Data obfuscation of text data using entity detection and replacement

• US 7,724,918 B2
• Filed: 11/22/2006
• Issued: 05/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Datta, Souptik, Ananthanarayanan, Rema, Balakrishnan, Sreeram Viswanath
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns; Andrew W
• Assistant Examiner(s): HEIDEMANN, JASON E
• Application Number:
  US11/562,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20080118150A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,280 Days
• Field of Search: 713/189, 713/190, 713/194, 380/1, 380/252, 380/243, 380/246, 380/54, 380 55- 59, 382/100, 382/176, 726/26, 726/27, 726/2, 726/16
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/62 Protecting access to data via a platform, e.g. using keys or access control rules
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6209 to a single file or object, e.g. in a secure envelope, encrypted and accessed using a key, or with access control rules appended to the object itself
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/157 using dictionaries or tables

Abstract

A data obfuscation method, apparatus and computer program product are disclosed in which at least selected text entities such as words or abbreviations in a document are obfuscated to prevent the disclosure of private information if the document is disclosed. A user establishes various configuration parameters for selected text entities desired to obfuscated. The document is processed and text entities matching the configuration parameters are tagged for obfuscation. The tagged entities are then substituted in the document with obfuscating text. The obfuscating text can be derived from a hash table. The hash table may be used to provide a reverse obfuscation method by which original data can be restored to an obfuscated document.

Claims

1. A method of selectively obfuscating text data in a document, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) identifying configuration parameters to be used in said obfuscation;

(b) identifying text data in said document for obfuscation using said identified configuration parameters;

(c) transforming said identified text data using obfuscating data associated with at least one of said configuration parameters; and

(d) substituting said transformed data form the respective said identified text data into said document,

wherein the configuration parameters include at least predetermined text entity types for obfuscation,

wherein step (b) comprises annotating each identified text data in the document with a respective tag,

wherein the corresponding tag includes information of a configuration parameter by which the annotated text data was identified,

wherein step (c) comprises using the tag to access a data source from which corresponding obfuscating data is selected for substitution of said annotated text data in the document,

wherein selection of the obfuscating data from the data source is performed by a hash function,

wherein each said configuration parameter has a corresponding said data source,

wherein said hash function comprises a mapping from text data associated with the corresponding tag and obfuscating data, and

wherein the mapping retains a record of at least the text data for which obfuscation data was substituted into said document.