USER-TRANSPARENT SYSTEM FOR UNIQUELY IDENTIFYING NETWORK-DISTRIBUTED DEVICES WITHOUT EXPLICITLY PROVIDED DEVICE OR USER IDENTIFYING INFORMATION

• US 20100057843A1
• Filed: 08/26/2009
• Published: 03/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Media Stamp
• Original Assignee: Media Stamp
• Inventors: Walczak, Robert J. JR., Landsman, Rick
• Granted Patent: US 8,131,799 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0407 wherein the identity of one or more communicating identities is hidden cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for anonymous credentials or for identity based cryptographic systems H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0876 based on the identity of the terminal or configuration, e.g. MAC address, hardware or software configuration or device fingerprint
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

A technique for uniquely identifying devices without explicitly provided device or user identifying information in a networked client-server environment, e.g., the Mobile Internet, in which content is downloaded from a server to a device browser executing at a client device, and using static XML markup tags embedded in the content in a manner transparent to a user situated at the device browser, derives a globally unique device identifier. Device identifying information is captured and maintained in a device profile database associated with a globally unique device identifier. Specifically, mark up code embedded into a referring content page effectively downloads software from a distribution server, and then instantiates the software in the client device browser. The software transparently and dynamically inserts an Internet address request to a device identification management system. The device identification management system selects a device profile associated with a previously detected request from the device and retrieves its globally unique identifier from a database of all profiles for all previous devices requesting unique device identifications. If a matching profile is not found in the database, the device identifying information associated with the request is entered as a new device profile along with a globally unique identifier associated with that specific device in the database. The globally unique identifier is delivered back to the device or external systems for their own use, e.g., mobile Internet advertising management systems.

Claims

1. A system for implementing in a networked client-server environment an anonymous and user-transparent technique for uniquely identifying network-distributed devices, comprising:

a client device having a device browser;

a content server connected to the client device via a global communication network;

a script server connected to the client device via the global communication network for transparently loading an embedded script into the client device, wherein the script, once instantiated and started, transparently inserts unique device identification requests which the device browser subsequently executes for transmission of unique device identification data to a unique device identification management system associated with the content server;

the unique device identification management system collecting unique device identification data transmitted as result of the unique device identification requests executed by the device browser, selecting a globally unique identifier for association with the client device and saving the globally unique identifier in a database of the unique device identification management system.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the device browser is a mobile device browser.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the embedded script is dynamically generated by the script server.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the unique user identification management system comprises a device capabilities database system which appends select device capabilities to an incoming Internet address URL received from the device browser of the client device and redirects the request to a unique device profile management system.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the unique device profile management system is a Microsoft'"'"'s .NET anonymous user profile system.

6. The system according to claim 4, wherein the unique device profile management system retrieves a profile of a client device, retrieves all device profiles existing in a profile database, and sequentially eliminates profiles not matching until a single profile is left or all profiles have been used and if a single profile is left, that profile is identified as the current requesting client device and the profile is updated in the database from a previous request from the same client device.

7. The system according to claim 4, wherein the unique device profile management system retrieves a profile of a client device, retrieves all device profiles existing in a profile database, and sequentially eliminates profiles not matching until a single profile is left or all profiles have been used;

and if more than one profile is left, the current requesting device profile is compared against each remaining device profile using Tanimoto similarity correlation, and if a single remaining device profile matching all hierarchical list of a subset “

property=value”

triplets is below a predefined Tanimoto similarity coefficient threshold when compared with the current requesting profile, that profile is identified as the current requesting device profile updated in the database from a previous request from the same device; and

a response is sent to the originating device, with the globally unique identifier associated with the device in the device profile management database is embedded in the response and returned to the mobile device browser originating the unique device identification request.

8. The system according to claim 4, wherein the unique device profile management system retrieves a profile of a client device, retrieves all device profiles existing in a profile database, and sequentially eliminates profiles not matching until a single profile is left or all profiles have been used;

and if no remaining device profiles is below a predefined Tanimoto similarly coefficient threshold when compared with the current requesting profile, the current profile is identified as a first time request from the unique device and is saved in the database as a new device profile, and a response to the originating device, with the globally unique identifier associated with the device in the device profile management database embedded in the response and returned to the mobile device browser originating the unique device identification request.

9. The system according to claim 4, wherein the unique device profile management system retrieves a profile of a client device, retrieves all device profiles existing in a profile database, and sequentially eliminates profiles not matching until a single profile is left or all profiles have been used, retrieves all device profiles existing in the database that match the current request profile, and sequentially eliminates profiles not matching until a single profile is left or all values have been used, and if zero remaining device profiles remain, the current profile is identified as a first time request from the unique device and is saved in the database as a new device profile, and a response is sent to the originating device, with the globally unique identifier associated with the device in the device profile management database embedded in the response and returned to the mobile device browser originating the unique device identification request.

10. A method for implementing in a networked client-server environment an anonymous and user-transparent technique for uniquely identifying network-distributed client devices in response to a first content page containing an embedded code, the client device comprising a processor;

a memory connected to the processor and storing both executable instructions and the first content page, the first content page having a plurality of computer readable instructions representing page content and an embedded code, wherein the method comprises;

downloading a script, from a first server, into the memory and subsequently executing the script under control of a browser, wherein the method further comprises the steps, performed by the script, of;

requesting, from a second server, while the client device renders the first content page to a user through the client device, whether an identifying matching profile of the client device already exists;

determining whether the matching profile created by a previous request from the client device exists, and if so retrieving a previously created globally unique identifier associated with the client device, and communicating the globally unique identifier to the client device; and

in the case no previous matching profile is identified, a globally unique identifier is generated and stored in a database.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the embedded code performs a request for the script from the first server and the first server is a networked script server.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein the networked script server dynamically generates the script.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein the script executes in a device browser of the client device and dynamically inserts unique device identification request tags in to the first content page.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein the dynamically inserted unique device identification request tag performs a unique device identification system request to the second server.

15. The method according to claim 10, wherein the second server is a unique user identification management system.

16. The method according to claim 10, wherein the unique device identification management system comprises a device capabilities database system which appends select device capabilities to an incoming Internet address URL received from the device browser of the client device and redirects the request to a unique device profile management system.

17. The method according to claim 10, wherein the unique device profile management system is a Microsoft .NET anonymous user profile system.

18. The method according to claim 10, further including the step of communicating the globally unique identifier to the client device.

19. The method according to claim 18, further including the step of communicating the globally unique identifier to a third server.