Context-based resource access mediation

• US 10,560,462 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2014
• Issued: 02/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Vicente, John B., Mets, Christiaan M., Lipman, Justin
• Primary Examiner(s): Lwin, Maung T
• Application Number:
  US15/500,055
• Publication Number:
  US 20170279813A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,964 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6236 between heterogeneous systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/104 Location integrity, e.g. secure geotagging

Abstract

Apparatuses, methods, and computer-readable media for a context-based access mediator (“CAM”) are described. The CAM may be configured to mediate access to computer-accessible resources by a user using a computing device after receiving a request from the computing device for the computing device to access a computer-accessible resource. The computer-accessible resource may be local or remote to the computing device. The CAM may be configured to receive the request and to mediate access to the requested resource. Such mediation may be performed through the CAM determining whether the resource may be accessed by the computing device and/or through the CAM determining which resources are available to the be accessed by the computing device. The CAM may be configured to mediate access to computer-accessible resources based on information about a context for the computing device and/or computer-accessible resource. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

processor circuitry communicatively coupled with communication interface circuitry, the processor circuitry is arranged to operate a request receiver to at least receive, via the communication interface circuitry, a request from a computing device for a user to access a computer-accessible resource using the computing device;

the processor circuitry arranged to operate a context retriever to at least obtain context information including information about a state of the computing device that includes information about one or more states of one or more local resources of the computing device, the local resource being physically located in or on the computing device or being in communication with the computing device via a short range communication link; and

the processor circuitry arranged to operate an access mediator to at least;

determine, based on the context information and an operating profile for the user or the computing device, whether the computing device is permitted to access the computer-accessible resource, and

mediate access of the computer-accessible resource by the computing device, wherein, to mediate access, the access mediator is to;

grant access to the computer-accessible resource when the user or the computing device is allowed to access the computer-accessible resource, and

grant access to an alternative computer-accessible resource when the user or the computing device is not allowed to access the computer-accessible resource and when the user or the computing device is allowed to access the alternative computer-accessible resource.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the operating profile is to indicate one or more of user preferences and access policies.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the request is for use of a networked resource or a local resource of the one or more local resources by the computing device, and the networked resource being located on a server, a networked data storage device, or a user device remote from the computing device.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the request includes one or more of:

a request made automatically by the computing device prior to attempted usage of the computer-accessible resource by the computing device,

a request made in response to the computing device being located within a particular area or connecting to a particular network,

a request made in response to the computing device being located within a particular range of the particular location, and

a request for available computer-accessible resources.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein, when the request includes a request for available computer-accessible resources, the processor circuitry is arranged to operate the access mediator to determine one or more computer-accessible resources that are available for access by the computing device.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the request includes the context information, and the context information further comprises one or more of:

information indicating one or more applications currently executing on the computing device,

information indicating resident applications on the computing device, and

information indicating current users capable of using the computing device,

information indicating logins of the current users on one or more computer-accessible resources,

information indicating a memory usage or state,

information indicating any network connections,

information indicating a physical location of the computing device as determined by the computing device, and

information indicating a physical distance between the computing device and one or more computer-accessible resources as determined by the computing device.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the context information further includes information indicating usage of the computing device.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein, when the context information comprises the information comprising the indication of the usage of the computing device, the information indicating the usage of the computing device includes one or more of:

a time of usage of the computing device,

users that are logged into or otherwise operating the computing device,

network resources that have been accessed using the computing device, and

a degree of user activity on the computing device.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processor circuitry is arranged to obtain additional context information from one or more resources external to the computing device, wherein the additional context information includes one or more of:

a location of the computer-accessible resource;

information about users that are currently accessing the computer-accessible resource;

environmental context information; and

resource context information.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein, when the context information includes the environmental context information, the environmental context information includes one or more of:

information regarding locations of one or more computing devices in a facility,

a list of users that are currently capable of accessing a network resource,

a list of individuals that have used a security card to check into a facility, and

whether or not persons are physically present in a secure room.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein, when the context information includes the resource context information, the resource context information includes one or more of:

a physical location of the computer-accessible resource,

one or more devices that are physically located proximate to the computer-accessible resource, and

a list of users that are currently capable of accessing the computer-accessible resource.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor circuitry is arranged to operate the context retriever to obtain an identity of the user.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor circuitry is arranged to operate the access mediator to mediate a networked connection between the computing device and the computer-accessible resource in response to the computing device or the user being permitted to access the computer-accessible resource.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer-accessible resource is a local resource of the one or more local resources of the computing device, and the processor circuitry is arranged to operate the access mediator to permit usage of a local resource to the computing device when the computing device or the user is permitted to access the local resource.

15. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor circuitry is arranged to operate the access mediator to provide identification of computer-accessible resources available to the user using the computing device.

16. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving, by a computer-implemented context-based access mediator (“

CAM”

), a request from a computing device for a user to access a computer-accessible resource using the computing device;

obtaining, by the CAM, context information of the computing device, the context information including information about a state of the computing device that includes information about one or more states of one or more local resources of the computing device, the local resource being physically located in or on the computing device or being in communication with the computing device via a short range communication link;

determining, by the CAM, based on the context information and an operating profile for the user or the computing device, whether the computing device is permitted to access the computer-accessible resource;

mediating, by the CAM, access of the computer-accessible resource by the computing device, the mediating comprising;

granting, by the CAM, access to the computer-accessible resource in response to determining that the user or the computing device is allowed to access the computer-accessible resource, and

granting, by the CAM, access to an another computer-accessible resource different than the computer-accessible resource in response to determining that the user or the computing device is not allowed to access the computer-accessible resource and determining that the user or the computing device is allowed to access the other computer-accessible resource.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein obtaining the context information further comprises obtaining the context information from the request, and wherein the context information further comprises:

information describing a location of the computing device,

information describing a distance between the computing device and the computer-accessible resource, and

information describing a usage of the computing device.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the context information further comprises:

environmental context information, and

resource context information.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein granting access to the computer-accessible resource or the alternative computer-accessible resource comprises permitting usage of a networked resource or a local resource of the one or more local resources of the computing device by the computing device, and the networked resource is a resource located on a server, a networked data storage device, or a user device remote from the computing device.

20. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media (NTCRM) comprising instructions written thereon, wherein execution of the instructions by a computing system is to cause the computing system to:

receive a request from a computing device for a user to access a computer-accessible resource using the computing device;

obtain context information including information about a state of the computing device that includes information about one or more states of one or more local resources of the computing device, the local resource being physically located in or on the computing device or being in communication with the computing device via a short range communication link;

determine, based on the context information and an operating profile for the user or the computing device, whether the computing device is permitted to access the computer-accessible resource;

mediate access to the computer-accessible resource, wherein, to mediate access, execution of the instructions is to cause the computing system to;

grant access to the computer-accessible resource in response to determination that the user or the computing device is allowed to access the computer-accessible resource, and

grant access to an alternative computer-accessible resource in response to determination that the user or the computing device is not allowed to access the computer-accessible resource and in response to determination that the user or the computing device is allowed to access the alternative computer-accessible resource.

21. The NTCRM of claim 20, wherein the request is to be made automatically by the computing device prior to attempted usage of the computer-accessible resource by the computing device.

22. The NTCRM of claim 20, wherein the context information further comprises one or more of:

a location of the computing device,

a login status of the user with respect to one or more computer-accessible resources,

a state of one or more applications executing or resident on the computing device,

activity of the one or more local resources,

a distance between the computing device and one or more computer-accessible resources, and

environmental information indicating information about an environment surrounding the computing device.

23. The NTCRM of claim 20, wherein the one or more local resources include one or more sensors of the computing device.

24. The NTCRM of claim 20, wherein, to grant access to the computer-accessible resource by the computing device, execution of the instructions is to cause the computing system to permit usage of one or more networked resources by the computing device, wherein the one or more networked resource include a resource located on a server, a networked data storage device, or a user device remote from the computing device.

25. The NTCRM of claim 20, wherein, to grant access of the computer-accessible resource by the computing device, execution of the instructions is to cause the computing system to permit usage of a local resource of the one or more local resources of the computing device by the computing device.