Secure Distributed Device-to-Device Network
First Claim
1. An electronic device, comprising:
- an interface circuit configured to communicate with a group of one or more other instances of the electronic device via dynamic connections that are based on pre-established and maintained associations in a device-to-device network of a user of the electronic device, wherein the associations are maintained for longer time than the dynamic connections, andwherein a given dynamic connection between the electronic device and a given instance of the electronic device in the group is setup by the electronic device without assistance of a computer in another network, which conveys the communication between the electronic device and the given instance of the electronic device via at least a non-wireless communication technique;
memory; and
a control mechanism, coupled to the interface circuit and the memory, configured to;
receive content from the user,accessing an encryption key associated with the user that is stored in the memory;
generate a message based on the content, wherein generating the message involves encrypting the content based on the encryption key; and
provide, via the interface circuit, the message to at least a second instance of the electronic device in the group at a location specified by one of the associations, wherein the second instance of the electronic device is associated with a second user in the device-to-device network.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An electronic device in a device-to-device network of a user of the electronic device communicates with a group of one or more other instances of the electronic via dynamic connections that are based on pre-established and maintained (i.e., long-lived) associations in the device-to-device network. Moreover, a given dynamic connection between the electronic device and a given instance of the electronic device in the group is setup by the electronic device without assistance of a computer in another network, which conveys the communication within the group. During operation, the electronic device: receives content from the user; generates a message by encrypting the content using an encryption key associated with the user; and provides the message to at least a second instance of the electronic device in the group, which is associated with a second user in the device-to-device network, at a location specified by one of the associations.
75 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An electronic device, comprising:
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an interface circuit configured to communicate with a group of one or more other instances of the electronic device via dynamic connections that are based on pre-established and maintained associations in a device-to-device network of a user of the electronic device, wherein the associations are maintained for longer time than the dynamic connections, and wherein a given dynamic connection between the electronic device and a given instance of the electronic device in the group is setup by the electronic device without assistance of a computer in another network, which conveys the communication between the electronic device and the given instance of the electronic device via at least a non-wireless communication technique; memory; and a control mechanism, coupled to the interface circuit and the memory, configured to; receive content from the user, accessing an encryption key associated with the user that is stored in the memory; generate a message based on the content, wherein generating the message involves encrypting the content based on the encryption key; and provide, via the interface circuit, the message to at least a second instance of the electronic device in the group at a location specified by one of the associations, wherein the second instance of the electronic device is associated with a second user in the device-to-device network. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A computer-program product for use in conjunction with an electronic device, the computer-program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and a computer-program mechanism embedded therein to provide a message, the computer-program mechanism including:
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instructions for receiving content from the user; instructions for accessing an encryption key associated with the user that is stored in memory; instructions for generating the message based on the content, where generating the message involves encrypting the content based on the encryption key; and instructions for providing, via an interface circuit in the electronic device, the message to at least a second instance of the electronic device in a group of one or more other instances of the electronic device in a device-to-device network of a user of the electronic device, wherein the second instance of the electronic device is associated with a second user in the device-to-device network; wherein the second instance of the electronic device is at a location specified by a pre-established and maintained association between the electronic device and the second instance of the electronic device; wherein the association is maintained for longer time than the dynamic connection; and wherein the providing involves at least a dynamic connection that is based on the association and that is set up by the electronic device without assistance of a computer in another network, which conveys the communication between the electronic device and the second instance of the electronic device via at least a non-wireless communication technique. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. An electronic-device-implemented method for providing a message, wherein the method comprises:
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receiving content from the user; accessing an encryption key associated with the user that is stored in memory; generating the message based on the content, where generating the message involves encrypting the content based on the encryption key; and providing, via an interface circuit in the electronic device, the message to at least a second instance of the electronic device in a group of one or more other instances of the electronic device in a device-to-device network of a user of the electronic device, wherein the second instance of the electronic device is associated with a second user in the device-to-device network; wherein the second instance of the electronic device is at a location specified by a pre-established and maintained association between the electronic device and the second instance of the electronic device; wherein the association is maintained for longer time than the dynamic connection; and wherein the providing involves at least a dynamic connection that is based on the association and that is set up by the electronic device without assistance of a computer in another network, which conveys the communication between the electronic device and the second instance of the electronic device via at least a non-wireless communication technique.
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Specification