the particular triggering condition provides a recovery-assisting indication to a user of another device that the particular device may be lost or stolen.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of triggering conditions includes at least one or more of:

the particular device having experienced an abrupt movement,

an attempt to open or dismantle the particular device, or

a certain number of failed attempts to power down the particular device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions includes one or more of:

obtaining, by the particular device, at least one of a current location of the particular device, a finger print of a user of the particular device, or a photo taken by the particular device, or

the particular device entering a low power mode in which one or more functions of the particular device are disabled.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether the particular device is moving; and

only automatically performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions if the particular device is not moving.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions that are associated with the alert level that corresponds to the particular triggering condition is based, at least in part, on

the particular device automatically creating, at a first time, a particular content item in a synchronized collection of content items, at the particular device, that, at a second time that is later than the first time, is automatically synchronized with an online service.

13. A device comprising:

one or more processors;

one or more non-transitory computer-readable media coupled to the one or more processors and storing one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform;

receiving, at the device, user input that selects for each triggering condition, of a plurality of triggering conditions, a corresponding alert level, of a plurality of different alert levels;

wherein each triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, represents a likelihood that the device is lost or stolen;

receiving, at the device, user input that associates each alert level, of the plurality of different alert levels, with one or more respective recovery-assisting actions;

wherein a first alert level, of the plurality of different alert levels, is associated with a first set of the one or more respective recovery-assisting actions;

wherein a second alert level, of the plurality of different alert levels, is associated with a second set of the one or more respective recovery-assisting actions;

wherein the first set of the one or more respective recovery-assisting actions is different from the second set of one or more respective recovery-assistant actions; and

in response to the device detecting that a particular triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, is satisfied, the device automatically performing the steps of;

determining an alert level, from the plurality of different alert levels, that corresponds to the particular triggering condition; and

based on determining the alert level, from the plurality of different alert levels, that corresponds to the particular triggering condition, performing one or more particular recovery-assisting actions that are associated with the alert level that corresponds to the particular triggering condition.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the one or more sequences of instructions further cause the one or more processors to perform:

after performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions, detecting occurrence of a device-found event; and

in response to detecting occurrence of the device-found event, automatically performing a garbage collection action to recover at least one resource consumed by performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions.

15. The device of claim 13,

wherein a lower alert level of the plurality of different alert levels corresponds to one or more first triggering conditions that represent a lower likelihood that the device is lost or stolen than one or more second triggering conditions that correspond to a higher alert level;

wherein, if the alert level is the higher alert level, the performing of the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions causes the device to consume greater amount of computing resources than if the alert level is the lower alert level.

16. The device of claim 13, wherein the one or more sequences of instructions further cause the one or more processors to perform:

in response to detecting that an additional triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, is satisfied after detecting the particular triggering condition was satisfied, automatically performing one or more additional recovery-assisting actions that are associated with a particular alert level that corresponds to the additional triggering condition.

17. The device of claim 13, wherein the one or more sequences of instructions further cause the one or more processors to perform:

in response to detecting that an additional triggering condition, of the plurality of triggering conditions, is satisfied after detecting the particular triggering condition was satisfied, automatically modifying the alert level to a higher alert level that corresponds to the additional triggering condition; and

wherein the additional triggering condition is a condition indicating a higher likelihood that the device is lost or stolen than the particular triggering condition.

18. The device of claim 13, wherein the performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions that are associated with the alert level that corresponds to the particular triggering condition provides a recovery-assisting indication to a user of another device that the device may be lost or stolen.

19. The device of claim 13, wherein the plurality of triggering conditions includes at least one or more of:

the device having experienced an abrupt movement,

an attempt to open or dismantle the device, or

a certain number of failed attempts to power down the device.

20. The device of claim 13, wherein automatically performing the one or more particular recovery-assisting actions includes one or more of:

obtaining, by the device, at least one of a current location of the device, a finger print of a user of the device, or a photo taken by the device, or entering a low power mode in which one or more functions of the device are disabled.