Method and apparatus for sending authentication request message in a social network

• US 8,566,396 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2010
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Inventors: Mo, Jianxiang, Ye, Jun
• Primary Examiner(s): DENNISON, JERRY B
• Application Number:
  US12/867,858
• Publication Number:
  US 20110125845A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,265 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0884 by delegation of authentication, e.g. a proxy authenticates an entity to be authenticated on behalf of this entity vis-à-vis an authentication entity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

The present disclosure describes a method and an apparatus for sending an authentication request message in a social network. In order to resolve the problem that there are few parameters to be relied on when a user authenticates a request seeking to establish a social network relationship with the user, the method disclosed by the present disclosure includes: a social network server that, after obtaining an authentication request message sent by a first client to a second client to request to establish a social network relationship, modifies the first client'"'"'s identification information in the first authentication request message to a third client'"'"'s identification information to obtain a second authentication request message. The third client has a social network relationship with the first client and also has a direct social network relationship with the second client. The second authentication request message is sent to the second client. As the third client'"'"'s identification information is used as identification information of a sending party in the second authentication request message that is sent to the second client, there will be more parameters for use when the second client verifies the request to establish the social network relationship.

Claims

1. A method for sending an authentication request message in a social network, the method comprising:

receiving, by a social network server, a first authentication request message from a first client to request to establish a social network relationship with a second client, the first authentication request message including identification information of a first client;

sending, by the social network server, to a third client a confirmation request to send a second authentication request message to the second client, the third client having a social network relationship with the first client and having a direct social network relationship with the second client;

sending, by the social network server, the second authentication request message to the third client after receiving a response to the confirmation request from the third client;

in responding to a determination of the response to the confirmation request, modifying, by the social network server, the first client identification information in the first authentication request message to include identification information of the third client to obtain the second authentication request message; and

sending, by the social networking server, the second authentication request message to the second client.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein, between the receiving and the modifying, the method further comprises:

determining, by the social network server according to a degree of familiarity with the second client, the third client from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the determining comprises:

determining, by the social network server according to a degree of familiarity with the first client and a degree of familiarity with the second client, the third client from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client.

4. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein, between the receiving and the modifying, the method further comprises:

determining, by the social network server from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client, the third client that has a maximum degree of familiarity with the second client.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein, between the receiving and the modifying, the method further comprises:

sending, by the social network server, to the first client identification information of all clients having social network relationship with the first client and direct social relation with the second client; and

selecting, by the social network server, the third client according to selection information of the first client.

6. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the degree of familiarity is obtained from a following formula:

X=N*T+Min(Y*P,Pmax), wherein;

Pmax<

P*Y;

X represents a degree of familiarity between two clients having social network relationship;

N represents a time period during which the two clients have social network relationship;

T represents a corresponding degree of familiarity value for a standard unit time;

Y represents a maximum number of times that the two clients exchange information within the standard unit time;

P represents a degree of familiarity value of two clients exchanging information once within the standard unit time; and

Pmax represents a maximum degree of familiarity value of the two clients exchanging information within the standard unit time.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the social network server searches the third client through a social network relationship list of the first client and a social network relationship list of the second client.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the social network server modifies a textual description in the first authentication request message to obtain the second authentication request message.

9. An apparatus for sending an authentication request message in a social network, the apparatus comprising:

one or more processors; and

server memory that includes a plurality of computer-executable components, the plurality of computer-executable components comprising;

a receiving module that receives a first authentication request message sent by a first client to request to establish a social network relationship with a second client, the first authentication request message including identification information of the first client;

a modification module that modifies the identification information of the first client to include identification information of a third client to obtain a second authentication request message in responding to a determination of a response to a confirmation request that is sent by the apparatus to the third client, the third client having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client;

a third sending module that sends to the third client the second authentication request message, wherein the first sending module sends the second authentication request message to the second client after receiving the responding confirmation message from the third client; and

a first sending module that sends the second authentication request message to the second client.

10. The apparatus as recited in claim 9, wherein the apparatus further comprises a determination module that determines the third client, according to a degree of familiarity with the second client, from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client.

11. The apparatus as recited in claim 9, wherein the apparatus further comprises a determination module that determines the third client, according to a degree of familiarity with the first client and a degree of familiarity with the second client, from among clients having a direct social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client.

12. The apparatus as recited in claim 9, wherein the apparatus further comprises a determination module that determines the third client that has a maximum degree of familiarity with the second client from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client.

13. The apparatus as recited in claim 9, wherein the apparatus further comprises:

a second sending module that sends to the first client identification information of all clients having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client; and

a determination module that determines the third client according to selection information of the first client.

14. Non-transitory server memory storing computer-program executable instructions executable by a processor for:

receiving, by a social network server, a first authentication request message from a first client to request to establish a social network relationship with a second client, the first authentication request message including identification information of a first client;

sending, by the social network server, to a third client a confirmation request to send a second authentication request message to the second client, the third client having a social network relationship with the first client and having a direct social network relationship with the second client;

sending, by the social network server, the second authentication request message to the third client after receiving a response to the confirmation request from the third client;

in responding to a determination of the response to the confirmation request, modifying, by the social network server, the first client identification information in the first authentication request message to include identification information of the third client to obtain the second authentication request message; and

sending, by the social networking server, the second authentication request message to the second client.

15. The non-transitory server memory as recited in claim 14, wherein, between the receiving and the modifying, the method further comprises:

determining, by the social network server according to a degree of familiarity with the second client, the third client from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client.

16. The non-transitory server memory as recited in claim 15, wherein the determining comprises:

determining, by the social network server according to a degree of familiarity with the first client and a degree of familiarity with the second client, the third client from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client and a direct social network relationship with the second client.

17. The non-transitory server memory as recited in claim 15, wherein, between the receiving and the modifying, the method further comprises:

determining, by the social network server from among clients having a social network relationship with the first client, the third client that has a maximum degree of familiarity with the second client.

18. The non-transitory server memory as recited in claim 14, wherein, between the receiving and the modifying, the method further comprises:

sending, by the social network server, to the first client identification information of all clients having social network relationship with the first client and direct social relation with the second client; and

selecting, by the social network server, the third client according to selection information of the first client.

19. The non-transitory server memory as recited in claim 14, wherein the social network server searches the third client through a social network relationship list of the first client and a social network relationship list of the second client.

20. The non-transitory server memory as recited in claim 14, wherein the social network server modifies a textual description in the first authentication request message to obtain the second authentication request message.