SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CREATING A SECURE TRUSTED SOCIAL NETWORK

• US 20100229221A1
• Filed: 05/19/2010
• Published: 09/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Topeer Corp.
• Original Assignee: Topeer Corp.
• Inventors: Tam, Chung Ming, Gill, Paramjit S., Gill, Barjinderpal S.
• Granted Patent: US 8,205,245 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/4
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks

Abstract

A system for a plurality of users to share resources with access, control and configuration based on pre-defined relationships of trust between the users of the system. A computer- based authority provides the services of authentication, identification and verification of each user within network. Processes are described that leads to the formation of an electronic community, which facilitates electronic communication and transactions in a defined manner.

Claims

1. A system for a plurality of users to share resources in a secure social network comprising:

a plurality of software clients configured to interface a plurality of users with one or more trusted servers and one or more other computing devices in a network, each of said software clients installed on a computing device;

one or more trusted servers;

one or more communication means allowing communication between said one or more trusted servers and said one or more software clients and/or between two or more software clients, wherein said trusted servers are configured to provide authentication, identification and verification of each user in said plurality of users and comprise a network interface;

a processing engine in communication with the network interface, said engine operable to associate each user with a criterion; and

a database configured to contain information relating to each of said user in said plurality of users, and wherein said criterion is the degree of separation between one user and one or more other users of the network, the degree of separation representative of the number of pre-existing relationships of trust, as defined by said users, which link the one user and the one or more other users and wherein access to a resource of a first user by one or more other users is restricted to one or more users with a first user specified criterion.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the resources can be any of the following:

information, data, computer files, software, hard drive space, or processing power.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein a user can access the system remotely by communicating with the software client via a communication protocol which can include HTTP, telnet, or custom protocols.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the communication means allows communication between the software clients.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein each user grants access to resources on their computing device to other users within the system who fall within one or more criteria.

6. A process for adding users to the system of claim 1, comprising:

a. providing a software client to a first user for installation on a first computing device;

b. receiving a first set of data packets relating to said first user from said software client to one or more trusted servers via one or more communication means;

c. compiling a database of said first data packets;

d. receiving a second set of data packets relating to at least one second user with whom said first user has a pre-existing relationship defined by a criterion, wherein said criterion is trust, as defined by said first and second user;

e. adding said second set of data packets to the database and relating said second set of data packets to said first set of identifying data by means of said criterion;

f. providing the software client to the second user for installation on a second computing device;

wherein, said first, second, or new user can repeat steps b to f resulting in additional users being added to said system.

7. The process of claim 6 wherein the resources can be any of the following:

information, data, computer files, software, hard drive space, or processing power.

8. A method of searching for information, resources or services contained on a computing device connected to the system of claim 1, based on the properties of the object as well as criteria as specified by the user wherein the search can be conducted either by said software client or be the trusted server.