Location Based Privacy for Proximity Services

• US 20140066018A1
• Filed: 09/04/2013
• Published: 03/06/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Original Assignee: TeleCommunication Systems Inc (Comtech Telecommunications Corporation)
• Inventors: Zhu, Yinjun
• Application Number:
  US14/017,846
• Publication Number:
  US 20140066018A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/411
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/51 Discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/02 Protecting privacy or anonymity, e.g. protecting personally identifiable information [PII]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

Location based privacy settings for proximity based services that enable an end-user to define one or more geographic areas, and then explicitly opt in or opt out to proximity based services per geographic area. Location based privacy settings can be stored and managed at a network level or stored and managed locally. In the network-centric solution, privacy settings for proximity based services are defined via a subscriber privacy register. In the mobile-centric solution, privacy settings for proximity based services are defined via a user interface on a proximity services enabled device. When a proximity services enabled device receives a request for proximity based services (i.e. a peer discovery signal command for device discovery or a peer-to-peer communications request for direct communications), the device checks the current date/time and a serving network identifier/current location against location based privacy settings to determine if proximity based services are allowed on the device.

Claims

1. A network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services, comprising:

a subscriber privacy register for defining a location based privacy setting for proximity based services;

a proximity service register to maintain subscriber data for said proximity based services; and

a home location server to obtain location information for said proximity services enabled device.

2. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 1, wherein:

said location based privacy setting includes a user-defined geographic area.

3. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 2, wherein:

a location based privacy restriction is assigned to said geographic area defined in said location based privacy setting.

4. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 3, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

not discoverable.

5. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 3, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications not allowed.

6. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 3, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed only upon user consent.

7. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 3, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed only upon user consent and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed only upon user consent.

8. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 3, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed.

9. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 2, wherein:

said home location server converts said geographic area defined in said location based privacy setting to a corresponding network identifier.

10. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 1, wherein:

said location based privacy setting is stored and managed at a network level.

11. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 1, wherein:

said location based privacy setting is stored in a subscriber privacy database on said subscriber privacy register.

12. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 1, wherein:

said proximity service register forwards said location based privacy setting to said proximity services enabled device during a network registration.

13. The network-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 1, wherein:

said proximity services enabled device checks a current data and time and a serving network identifier against said location based privacy setting to determine if proximity based services are allowed on said proximity services enabled device.

14. A mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services, comprising:

defining a location based privacy setting on a proximity services enabled device;

triggering a mobile-originated positioning procedure to obtain current location information; and

enabling proximity based services on said proximity services enabled device, based on a match of current date and time, and said current location information, against said location based privacy setting.

15. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 14, wherein:

said location based privacy setting is defined via a user interface on said proximity services enabled device.

16. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 14, wherein:

said location based privacy setting is managed locally on said proximity services enabled device.

17. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 14, wherein:

said location based privacy setting includes a user-defined geographic area.

18. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 17, wherein:

a location based privacy restriction is assigned to said geographic area defined in said location based privacy setting.

19. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 18, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

not discoverable.

20. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 18, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications not allowed.

21. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 18, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed only upon user consent.

22. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 18, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed only upon user consent and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed only upon user consent.

23. The mobile-centric solution for providing location based privacy for proximity based services according to claim 18, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed.

24. A method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services, comprising:

defining a location based privacy setting for a proximity services enabled device at a subscriber privacy register;

registering with a proximity service register via cell ID and service ID;

forwarding said location based privacy setting defined for said proximity services enabled device to said proximity services enabled device during network registration; and

enabling proximity based services on said proximity services enabled device, based on a match of current date and time, and said current location information, against said location based privacy setting.

25. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 24, wherein:

said location based privacy setting defined for said proximity services enabled device includes a geographic area.

26. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 25, wherein:

a location based privacy restriction is assigned to said geographic area defined in said location based privacy setting.

27. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 26, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

not discoverable.

28. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 26, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications not allowed.

29. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 26, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed only upon user consent.

30. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 26, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed only upon user consent and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed only upon user consent.

31. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 26, wherein said location based privacy restriction is:

discovery allowed and peer-to-peer (p2p) communications allowed.

32. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 24, wherein:

said location based privacy setting forwarded to said proximity services enabled device includes a network identifier converted from said geographic area defined in said location based privacy setting.

33. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 32, wherein:

said geographic area is converted to a network identifier by a home location server.

34. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 24, wherein:

said location based privacy setting is stored and managed at a network level.

35. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 24, wherein:

said location based privacy setting is stored in a subscriber privacy database on said subscriber privacy register.

36. The method for providing a network-centric location based privacy solution for proximity based services according to claim 24, wherein:

said proximity service register forwards said location based privacy setting to said proximity services enabled device during network registration.