Representing trust in distributed peer-to-peer networks

• US 20030055894A1
• Filed: 06/07/2002
• Published: 03/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sun Microsystems Incorporated (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Yeager, William J., Chen, Rita Y.
• Granted Patent: US 7,308,496 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/544 Buffers; Shared memory; Pipes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for addressing or naming
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 61/50 Address allocation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0442 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply asymmetric encryption, i.e. different keys for encryption and decryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for public-key encryption H04L9/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/164 at the network layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/166 at the transport layer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1046 Joining mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1057 involving pre-assessment of levels of reputation of peers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1095 Replication or mirroring of data, e.g. scheduling or transport for data synchronisation between network nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/34 involving the movement of software or configuration parameters network booting or remote initial program loading [RIPL] G06F9/4416
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/329 in the application layer [OSI layer 7]

Abstract

Embodiments may provide mechanisms for representing trust between peers or systems in decentralized networking environments including peer-to-peer networking environments. Trust may include both direct trust between two peers and trust in a pipeline of peers along which codat may be passed. Embodiments may provide a mechanism for a peer to represent and rate the trustworthiness of other peers as providers of codat relevant to the peer'"'"'s interest. To evaluate trust in another peer as a provider of codats in the area of interest, trust may be represented with two components, confidence and risk. Embodiments may provide mechanisms for measuring the components and determining trust from the components. Embodiments may also provide mechanisms for feeding back trust information to the providing peer and for propagating trust information to other peers.

Claims

1. A peer computing system comprising:

a plurality of peer nodes;

wherein the plurality of peer nodes are each configured to participate on a network with others of the plurality of peer nodes in areas of interest and to exchange codats relevant to the areas of interest with the other peer nodes, wherein a codat is computer-representable content or data;

wherein at least a subset of the plurality of peer nodes are each configured to;

determine confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest;

determine risk associated with the other peer node; and

determine trust in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the confidence in the other peer node and the risk associated with the other peer node.

2. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the risk is determined from one or more of integrity of codats provided by the other peer node, accessibility of the other peer node, and performance of the other peer node.

3. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the peer node is further configured to:

locate one or more codats relevant to the particular area of interest on the other peer node;

if the trust in the other peer node is above a trust threshold, access the located one or more codats from the other peer node; and

if the trust in the other peer node is not above the trust threshold, not access the located one or more codats from the other peer node.

4. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the peer node is further configured to provide the determined trust in the other peer node as feedback to the other peer node.

5. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the peer node is further configured to propagate the determined trust in the other peer node to others of the plurality of peer nodes.

6. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein, to determine confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the peer node is further configured to:

determine relevance of a set of codats provided by the other peer node to the particular area of interest; and

determine confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the determined relevance of the set of codats.

7. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein, to determine confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the peer node is further configured to determine confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from confidence in each of a set of codats relevant to the particular area of interest and provided by the other peer node.

8. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the peer node is further configured to determine confidence in each codat in the set codats, and wherein, to determine confidence in each codat in the set of codats, the peer node is further configured to:

determine relevance of the particular codat to the particular area of interest; and

determine popularity of the particular codat among the plurality of peer nodes.

9. The peer computing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of peer nodes is configured to implement a peer-to-peer environment on the network according to a peer-to-peer platform comprising one or more peer-to-peer platform protocols for enabling the plurality of peer nodes to discover each other, to communicate with each other, and to find and exchange the codats in the peer-to-peer environment.

10. A peer node comprising:

a processor;

a memory comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are executable by the processor to;

participate on a network with other peer nodes in an area of interest and to exchange codats relevant to the areas of interest with the other peer nodes, wherein a codat is computer-representable content or data;

determine confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest;

determine risk associated with the other peer node; and

determine trust in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the confidence in the other peer node and the risk associated with the other peer node.

11. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein the risk is determined from one or more of integrity of codats provided by the other peer node, accessibility of the other peer node, and performance of the other peer node.

12. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein the peer node is further configured to:

locate one or more codats relevant to the particular area of interest on the other peer node;

if the trust in the other peer node is above a trust threshold, access the located one or more codats from the other peer node; and

if the trust in the other peer node is not above the trust threshold, not access the located one or more codats from the other peer node.

13. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein the peer node is further configured to provide the determined trust in the other peer node as feedback to the other peer node.

14. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein the peer node is further configured to propagate the determined trust in the other peer node to one or more other peer nodes.

15. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein, to determine confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the peer node is further configured to:

determine relevance of a set of codats provided by the other peer node to the particular area of interest; and

determine confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the determined relevance of the set of codats.

16. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein, to determine confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the peer node is further configured to determine confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from confidence in each of a set of codats relevant to the particular area of interest and provided by the other peer node.

17. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein the peer node is further configured to determine confidence in each codat in the set codats, and wherein, to determine confidence in each codat in the set of codats, the peer node is further configured to:

determine relevance of the particular codat to the particular area of interest; and

determine popularity of the particular codat among the other peer nodes.

18. The peer node as recited in claim 10, wherein the program instructions are further executable within the peer node to participate with the other peer nodes in a peer-to-peer environment on the network according to a peer-to-peer platform comprising one or more peer-to-peer platform protocols for enabling peer nodes to discover each other, to communicate with each other, and to find and exchange the codats in the peer-to-peer environment.

19. A method comprising:

a peer node participating on a network with other peer nodes in an area of interest and to exchange codats relevant to the areas of interest with the other peer nodes, wherein a codat is computer-representable content or data;

the peer node determining confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest;

the peer node determining risk associated with the other peer node; and

the peer node determining trust in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the confidence in the other peer node and the risk associated with the other peer node.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the risk is determined from one or more of integrity of codats provided by the other peer node, accessibility of the other peer node, and performance of the other peer node.

21. The method as recited in claim 19, further comprising:

the peer node locating one or more codats relevant to the particular area of interest on the other peer node;

if the trust in the other peer node is above a trust threshold, the peer node accessing the located one or more codats from the other peer node; and

if the trust in the other peer node is not above the trust threshold, the peer node not accessing the located one or more codats from the other peer node.

22. The method as recited in claim 19, further comprising the peer node providing the determined trust in the other peer node as feedback to the other peer node.

23. The method as recited in claim 19, further comprising the peer node propagating the determined trust in the other peer node to one or more other peer nodes.

24. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein, in said determining confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the method further comprises:

determining relevance of a set of codats provided by the other peer node to the particular area of interest; and

determining confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the determined relevance of the set of codats.

25. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein, in said determining confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the method further comprises determining confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from confidence in each of a set of codats relevant to the particular area of interest and provided by the other peer node.

26. The method as recited in claim 19, further comprising the peer node determining confidence in each codat in the set codats, and wherein, in said determining confidence in each codat in the set of codats, the method further comprises:

determining relevance of the particular codat to the particular area of interest; and

determining popularity of the particular codat among the other peer nodes.

27. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the peer nodes are configured to implement a peer-to-peer environment on the network according to a peer-to-peer platform comprising one or more peer-to-peer platform protocols for enabling the peer nodes to discover each other, communicate with each other, and to find and exchange the codats in the peer-to-peer environment.

28. An article of manufacture comprising software instructions executable to implement:

a peer node participating on a network with other peer nodes in an area of interest and to exchange codats relevant to the areas of interest with the other peer nodes, wherein a codat is computer-representable content or data;

the peer node determining confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest;

the peer node determining risk associated with the other peer node; and

the peer node determining trust in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the confidence in the other peer node and the risk associated with the other peer node.

29. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein the risk is determined from one or more of integrity of codats provided by the other peer node, accessibility of the other peer node, and performance of the other peer node.

30. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein the software instructions are further executable to implement:

the peer node locating one or more codats relevant to the particular area of interest on the other peer node;

if the trust in the other peer node is above a trust threshold, the peer node accessing the located one or more codats from the other peer node; and

if the trust in the other peer node is not above the trust threshold, the peer node not accessing the located one or more codats from the other peer node.

31. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein the software instructions are further executable to implement the peer node providing the determined trust in the other peer node as feedback to the other peer node.

32. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein the software instructions are further executable to implement the peer node propagating the determined trust in the other peer node to one or more other peer nodes.

33. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein, in said determining confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the software instructions are further executable to implement:

determining relevance of a set of codats provided by the other peer node to the particular area of interest; and

determining confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from the determined relevance of the set of codats.

34. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein, in said determining confidence in one of the other peer nodes as a provider of codats relevant to a particular area of interest, the software instructions are further executable to implement determining confidence in the other peer node as a provider of codats relevant to the particular area of interest from confidence in each of a set of codats relevant to the particular area of interest and provided by the other peer node.

35. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein the software instructions are further executable to implement the peer node determining confidence in each codat in the set codats, and wherein, in said determining confidence in each codat in the set of codats, the software instructions are further executable to implement:

determining relevance of the particular codat to the particular area of interest; and

determining popularity of the particular codat among the other peer nodes.

36. The article of manufacture as recited in claim 28, wherein the peer nodes are configured to implement a peer-to-peer environment on the network according to a peer-to-peer platform comprising one or more peer-to-peer platform protocols for enabling the peer nodes to discover each other, communicate with each other, and to find and exchange the codats in the peer-to-peer environment.