Systems and methods for protecting privacy

• US 20060123461A1
• Filed: 12/02/2004
• Published: 06/08/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Bruce, Richard H., Greene, Daniel H., Lunt, Teresa F., Golle, Philippe J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,797,725 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification

Abstract

Techniques for providing privacy protection are provided. A query is received. Privacy policy information, extracted knowledge and optional information about available public information are determined. Information about the knowledge extraction transformations applied to create the extracted knowledge and the source data is determined. Privacy protecting transformations are determined and applied to transform the extracted knowledge based on the selected privacy policy, optional information about available public information, the characteristics of the applied knowledge extractions transformations, the source data and optional previous user queries.

Claims

1. A method of protecting privacy comprising the steps of:

determining sources of extracted information;

determining a request for information from the extracted information sources;

determining a privacy policy;

determining extraction characteristics associated with the extracted information based on at least one of;

the characteristics of the extraction transformations used to extract the information and the characteristics of the data from which the information was extracted; and

determining privacy protecting transformations based on the privacy policy and the extraction characteristics.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of determining privacy protected extracted information based on the privacy protecting transformations, the request for information and the extracted information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:

determining subjects associated with the extracted information; and

determining the public information associated with the determined subjects; and

in which privacy protecting transformations are further determined based on the public information concerning the subjects.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of determining a history of requests for information;

in which privacy protecting transformations are further determined based on the history of requests.

5. The method of claim 4, in which the history of requests for information are determined based on at least one of:

an identifier, a name, an account identifier, a protocol address identifier, a legal relationship, a location and time.

6. The method of claim 1, in which the privacy policy is a combined privacy policy based on at least two privacy policies.

7. The method of claim 6, in which the combined privacy policy is based on at least one of:

a privacy policy associated with a subject of the request for information and a privacy policy associated with the originator of the request for information.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request for information originates from at least one of an organization and an individual.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the organization is at least one of:

a buyer;

a seller;

an employer; and

a government entity.

10. The method of claim 1, in which the request for information refers to at least one of:

an individual;

an organization; and

a transaction.

11. The method of claim 1, in which the sources of extracted information are at least one of:

transaction information;

personal information;

financial information and location information.

12. The method of claim 11, in which the transaction information is at least one of:

credit card;

purchase;

sale;

refund;

merchandise return;

coupon; and

discount information.

13. The method of claim 11, in which the personal information is at least one of:

demographic;

health;

financial;

employment;

location and ownership information.

14. The method of claim 11, in which the financial information is at least one of:

home ownership;

stock ownership;

bond ownership;

business ownership;

mortgage;

bank account;

credit score;

net worth; and

salary.

15. The method of claim 11, in which location information is at least one of:

inferred location information and specific location information.

16. The method of claim 15, in which the inferred location information is based on at least one of:

communication information and machine type information.

17. The method of claim 15, in which specific location information is based

on at least one of:

global positioning;

cellular antenna;

video;

sound and biometric information.

18. The method of claim 1, in which the privacy protecting transformations include at least one of:

merging information and aggregating information.

19. The method of claim 1, in which the privacy protecting transformations perform at least one of:

merging, withholding and generalizing information based on the privacy policy.

20. The method of claim 1, in which the privacy protected extracted information is based on the privacy protecting transformations and prior requests for information.

21. The method of claim 20, in which the prior requests for information are from at least one of:

an individual requestor and a group of requestors.

22. The method of claim 1, in which the extraction transformations are based on at least one of:

data mining and knowledge extraction.

23. The method of claim 1, in which the privacy protecting transformations are based on the generalizations introduced by at least one of:

data mining and knowledge extraction.

24. A system for protecting privacy comprising:

an input/output circuit that receives a request for information from source of extracted information;

a memory;

a processor that determines a privacy policy, the sources of extracted information, extraction characteristics based on at least one of;

characteristics of the extraction transformations and characteristics of the data from which the

information is extracted, and which determines privacy protecting transformations of the extracted information based on the privacy policy and the extraction characteristics.

25. The system of claim 24, in which the determination of the privacy protected extracted information is based on the privacy protecting transformations, the request for information and the extracted information.

26. The system of claim 24, in which the processor further determines the subjects associated with the extracted information;

and determines public information associated with the determined subjects; and

further determines privacy protecting transformations based on the public information concerning

the subjects.

27. The system of claim 24, further comprising the step of determining a history of requests for information;

in which privacy protecting transformations are further determined based on the history of requests.

28. The system of claim 27, in which a history of requests for information is determined based on at least one of:

an identifier, a name, an account identifier, a protocol address identifier, a legal relationship, a location and time.

29. The system of claim 24, in which the privacy policy is a combined privacy policy based on at least two privacy policies.

30. The system of claim 29, in which the combined privacy policy is based on at least one of:

a privacy policy associated with a subject of the request for information and a privacy policy associated with the originator of the request for information.

31. The system of claim 24, wherein the request for information received by the input/output circuit originates from at least one of:

an organization and an individual.

32. The system of claim 31, wherein the organization is at least one of:

a buyer;

a seller;

an employer; and

a government entity.

33. The system of claim 24, in which the request for information refers to at least one of:

an individual;

an organization; and

a transaction.

34. The system of claims 24, in which the sources of information are at least one of:

transaction information;

personal information;

financial information and location information.

35. The system of claim 34, in which the transaction information is at least one of:

credit card;

purchase;

sale;

refund;

merchandise return;

coupon; and

discount information.

36. The system of claim 34, in which the personal information is at least one of:

demographic;

health;

financial;

employment;

location and ownership information.

37. The system of claim 34, in which the financial information is at least one of:

home ownership;

stock ownership;

bond ownership;

business ownership;

mortgage;

bank account;

credit score;

net worth; and

salary.

38. The system of claim 34, in which location information is at least one of:

inferred location information and specific location information.

39. The system of claim 38, in which the inferred location information is based on at least one of:

communication information; and

machine type information.

40. The system of claim 38, in which specific location information is based on at least one of:

global positioning;

cellular antenna;

video;

sound and biometric information.

41. The system of claim 24, in which the privacy protecting transformations include at least one of:

merging information and aggregating information.

42. The system of claim 24, in which the privacy protecting transformations perform at least one of:

merging withholding and generalizing information based on the privacy policy.

43. The system of claim 24, in which the privacy protected extracted information is based on the privacy protecting transformations and prior requests for information.

44. The system of claim 43, in which the prior requests for information are from at least one of:

an individual requestor and a group of requesters.

45. The system of claim 24, in which the extraction transformations are based on at least one of:

data mining and knowledge extraction.

46. The system of claim 24, in which the privacy protecting transformations are based on the generalizations introduced by at least one of:

data mining and knowledge extraction.

47. Computer readable storage medium comprising:

computer readable program code embodied on the computer readable storage medium, the computer readable program code usable to program a computer for protecting privacy comprising the steps of;

determining sources of extracted information;

determining a request for information from the extracted information sources;

determining a privacy policy;

determining extraction characteristics associated with the extracted information based on at least one of;

the characteristics of the extraction transformations used to extract the information; and

the characteristics of the data from which the information was extracted; and

determining privacy protecting transformations based on the privacy policy and the extraction characteristics.

48. A carrier wave encoded to transmit a control program, useable to program a computer for protecting privacy, to a device for executing the program, the control program comprising:

instructions for determining sources of extracted information;

instructions for determining a request for information from the extracted information sources;

instructions for determining a privacy policy;

instructions for determining extraction characteristics associated with the extracted information based on at least one of;

the characteristics of the extraction transformations used to extract the information; and

the characteristics of the data from which the information was extracted; and

instructions for determining privacy protecting transformations based on the privacy policy and the extraction characteristics.

49. A method of protecting privacy comprising the steps of:

determining a request for information;

determining a privacy policy;

determining sources of information;

determining extraction transformations;

determining extracted information from the sources of information based on the extraction transformation;

determining privacy protecting transformations of the extracted information based on the determined privacy policy; and

determining privacy protected extracted information based on the privacy protecting transformations.

50. A system for protecting privacy comprising:

an input/output circuit that receives a request for information;

a memory;

a processor that determines a privacy policy, sources of information, information about publicly available information and at least one of;

characteristics of the extraction transformations and characteristics of the data from which the extracted information is obtained; and

which determines privacy protecting transformations of the extracted information based on the privacy policy, the information about the publicly available information and at least one of;

the characteristics of the extraction transformations and the characteristics of the data from which the extracted information is obtained; and

determines privacy induced extracted information based on the privacy protecting transformations.

51. A system for protecting privacy comprising:

an input/output circuit that receives a request for information;

a memory;

a processor that determines a privacy policy, sources of extracted information and at least one of;

characteristics of the applied extraction transformations and characteristics of the data from which the extracted information is obtained; and

which determines privacy protecting transformations of the extracted information based on the privacy policy, and at least one of;

the characteristics of the extraction transformations and the characteristics of the data from which the extracted information is obtained; and

determines privacy induced extracted information based on the determined

privacy protecting transformations.