Data anonymity

• US 10,460,115 B2
• Filed: 05/15/2017
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Nishitani, Yusuke, Oishi, Yutaka, Tsend-Ochir, Bat-Ulzii, Xu, Xiaoshuang
• Primary Examiner(s): Feild, Lynn D
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lakhia, Viral S
• Application Number:
  US15/595,300
• Publication Number:
  US 20180330104A1
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• Field of Search: 713150-155
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/187 Mounting of fixed and removable disk drives
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/278 Data partitioning, e.g. horizontal or vertical partitioning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/289 Object oriented databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/602 Providing cryptographic facilities or services
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification

Abstract

The present invention may be a method, a system, and a computer program product. An embodiment of the present invention provides a method for ensuring anonymity of data. The method comprises the following: determining the number of members of each cluster, based on one or more features of leaving of the members of the data; and anonymizing the data in the database, using the determined number.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a memory storing a program which, when executed on a processor, performs an operation for ensuring anonymity of data, the operation comprising;

determining a number of members of each of a plurality of clusters, based on one or more features of members leaving the cluster; and

anonymizing the data in the database, easing the determined number of members of each cluster, wherein the one or more features of the leaving members from the cluster are selected from the group consisting of a ratio of leaving, a period for leaving, a cause of leaving, or a combination thereof;

wherein the database has the period for leaving for each member;

wherein the determination is made by calculating a required minimum number, N, for the members in each cluster, based on the ratio of leaving;

wherein the anonymization is performed using k-anonymization with k being the retired minimum number, N, and wherein, in the database, assuming that the value, k, for the k-anonymization is Y after a passage of a first predefined term, X, the required minimum number, N, is calculated based on Y.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein after the program instructions cause the computer to determine the number of members of each cluster, the program instructions further cause the computer to cluster members whose period for leaving is in a predefined threshold as members of the cluster.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein after the program instructions cause the computer to determine the number of members of each cluster, the program instructions further cause the computer to cluster members whose period for leaving is outside a predefined threshold as members of the cluster.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the program instructions further cause the computer to:

repeat the program instructions to determine and anonymize in a predetermined interval or in response to decrease of the number of the members of the cluster.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein, in the database, assuming that the members of Z % leaves in each second predefined term, the required minimum number, N, is calculated based on X, Y and Z.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the required minimum number, N, is calculated according to the following equation:

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the required minimum number, N, is calculated according to the following equation:

Y+α

≤

N,

wherein α

is a constant value of zero or more.

8. A computer program product for ensuring anonymity of data, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, wherein the computer readable storage medium is not a transitory signal per se, the program instructions executable by a computer to cause the computer to:

determine a number of members of each of a plurality of clusters, based on one or more features of members leaving the cluster; and

anonymize the data in the database, using the determined number of members of each cluster, wherein the one or more features of the leaving members from the cluster are selected from the group consisting of a ratio of leaving, a period for leaving, a cause, of leaving, or a combination thereof;

wherein the database has the period for leaving for each member;

wherein the determination is made by calculating a required minimum number, N, for the members in each cluster, based on the ratio of leaving;

wherein the anonymization is performed using k-anonymization with k being the required minimum number, N; and

wherein, in the database, assuming that the value, k for the k-anonymization is Y after a passage of a first predefined term, X, the required minimum number, N, is calculated based on Y.

9. The computer program product according to claim 8, wherein after the program instructions cause the computer to determine the number of members of each cluster, the program instructions further cause the computer to cluster members whose period for leaving is in a predefined threshold as members of the cluster.

10. The computer program product according to claim 8, wherein after the program instructions cause the computer to determine the number of members of each cluster, the program instructions further cause the computer to cluster members whose period for leaving is outside a predefined threshold as members of the cluster.

11. The computer program product according to claim 8, wherein the program instructions further cause the computer to:

repeat the program instructions to determine and anonymize in a predetermined interval or in response to decrease of the number of the members of the cluster.

12. The computer program product according to claim 8, wherein, in the database, assuming that the members of Z % leaves in each second predefined term, the required minimum number, N, is calculated based on X, Y and Z.

13. The computer program product according to claim 12, wherein the required minimum number, N, is calculated according to the following equation:

14. The computer program product according to claim 8, wherein the required minimum number, N, is calculated according to the following equation:

Y+α

≤

N,

wherein α

is a constant value of zero or more.