SYSTEMS AND METHODS OF SHARING INFORMATION THROUGH A TAGLESS DEVICE CONSORTIUM

• US 20100004965A1
• Filed: 07/01/2009
• Published: 01/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The 41st Parameter, Inc. (Experian plc)
• Original Assignee: The 41st Parameter, Inc. (Experian plc)
• Inventors: Eisen, Ori
• Granted Patent: US 9,390,384 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/7
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0185 Product, service or business identity fraud
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

The invention provides one or more consortia of networks that identify and share information about users and/or user devices interacting with the consortia. User devices may be identified, at least in part, by a delta of time parameter between a user device used and a reference time. Other parameters may be analyzed to identify a computer user and/or device and noteworthy transactions. The invention may be used for identity-based applications such as network security, the detection of fraudulent transactions, identity theft, ratings-based communities and law enforcement.

Claims

1. A fraud detection consortium, comprising:

one or more online companies that provide a service;

an authentication repository that connects to the one or more online companies over a communications network; and

a user computer that connects to an online company over a communications network to use the provided service;

wherein the online company receives information about the user computer, and

wherein the authentication repository;

gathers information about the user computer from the one or more online companies,

normalizes the information gathered from the one or more online companies,

stores a computer identifier derived from a delta of time parameter based upon the difference between a user computer clock time and an online company server time, and

shares the computer identifier with the one or more online companies as part of the consortium to detect fraud using the user computer across the online companies.

2. The consortium of claim 1 wherein the information gathered by the authentication repository includes non-personal and/or personal identification information.

7. The consortium of claim 1 wherein the server time is Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

3. The consortium of claim 0 wherein the computer identifier is also derived in combination with non-personal or personal identification information.

4. The consortium of claim 0 wherein the information gathered by the authentication repository is gathered in a tagless manner.

5. The consortium of claim 0 wherein the personal information includes at least one of the following:

user name, address, billing information, shipping information, telephone number and email address.

6. The consortium of claim 0 wherein the non-personal information includes at least one of the following:

IP address and Browser ID.

8. A fraud detection system, comprising:

one or more online businesses that provide a service; and

a user device that connects to an online business over a communications network to use the provided service,

wherein the online business gathers information about the user device and generates a delta time parameter based upon the difference between a user device clock time and an online business server time; and

wherein the delta time parameter is configured into a standardized format for the fraud detection system and shared between the one or more online businesses to detect fraud using the user device across the online businesses.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the online business server times of the one or more online businesses are synchronized.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein the online business server times of the one or more online businesses are synchronized such that the server times are the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

11. The system of claim 8 wherein the online business server times of the one or more online businesses are synchronized such that the server times are their local time and the information gathered by the online business includes relevant time zone information.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the delta time parameter is adjusted by a correction factor derived from the relevant time zone information.

13. The system of claim 8 wherein the delta time parameter is stored on an authentication repository and the authentication repository shares the delta time parameter with the one or more online businesses.

14. The system of claim 8 wherein the delta time parameter is shared between the one or more online businesses in a peer to peer manner.

15. A method for detecting fraud comprising:

obtaining selected information about a client during the client'"'"'s connection to an online financial institution, wherein the selected information includes a local time according to a clock of the client;

obtaining a reference time;

generating a computer identifier derived from a delta of time parameter based upon the difference between the local time according to a clock of the client and the reference time;

standardizing the computer identifier format to a consortium format; and

sharing the computer identifier and selected information with one or more online financial institutions to detect fraud using the client across the online financial institutions.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the selected information also includes non-personal or personal identification information.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the computer identifier is also derived from additional selected information.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the reference time is a consortium time according to a fraud detection monitor that connects to one or more online financial institutions.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the reference time is the server time according to a clock of the online financial institution.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the clocks of the one or more online financial institutions are synchronized such that the server time is a consortium time.

21. The method of claim 15 further comprising storing the computer identifier and selected information on a fraud detection monitor.

22. A method for detecting fraud in a consortium comprising:

creating a first computer identifier in the course of a first online transaction, and a second computer identifier in the course of a second online transaction, wherein each computer identifier includes a delta time parameter based upon the difference between a time according to a user device clock and a time according to an online institution server clock;

normalizing the delta time parameters to a consortium format and normalizing the computer identifier to a consortium format;

sharing the first computer identifier and the second computer identifier with one or more online institutions of the consortium;

generating a matching parameter based on a comparison of the first computer identifier and the second computer identifier; and

assessing risk of fraud based upon the matching parameter.

23. The method of claim 22 further comprising communicating to an online institution that a second online transaction is fraudulent, not fraudulent, or requires further analysis.

24. The method of claim 23 further comprising blocking the second online transaction based upon the matching parameter.

25. The method of claim 22 wherein assessing risk of fraud further comprises comparing the matching parameter with a matching value.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the matching parameter is substantially different than the matching value, indicating the second online transaction may be fraudulent.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein the matching parameter is substantially the same as the matching value, indicating the second online transaction is not likely fraudulent.

28. The method of claim 22 further comprising providing an authentication repository that connects to the one or more online institutions, shares the first computer identifier and the second computer identifier with the one or more online institutions, and assesses the risk of fraud.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein the authentication repository shares the first computer identifier and second computer identifier with one or more online institutions in one or more consortia.

30. The method of claim 28 wherein the authentication repository shares the first computer identifier and second computer identifier with one or more authentication repositories.

31. Fraud detection consortia, comprising:

one or more online hosts that provide a service; and

a client computer that connects to at least one of the online hosts over a communications network,

wherein an online host gathers information about the client computer,

wherein a computer identifier is generated, derived from a delta of time parameter based upon the difference between a local client computer time and a reference time,

wherein the delta of time parameter is formatted in a consortia time format, and

wherein the computer identifier is shared between the one or more online hosts as part of the consortia to detect fraud using the client computer across the online hosts.

32. The consortia of claim 31 wherein the reference time is Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

33. A computer readable medium comprising a computer program to perform a method as recited in claim 31 to identify a client computer.

34. The consortia of claim 31 wherein the consortia include one or more fraud detection monitors that store the computer identifier and information gathered.

35. The consortia of claim 31 wherein the online host gathers information about the client computer in a tagless manner.

36. A method for detecting fraud comprising:

providing one or more online businesses that provide a service

creating a first delta time parameter in the course of a first online transaction with an online business, and a second delta time parameter in the course of a second online transaction with an online business, wherein each delta time parameter is based upon the difference between a user computer time and a reference time;

normalizing the first delta time parameter and the second delta time parameter into a shared format;

sharing the first delta time parameter and the second delta time parameter with the one or more online businesses;

generating a matching parameter based on a comparison of the first delta time parameter and the second delta time parameter; and

assessing risk of fraud based upon the matching parameter.

37. The method of claim 36 wherein an authentication repository that connects to the one or more online businesses shares the first delta time parameter and the second delta time parameter, and assesses the risk of fraud.

38. The method of claim 37 wherein the reference time is the authentication repository time.

39. The method of claim 36 wherein the reference time is the online business server time.