Walled garden system for providing access to one or more websites that incorporate content from other websites and method thereof

• US 8,448,231 B2
• Filed: 10/05/2010
• Issued: 05/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Guest-tek Interactive Entertainment Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Guest-tek Interactive Entertainment Ltd.
• Inventors: Ong, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Shiferaw, Eleni
• Assistant Examiner(s): SIMS, JING F
• Application Number:
  US12/898,254
• Publication Number:
  US 20120084852A1
• Time in Patent Office: 959 Days
• Field of Search: 726/12, 709/717
• US Class Current: 726/11
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9566 URL specific, e.g. using aliases, detecting broken or misspelled links
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/51 at application loading time, e.g. accepting, rejecting, starting or inhibiting executable software based on integrity or source reliability
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2119 Authenticating web pages, e.g. with suspicious links
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0236 Filtering by address, protocol, port number or service, e.g. IP-address or URL
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0281 Proxies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/564 Enhancement of application control based on intercepted application data

Abstract

A cleared sites list includes one or more hostname descriptors. A firewall includes rules associated with a cleared IP list including cleared IP addresses, and permits transfer of a cleared HTTP request from a user device to a cleared destination IP address that matches one of the cleared IP addresses. A controller examines a non-cleared HTTP request from the user device to a non-cleared destination IP address that does not match one of the cleared IP addresses, and acts as a transparent proxy between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address when a destination host header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list. The controller further acts as a transparent proxy between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address when a referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list.

Claims

1. A walled garden system for providing access from user devices to one or more websites specified on a cleared sites list, the cleared sites list having one or more hostname descriptors, the walled garden system comprising:

a firewall device having rules associated with a cleared internet protocol (IP) list including one or more cleared IP addresses corresponding to websites on the cleared sites list, wherein the cleared sites list contains a list of external websites accessible by a user and specified by either IP addresses or hostnames;

the firewall device for permitting direct transfer of only cleared hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) requests from a user device, wherein each of the cleared HTTP requests is to a cleared destination IP address that matches one of the cleared IP addresses; and

a controller for examining non-cleared HTTP requests from the user device, wherein each of the non-cleared HTTP requests is to a non-cleared destination IP address that does not match one of the cleared IP addresses,

the controller for acting as a transparent proxy between the user device and a non-cleared destination IP address of a non-cleared HTTP request when any of a destination host header and a referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list, and

the controller for blocking the non-cleared HTTP request when neither of the destination host header nor the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list;

wherein the controller is further configured to;

add, with a first expiry setting, the destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request to the cleared IP addresses of the firewall device when the destination host header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list; and

add, with a second expiry setting, the destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request to the cleared IP addresses of the firewall device when only the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list.

2. The walled garden system of claim 1, wherein:

the cleared sites list further includes at least one referrer-enabled hostname descriptor having a configuration option enabling referrer based access; and

when the destination host header of the non-cleared HTTP request does not match a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list, the controller is for acting as the transparent proxy between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request only when the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a referrer-enabled hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list.

3. The walled garden system of claim 1, wherein:

at least one hostname descriptor on the cleared sites list includes one or more wildcards; and

the controller is further for searching for matches of the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request to a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list taking into account the wildcards.

4. The walled garden system of claim 1, wherein:

the controller is further for removing destination IP addresses from the cleared IP addresses after an expiry duration associated with each destination IP address; and

the first expiry setting specifies a first expiry duration being longer than a second expiry duration specified by the second expiry setting.

5. The walled garden system of claim 1, wherein:

the firewall directly transfers connection requests associated with the cleared HTTP requests to an external network, and forwards connection requests associated with the non-cleared HTTP requests to the controller; and

the controller accepts the connection requests associated with the non-cleared HTTP requests in order to examine the non-cleared HTTP requests.

6. The walled garden system of claim 1, wherein when acting as the transparent proxy between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address when the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list, the controller is for acting as the transparent proxy for only one HTTP request-response transaction between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address.

7. The walled garden system of claim 1, wherein the controller is further for periodically performing a DNS lookup on exact hostname descriptors on the cleared sites list and adding one or more resulting DNS-resolved IP addresses to the cleared IP list.

8. The walled garden system of claim 7, wherein the exact hostname descriptors on the cleared sites list are hostname descriptors that do not include wildcards.

9. A method in a walled garden system of providing access from user devices to one or more websites specified on a cleared sites list, the cleared sites list having one or more hostname descriptors, the method comprising:

storing a cleared internet protocol (IP) list including one or more cleared IP addresses corresponding to websites on the cleared sites list, wherein the cleared sites list contains a list of external websites accessible by a user and specified by either IP addresses or hostnames;

permitting direct transfer of only cleared hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) requests from a user device, wherein each of the cleared HTTP requests is to a cleared destination IP address that matches one of the cleared IP addresses;

examining non-cleared HTTP requests from the user device, wherein each of the non-cleared HTTP requests is to a non-cleared destination IP address that does not match one of the cleared IP addresses;

transparent proxying between the user device and a non-cleared destination IP address of a non-cleared HTTP request when any of a destination host header and a referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list;

blocking the non-cleared HTTP request when neither of the destination host header nor the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list;

adding, with a first expiry setting, the destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request to the cleared IP addresses when the destination host header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list; and

adding, with a second expiry setting, the destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request to the cleared IP addresses when only the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

when the destination host header of the non-cleared HTTP request does not match a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list, transparent proxying between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request only when the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a referrer-enabled hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list;

wherein the cleared sites list further includes at least one referrer-enabled hostname descriptor having a configuration option enabling referrer based access.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

searching for matches of the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request to a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list taking into account wildcards;

wherein at least one hostname descriptor on the cleared sites list includes one or more wildcards.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

removing destination IP addresses from the cleared IP addresses after an expiry duration associated with each destination IP address;

wherein the first expiry setting specifies a first expiry duration being longer than a second expiry duration specified by the second expiry setting.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

directly transferring connection requests associated with the cleared HTTP requests to an external network; and

accepting connection requests associated with the non-cleared HTTP requests in order to examine the non-cleared HTTP requests.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising, when transparent proxying between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address when the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list, transparent proxying for only one HTTP request-response transaction between the user device and the non-cleared destination IP address.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising periodically performing a DNS lookup on exact hostname descriptors on the cleared sites list and adding one or more resulting DNS-resolved IP addresses to the cleared IP list;

the exact hostname descriptors on the cleared sites list being hostname descriptors that do not include wildcards.

16. A walled garden system for providing access from user devices to one or more websites specified on a cleared sites list, the cleared sites list having one or more hostname descriptors, the walled garden system comprising:

a cleared internet protocol (IP) list including one or more cleared IP addresses corresponding to websites on the cleared sites list, wherein the cleared sites list contains a list of external websites accessible by a user and specified by either IP addresses or hostnames;

means for permitting direct transfer of only cleared hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) requests from a user device, wherein each of the cleared HTTP requests is to a cleared destination IP address that matches one of the cleared IP addresses;

means for examining non-cleared HTTP requests from the user device, wherein each of the non-cleared HTTP requests is to a non-cleared destination IP address that does not match one of the cleared IP addresses;

means for transparent proxying between the user device and a non-cleared destination IP address of a non-cleared HTTP request when any of a destination host header and a referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list;

means for blocking the non-cleared HTTP request when neither of the destination host header nor the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list;

means for adding, with a first expiry setting, the destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request to the cleared IP addresses when the destination host header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list; and

means for adding, with a second expiry setting, the destination IP address of the non-cleared HTTP request to the cleared IP addresses when only the referrer header of the non-cleared HTTP request matches a hostname descriptor of the cleared sites list.