SYSTEM AND METHOD OF MODIFYING POLICY SETTINGS IN AN ELECTRONIC DEVICE

• US 20170164202A1
• Filed: 02/22/2017
• Published: 06/08/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: PEARCE, Graham
• Granted Patent: US 10,524,129 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/084 using delegated authorisation, e.g. open authorisation [OAuth] protocol
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/205 Transfer to or from user equipment or user record carrier

Abstract

The present invention provides a system and method of modifying policy settings in an electronic device. An embodiment includes a plurality of access stations, each capable of wirelessly transmitting across a geographic region. A mobile electronic device, capable of roaming between regions is operable to establish a wireless link with the access stations. The device is owned by an office which sets communication policies determining through which access stations mobile device can place voice calls. This policy is stored on an office server as a database and periodically transmitted to the device as the device makes contact with the office server over the internet. Hence, the device maintains a copy of this policy database. When placing a voice call, the device first determines which access station is serving the region it is located in and then determines whether it is allowed to place a call through that access station using its policy database.

Claims

1-19. -19. (canceled)

20. A mobile device comprising:

an interface configured to communicate between the mobile device and at least one access station via a link defined in one or more IEEE 802.11 specifications in each of a plurality of geographic regions, the at least one access station having an identifier that identifies a wireless carrier; and

,

a microcomputer connected to the interface and configured to;

maintain a policy associated with the at least one access station, the policy comprising a list of restricted wireless carriers; and

restrict the interface from communicating in accordance with the policy when a value of a received wireless carrier identifier is of a specific value.

21. The mobile device of claim 20, wherein the interface is further configured to communicate between the mobile device and at least one access station using a plurality of different services.

22. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the plurality of different services include one or more of voice, emails, internet browsing and text messaging.

23. The mobile device of claim 21, wherein the microcomputer is further configured to maintain a second policy comprising a first indication permitting one of the plurality of different services in at least one of the plurality of geographic regions, and a second indication disallowing another one of the plurality of different services in the at least one of the plurality of geographic regions.

24. The mobile device of claim 20, wherein the interface is further configured to communicate between the mobile device and the at least one access station in at least one of a plurality of formats, the plurality of formats having different susceptibility to interception, the microcomputer further configured to maintain a second policy which disallows communications in at least one of the plurality of geographic regions, based on format.

25. The mobile device of claim 24, wherein the formats comprise one or more of CDMA, OFDM, AMPS, GSM, GPRS, Bluetooth™

, infra-red and 802.11.

26. The mobile device of claim 20, wherein the microcomputer is further configured to maintain a second policy which disallows communications in at least one of the plurality of geographic regions when a cost for conducting the communications exceeds a predefined threshold.

27. The mobile device of claim 20, wherein the interface is further configured to communicate between the mobile device and at least one access station using least one of Ethernet, USB, Firewire and RS-232.

28. A communication system comprising at least one mobile device of claim 20 and a server, wherein the server is configured to:

decide the policy and transmit the policy to the at least one mobile device such that the server controls the communication.

29. A method comprising:

at a mobile device comprising;

an interface configured to communicate between the mobile device and at least one access station via a link defined in one or more IEEE 802.11 specifications in each of a plurality of geographic regions, the at least one access station having an identifier that identifies a wireless carrier; and

a microcomputer connected to the interface,

maintaining, using the microcomputer, a policy associated with the at least one access station, the policy comprising a list of restricted wireless carriers; and

restricting, using the microcomputer, the interface from communicating in accordance with the policy when a value of a received wireless carrier identifier is of a specific value.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the interface is further configured to communicate between the mobile device and at least one access station using a plurality of different services.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the plurality of different services include one or more of voice, emails, internet browsing and text messaging.

32. The method of claim 30, further comprising:

maintaining, using the microcomputer, a second policy comprising a first indication permitting one of the plurality of different services in at least one of the plurality of geographic regions, and a second indication disallowing another one of the plurality of different services in the at least one of the plurality of geographic regions.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein the interface is further configured to communicate between the mobile device and the at least one access station in at least one of a plurality of formats, the plurality of formats having different susceptibility to interception, and the method further comprises maintaining, using the microcomputer a second policy which disallows communications in at least one of the plurality of geographic regions, based on format.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the formats comprise one or more of CDMA, OFDM, AMPS, GSM, GPRS, Bluetooth™

, infra-red and 802.11.

35. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

maintaining, using the microcomputer, a second policy which disallows communications in at least one of the plurality of geographic regions when a cost for conducting the communications exceeds a predefined threshold.

36. The method of claim 29, wherein the interface is further configured to communicate between the mobile device and the at least one access station using least one of Ethernet, USB, Firewire and RS-232.

37. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a computer program, wherein execution of the computer program is for:

at a mobile device comprising;

an interface configured to communicate between the mobile device and at least one access station via a link defined in one or more IEEE 802.11 specifications in each of a plurality of geographic regions, the at least one access station having an identifier that identifies a wireless carrier; and

a microcomputer connected to the interface,

maintaining, using the microcomputer, a policy associated with the at least one access station, the policy comprising a list of restricted wireless carriers; and

restricting, using the microcomputer, the interface from communicating in accordance with the policy when a value of a received wireless carrier identifier is of a specific value.