Method, system and apparatus for authorizing access by a first user to a knowledge profile of a second user responsive to an access request from the first user

• US 6,253,202 B1
• Filed: 09/18/1998
• Issued: 06/26/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Tacit Knowledge Systems Inc (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: Gilmour, David L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Application Number:
  US09/156,468
• Time in Patent Office: 1,012 Days
• Field of Search: 707/9, 707/10, 707/1-2, 707/104, 709/217-219, 705/14.1, 705/35-37, 705/26, 705/7-10, 705/14, 705/38, 705/24, 713/200-202
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/30 of unstructured textual data document management systems G06F16/93
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/922 Communications
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

A method of authorizing a user profile access request includes the step of detecting the access request from an inquiring user to access a user profile of a target user. Responsive to the detected access request, an authorization request is automatically generated and sent to the target user. In response to the authorization request, the target user may then authorize access to his or her user profile by the inquiring user. Of course, the target user may also decline access to the relevant user profile.

Claims

1. A method of authorizing a user profile access request, the method including:

detecting an access request from a first user to access a user profile of a second user;

responsive to the access request, automatically communicating an authorization request to the second user, the authorization request presenting to the second user an opportunity to provide an access grant authorizing access to the user profile of the second user by the first user; and

receiving the access grant from the second user and, responsive to the receipt of the access grant from the second user, allowing access to at least a portion of the user profile of the second user by the first user.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the allowed access comprises the publication of at least the portion of the user profile of the second user to the first user.

3. The method of claim 1 including prior to automatically communicating the authorization request, determining whether a pre-existing authorization or denial of authorization exists with respect to the user profile of the second user.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the access request from the first user includes a request term for comparison to a user term in the user profile of the second user, and the detecting comprises detecting a correspondence between the request term and the user term.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the user profile of the second user includes a private portion and a public portion, and the detecting comprises determining whether the user term is in the private portion of the user profile of the second user, and only automatically communicating the authorization request if the user term is within the private portion of the user profile of the second user.

6. The method of claim 4 wherein the request term is provided by the first user via a browser interface to a web server.

7. The method of claim 4 wherein the request term comprises a user-selected portion of text provided from an e-mail client associated with the first user.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the automatic communication of the authorization request comprises identifying a web site to the second user at which the authorization for access is granted or denied.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the automatic communication of the authorization request comprises generating an electronic mail and propagating the electronic mail to the second user.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the electronic mail identifies a web site to the second user at which the authorization for access is granted or denied.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the electronic mail presents the options of denying or authorizing access to the user profile of the second user by the first user.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the authorization request presents the option to the second user of forwarding the authorization request to a third user.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the authorization request presents the option to the second user of modifying the user profile.

14. A system for authorizing a user profile access request, the apparatus including:

a detector to detect an access request from a first user to access a user profile of a second user; and

an authorizer, responsive to the access request, automatically to communicate an authorization request to the second user, the authorization request presenting to the second user an opportunity to provide an access grant authorizing access to the user profile of the second user by the first user and, responsive to a receipt of the access grant from the second user, to allow access to at least a portion of the user profile of the second user by the first user.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the authorizer, prior to communicating the authorization request, determines whether a preexisting authorization or denial of authorization exists with respect to the user profile of the second user.

16. The system of claim 14 wherein the access request from the first user includes a request term for comparison to a user term in the user profile of the second user, and wherein the detector detects a correspondence between the request term and the user term.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the user profile of the second user includes a private portion and a public portion, and the detector determines whether the user term is in the private portion of the user profile, and only communicates the authorization request if the user term is within the private portion of the user profile.

18. The system of claim 16 wherein the detector is configured to receive the request term via a browser interface of a web server.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein the detector is configured to receive the request term as part of a user selected portion of text provided from an e-mail client associated with the first user.

20. The system of claim 14 wherein the authorizer is configured to identify a web site to the second user at which the authorization for access is granted or denied.

21. The system of claim 14 wherein the authorizer is configured to generate and propagate an electronic mail, identifying a web site, to the second user, at which the authorization for access is granted or denied.

22. The system of claim 14 wherein the authorizer is configured to generate an electronic mail in a form presenting options of denying or authorizing access to the user profile of the second user by the first user.

23. The system of claim 14 wherein the authorizer is configured to present the authorization request in a form presenting an option to the second user of forwarding the authorization request to a third user.

24. The system of claim 14 wherein the authorizer is configured to present the authorization request in a form presenting an option to the second user of modifying the user profile.

25. Apparatus for authorizing a user profile access request, the apparatus including:

means for detecting an access request from a first user to access a user profile of a second user; and

means, responsive to the access request, for generating an authorization request to the second user request, the authorization request presenting to the second user a mechanism to provide an access grant authorizing access to the user profile of the second user by the first user and, responsive to a receipt of the access grant from the second user, for allowing access to at least a portion of the user profile of the second user by the first user.

26. A machine-readable medium storing a sequence of instructions that, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to:

detect an access request from a first user to access a user profile of a second user;

responsive to the access request, automatically generating an authorization request to the second user, the authorization request presenting to the second user an opportunity to provide an access grant authorizing access to the user profile by the first user; and

receiving the access grant and, responsive to the receipt of the access grant from the second user, allowing access to at least a portion of the user profile of the second user by the first user.

27. The machine-readable medium of claim 26 wherein the sequence of instructions cause the machine to, prior to generating the authorization request, determine whether a pre-existing authorization or denial of authorization exists with respect to the user profile.

28. The machine-readable medium of claim 26 wherein the access request from the first user includes a request term for comparison to a user term in the user profile of the second user, and wherein the sequence of instructions cause the machine to detect a correspondence between the request term and the user term.

29. The machine-readable medium of claim 28 wherein the user profile includes a private portion and a public portion, and wherein the sequence of instructions cause the machine to determine whether the user term is in the private portion of the user profile, and only to generate the authorization request if the user term is within the private portion of the user profile.