AGE VERIFICATION AND CONTENT FILTERING SYSTEMS AND METHODS

• US 20070260603A1
• Filed: 05/03/2006
• Published: 11/08/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cellco Partnership, Inc. (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Money, Jesse, Tuscano, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 8,131,763 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking

Abstract

A system and method is provided for age verification and content filtering (AV/CF) on a wireless telecommunications system capable of providing enhanced products such as Internet, WAP, messaging, games, video, music, applications, etc. A profile controls content that is accessible by a user depending upon the user'"'"'s age or restrictions placed on accessible content in accordance with content categories. Rating information is obtained from content providers and mapped to content categories or content is rated dynamically. User'"'"'s requests for access may be recorded whether access is provided or denied and used to provide reports including reports to account holders responsible for the user'"'"'s account. In some instances, attempts to access banned information may be reported to law enforcement officials.

Claims

1. A system for restricting content on a wireless telecommunications network comprised of:

a policy service profile (PSP) that is configured to contain at least profile information for one or more users;

a content decision point (CDP) that is configured to read or determine a rating for content accessible via a handset; and

one or more policy enforcement points (PEPs),

wherein said one or more PEPs are configured to work with the CDP to determine the content rating of requested content via said handset according to defined content categories, and based upon a user'"'"'s profile as contained within the PSP either allow access to the requested content or deny access.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the content accessible via a handset includes one or more of Internet content, messaging content, and applications content.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein said messaging content includes SMS and MMS messages.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein said applications content includes BREW applications and games.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a database, wherein requested content, whether accessed or denied, is recorded by the CDP for reporting purposes.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein said profile information includes at least a mobile directory number (MDN) of a handset associated with a user, the user'"'"'s age, and a rating for content accessible via said handset according to said defined content categories.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein said defined content categories include universal, youth, teen, mature/adult and banned.

8. The system of claim 7 further comprising an authorization system configured to require an access code from a user before said user is able to access content accessible via said handset that has a content rating of mature/adult.

9. The system of claim 7 further comprising an authorization system configured to require an access code from a user before said user is able to access content accessible via said handset that has a content rating of mature/adult, teen, and youth.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein any attempt to access banned content is reported to law enforcement officials.

11. A wireless telecommunication carrier network having an age verification/content filtering (AV/CF) system comprised of:

a carrier'"'"'s cellular network, wherein a user using a wireless handset makes a request to a carrier'"'"'s cellular network;

an authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA) server, wherein said user is authenticated as a subscriber to the carrier in order to access the carrier'"'"'s cellular network;

a carrier'"'"'s data network, wherein said user'"'"'s request is received and routed by the data network to one or more product silos including WAP, web, and applications silos depending upon the product identified in the request;

a WAP interface in said carrier'"'"'s network, wherein using their wireless handset said user manages a profile of the user in the AV/CF system and other user-related functions including billing and cellular network usage;

an access manager that determines said user'"'"'s status and if said user is authorized provides said user access to an identity management platform that allows the user to manage one or more profiles associated with the user, wherein said identity management platform allows user profiles to be established and at least a portion of the profile is stored on a policy service profile (PSP);

a content management platform, wherein said content management platform allows the carrier to establish defined content categories and map commercially available rating systems to defined content categories and to dynamically rate unrated content;

a content decision point (CDP), wherein the CDP determines the rating of content that a user is attempting to access, determines the content category that the content is mapped to, compares the content category to the user'"'"'s profile and either provides or denies access according to the user'"'"'s profile,

wherein the content management platform is configured to work in cooperation with the identity management platform to enforce content rating restrictions as defined in the PSP based upon a user'"'"'s age or the content restriction applied to the content categories by the user.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein said one or more profiles are comprised of at least the user'"'"'s mobile directory network, their age and a content rating for various content products.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein said content categories include universal, youth, teen, mature/adult and banned.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the identity management platform and the PSP are integrated with the AAA server.

15. A method of recording a user'"'"'s access or attempted access of content over a wireless handset, comprising:

maintaining content categories of various content;

receiving from a user a request to access certain content;

determining the content category of the certain content;

determining whether the user is allowed to access the certain content;

if the user is allowed to access said certain content, then providing the user with access to the certain content and recording the user'"'"'s access to the certain content; and

if the user is not allowed access to the certain content, then denying the user access to the certain content and recording the user'"'"'s request to access certain content.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said content categories include universal, youth, teen, mature/adult and banned.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein receiving from a user a request to access certain content comprises receiving a request to access banned content.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising reporting to law enforcement agencies said user'"'"'s request to access banned content.

19. A method of accessing restricted content via a wireless handset, comprising:

receiving from a user an attempt to access restricted content via a handset;

determining whether the user has an access code;

determining whether the user is an account holder if the user does not have an access code;

providing the user with an access code if the user is an account holder, if the user is not an account holder, the user is denied access to the restricted content;

receiving from the user an access code;

determining whether the access code is valid, if the access code is not valid then denying access to the restricted content; and

providing the user access to the restricted content if the access code is valid.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the restricted content is in the form of one or more of videos, music/audio, ring-back tones, games, applications, messaging, and chat sites having a content category rating of teen or mature/adult.

21. A method of restricting content on a wireless telecommunications network comprising:

providing a policy service profile (PSP) that is configured to contain at least profile information for one or more users;

providing a content decision point (CDP) that is configured to read or determine a rating for content accessible via a wireless handset; and

providing one or more policy enforcement points (PEPs),

wherein said one or more PEPs are configured to work with the CDP to determine the content rating of requested content via said handset according to defined content categories, and based upon a user'"'"'s profile as contained within the PSP either allow access to the requested content or deny access.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the content accessible via a handset includes one or more of Internet content, messaging content, and applications content.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said messaging content includes SMS and MMS messages.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein said applications content includes BREW applications and games.

25. The method of claim 21, further comprising recording requested content, whether accessed or denied, in a database by the CDP for reporting purposes.

26. The method system of claim 21, wherein said profile information includes at least a mobile directory number (MDN) of a handset associated with a user, the user'"'"'s age, and a rating for content accessible via said handset according to said defined content categories.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein said defined content categories include universal, youth, teen, mature/adult and banned.

28. The method of claim 27 further comprising requiring a valid access code from a user before said user is able to access content accessible via said handset that has a content rating of mature/adult.

29. The method of claim 27 further comprising requiring a valid access code from a user before said user is able to access content accessible via said handset that has a content rating of mature/adult, teen, and youth.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising reporting any attempt to access banned content to law enforcement officials.