System and method for an online exchange of private data
First Claim
1. A computer-implemented method for exchanging private data, comprising the steps of:
- receiving at an on-line exchange a data request from at least one data buyer, each data buyer operating as a purchaser of the private data, the data request defining a request for at least a portion of the private data;
publishing at the on-line exchange at least a portion of the data request, the published portion comprising information useful for identifying the subject of the private data portion;
receiving at the on-line exchange a communication from a data provider, the communication advising that the data provider has information relevant to the data request portion published by the on-line exchange, the data provider having knowledge of the subject of the private data portion in a manner predicted by “
small world”
network behavior theory;
arranging for the data provide and the data buyer to exchange the private data portion via the on-line exchange while maintaining both the anonymity of the data provider and the data buyer and the security of the private data.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Based on the small world theory of networking, the present invention provides access to a previously unavailable source of private data, necessary for commerce, by facilitating the sale of private data from members of the general public. For example, the seeker of private data, such as consumer information, submits a data request to an online portal system. The request submission includes legal representations stating the legally permissible purpose for seeking the information. The portal system may display the data request to registered data providers, based on their demographic data. The system facilitates the exchange between the data buyer and the data provider. A payment invoice can be generated and electronically presented by the portal system. The payment may be electronically debited from the designated account of a data. In addition, a portion of such funds may be retained by the portal entity.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A computer-implemented method for exchanging private data, comprising the steps of:
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receiving at an on-line exchange a data request from at least one data buyer, each data buyer operating as a purchaser of the private data, the data request defining a request for at least a portion of the private data;
publishing at the on-line exchange at least a portion of the data request, the published portion comprising information useful for identifying the subject of the private data portion;
receiving at the on-line exchange a communication from a data provider, the communication advising that the data provider has information relevant to the data request portion published by the on-line exchange, the data provider having knowledge of the subject of the private data portion in a manner predicted by “
small world”
network behavior theory;
arranging for the data provide and the data buyer to exchange the private data portion via the on-line exchange while maintaining both the anonymity of the data provider and the data buyer and the security of the private data. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A computer-implemented method for exchanging private data comprising consumer data, comprising the steps of:
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receiving at an on-line exchange a data request from one of a plurality of data buyers, the defining a request for a selected portion of the consumer data, each data buyer consenting to a legal representation governing the terms of use for the consumer data;
responsive to the data request, publishing at the on-line exchange information descriptive of the subject matter of the selected portion of the consumer data desired by the data buyer;
responsive to publication of the descriptive information, receiving at the on-line exchange the selected portion of the consumer data from one of a plurality data providers, each data provider independently operating as a source of private data;
forwarding to the data buyer the selected portion of the consumer information received from the data provider to complete a secure exchange of the selected portion of the consumer data while maintaining the anonymity of the data provider and the data buyer. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A system operative for exchanging consumer data, comprising:
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a plurality of data buyer computers, coupled to a distributed computer network, each operative to transmit a data request via a distributed computer network, the data request defining a request for at least a portion of the consumer data;
a plurality of data provider computers, coupled to the distributed computer network, each operative as a potential source of the consumer data as predicted by “
small world”
network behavior theory; and
an on-line exchange coupled to the distributed computer network, the on-line exchange, responsive to receipt of one of the requests issued by one of data buyer computers, operative to publish at least a portion of the data request comprising information useful for identifying a subject of the portion of consumer data, wherein the on-line exchange, responsive to a communication transmitted by one of the data provider computers, the communication advising that the data provider has information relevant to the data request portion published by the on-line exchange, operative to manage a data exchange operation for the data provider computer and the data buyer computer in support of an exchange of the portion of the consumer data while maintaining the anonymity of the data provider computer and the data buyer computer. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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19. A system operative for exchanging consumer data among a plurality of data buyer computers associated with data buyers seeking to purchase items of the consumer data and a plurality of data provider computers associated with data providers serving as a potential source of the consumer data in a manner predicted by “
- small world”
network behavior theory, comprising;
an on-line exchange, responsive to receipt of one of the requests issued by one of data buyer computers, operative to publish at least a portion of the data request comprising information useful for identifying a subject of the portion of consumer data, wherein the on-line exchange, responsive to a communication transmitted by one of the data provider computers, the communication advising that the data provider computer has information relevant to the data request portion published by the on-line exchange, operative to manage a data exchange operation for the data provider computer and the data buyer computer in support of an exchange of the portion of the consumer data. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22)
- small world”
Specification