System and method for the secure discovery, exploitation and publication of information

• US 6,092,197 A
• Filed: 12/31/1997
• Issued: 07/18/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Eprio, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Customer Logic Company, LLC
• Inventors: Coueignoux, Philippe
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheikh, Ayaz R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PANCHOLI, JIGAR K
• Application Number:
  US09/001,778
• Time in Patent Office: 930 Days
• Field of Search: 713/200, 709/200-203, 709/225, 705/78
• US Class Current: 726/21
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

System and method of discovering and exploiting information such as private or confidential facts from a user, while securing the information from unauthorized publication includes, a sender having a processing module transmitting a request for publication of information about a user; an agent in communication with the sender receiving the request for the information, and a user in communication with the agent responding to prompts initiated by the agent. The prompts request the user to reveal facts relating to the information desired by the sender, and provide indicia relating to authorization for publication of the disclosed facts to the sender. The agent discovers the facts and determines whether such facts are to be made available to the sender. The agent can include a memory module, and a processing module such as a rule engine using dialog classes, for communicating with the sender and user, determining whether the indicia of authorization for the facts permits publication of the facts to the sender, and publishing the facts to the sender when said indicia represents a grant of authorization for publication. The agent can exploit all the facts it has discovered, whether authorized or not for publication, to personalize its communication with the user.

Claims

1. System controlling the disclosure of facts of potential interest between parties, comprising:

a sender in communication with a first transmission medium;

a user in communication with a second transmission medium;

an agent in communication with said sender via said first transmission medium and in communication with said user via said second transmission medium, said agent comprising;

a processing module for initiating queries of said user, each of said queries asking said user to reveal a user related fact or to provide authorization for publication of said user related fact to said sender; and

a memory module in communication with said processing module for storing said user related facts and said authorizations for publication of said user related facts;

wherein said agent communicates to said sender only facts having authorization for publication provided by said user.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said processing module executes rules each of said rules having a condition and an action to be performed when said condition is satisfied.

3. The system according to claim 2, said rules further comprising interactive rules presenting said queries to said user.

4. The system according to claim 3, said interactive rules further presenting suggestions to said user.

5. The system according to claim 2, said rules further comprising pure rules exploiting said user related facts revealed by said user.

6. The system according to claim 2, said rules having a priority accorded thereto.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein said processing module selects for execution a rule based on said priority accorded thereto.

8. The system according to claim 7, wherein said priority is variable in response to said user related fact revealed by said user.

9. The system according to claim 1, said sender transmitting via said first transmission medium, a request for publication of user related facts revealed by said user.

10. The system according to claim 9, said processing module, in response to said request, providing said request for publication to said user, receiving a response from said user, said response comprising one of the following:

authorization for publication, denial of publication.

11. The system according to claim 10, said processing module further providing a time-out period within which said user response must be received, after which time, said processing module considers said response a denial of publication.

12. Method for providing secure discovery and publication to a first entity of facts relative to a second entity comprising:

receiving at a processing unit, a request from said first entity for a fact relative to said second entity;

providing said request to said second entity;

discovering from said second entity information comprising said fact relative to said second entity;

storing and exploiting said fact relative to said second entity and said information, said information comprising an authorization for publication of said fact relative to said second entity to said first entity; and

publishing said fact relative to said second entity to said first entity only when said information includes a grant of authorization to publish said fact relative to said second entity to said first entity.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

storing and exploiting said fact relative to said second entity when said information includes a denial of authorization to publish said fact relative to said second entity to said first entity.

14. The method according to claim 12, further comprising generating a list of name and value pairs, each name specifying a label associated with a fact, and each value specifying an answer revealed by the user for said fact.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

compiling an outbound facts list comprising facts which have a grant of authorization; and

transmitting said facts in said outbound facts list to said first entity.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising:

creating a private facts list comprising facts having a denial of authorization; and

requesting of the user, a grant of authorization of said facts in said private list.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising:

transferring a specific fact from said private fact list to said outbound facts list when said user responds with a grant of authorization of said specific fact.

18. System providing controlled disclosure of facts to a first entity by a second entity, comprising:

said first entity in communication with a transmission medium, said first entity comprising a first processing module transmitting a request for publication of a first fact over said transmission medium, wherein said first fact is related to said second entity; and

said second entity in communication with said transmission medium, receiving said request for said first fact from said first entity, said second entity comprising;

a memory module storing a plurality of facts including said first fact, each of said plurality of facts having an indicia of authorization for publication of each of said plurality of facts; and

a second processing module in communication with said memory module, for determining whether said indicia of authorization for said first fact permits publication of said first fact to said first entity, and disclosing said first fact to said first entity when said indicia of authorization permits publication of said first fact.

19. The system according to claim 18, said second processing module:

compiling an outbound list of facts whose indicia of authorization permit publication; and

transmitting said facts in said outbound list to said first entity.

20. The system according to claim 18, further comprising:

creating a private list of facts in said memory module whose indicia for authorization do not permit publication.

21. The system according to claim 18, wherein said first processing module, upon receiving said first fact, processes said fact to determine whether a request for a second fact should be generated.

22. The system according to claim 18, further comprising:

a third entity in communication with said transmission medium, said third entity revealing each of said plurality of facts to said second entity.

23. The system according to claim 22, further comprising:

creating a private list of facts in said memory module whose indicia for authorization do not permit publication; and

requesting of said third entity permission for publication of said facts in said private list.

24. The system according to claim 22, said second processing module exploiting said facts with a plurality of rules, said rules including prompts to said third entity requesting said facts.

25. The system according to claim 24, wherein said third entity comprises a third processing module.

26. The system according to claim 22, said second processing module exploiting said facts provided by said third entity and providing suggestions to said third entity.

27. The system according to claim 26, said second processing module providing suggestions that suggest to said third entity that said third entity communicate over said transmission medium with said first entity.

28. The system according to claim 26, said second processing module providing queries to said third entity for said facts and said indicia of authorization for publication.

29. Method providing controlled publication of facts to a first entity by a second entity, comprising:

transmitting from said first entity, a request for publication of a first fact over a transmission medium, wherein said first fact is related to said second entity;

receiving at said second entity, in communication with said transmission medium, said request for said first fact from said first entity;

accessing storage for said first fact and information relating to said fact, said information comprising an authorization for publication of said first fact to said first entity;

determining whether said information includes a grant of authorization for publication of said first fact to said first entity; and

publishing said first fact to said first entity when said grant of authorization permits publication of said first fact.

30. The method of claim 29, said first fact and said information further comprising:

questionnaire and a score; and

publishing said score to said first entity when a determination of a grant of authorization is made.

31. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

prompting a third entity for a first fact in response to a request for said first fact;

discovering said first fact from said third entity; and

generating additional prompts of said third entity in response to said first fact.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein said step of generating additional prompts comprises:

executing a plurality of rules, said rules exploiting said first fact to determine whether additional prompts of said third entity should be made.

33. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

receiving at said second entity a plurality of requests for publication;

prompting a third entity in response to said plurality of requests for publication;

discovering by said second entity a plurality of facts in response to said prompting;

assigning certain of said plurality of facts for publication to said first entity, said certain plurality of facts including a grant of authorization; and

publishing said certain of said plurality of facts to said first entity.

34. System for automatically determining mutual interest of entities comprising:

a first agent interacting with a first entity, and representing a second entity in said interaction with said first entity, said first agent being in communication with said second entity via a network;

a second agent interacting with said second entity and representing said first entity in said interaction with said second entity said second agent being in communication with said first entity via said network,

said first agent comprising a processing module for executing a plurality of rules, said rules comprising interactive rules initiating queries of said first entity, said queries asking said first entity to provide a fact and authorization for publication of said fact to said second entity, and said rules exploiting said facts; and

a memory module for storing said facts and said authorization for publication of said facts to said second entity; and

said second agent comprising a processing module for executing a plurality of rules, said rules comprising interactive rules initiating queries of said second entity, said queries asking said second entity to provide a fact and authorization for publication of said fact to said first entity, and said rules exploiting said facts; and

a memory module for storing said facts and said authorization for publication of said facts to said first entity;

wherein said first agent communicates to said second entity only facts having authorization for publication provided by said first entity, and wherein said second agent communicates to said first entity only facts having authorization for publication provided by said second entity.

35. Method for providing progressive, confidential determination of mutual interest between a pair of entities among a plurality of entities connected to a transmission network comprising:

(a) transmitting from a first entity, queries via said network;

(b) receiving said queries via said network at a second entity;

(c) presenting said queries by said second entity to a third entity on behalf of said first entity;

(d) revealing facts and authorizations to publish said facts to said first entity by said third entity to said second entity;

(e) discovering facts and authorizations to publish said facts to said first entity by said second entity from said third entity;

(f) exploiting said facts by said second entity;

(g) publishing said facts about said third entity by said second entity to said first entity via said network when authorization to publish said facts has been given by said third entity to said second entity; and

(h) receiving said facts about said third entity from said second entity by said first entity via said network.

36. The method of claim 35, further comprising:

(i) transmitting from said third entity, queries via said network;

(j) receiving said queries via said network at a fourth entity;

(k) presenting said queries by said fourth entity to said first entity on behalf of said third entity;

(l) revealing facts and authorizations to publish said facts to said third entity by said first entity to said fourth entity;

(m) discovering facts and authorizations to publish said facts to said third entity by said fourth entity from said first entity;

(n) exploiting said facts by said fourth entity;

(o) publishing said facts about said first entity by said fourth entity to said third entity via said network when authorization to publish said fact has been given by said first entity to said fourth entity;

(p) receiving said facts about said first entity from said fourth entity by said third entity via said network;

(q) transmitting new queries and suggestions by said first entity via said network to said second entity, taking into account published facts about said third entity received so far by said first entity; and

(r) repeating steps (a) through (q) until said first entity and said third entity stop communicating with said second entity and said fourth entity.

37. The method of claim 35, said facts comprising a questionnaire and a score, said score being published when one of said entities grants authorization.

38. The method of claim 36, said facts comprising a questionnaire and a score, said score being published when one of said entities grants authorization.