Method and apparatus for providing end-to-end privacy for distributed computations

• US 8,661,500 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2011
• Issued: 02/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Boldyrev, Sergey, Laine, Hannu Ensio, Honkola, Jukka, Luukkala, Vesa-Veikko, Oliver, Ian Justin, Kaaja, Jari-Jukka Harald
• Primary Examiner(s): Chai, Longbit
• Application Number:
  US13/112,126
• Publication Number:
  US 20120297441A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,012 Days
• Field of Search: 726/1
• US Class Current: 726/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes

Abstract

An approach is provided for providing end-to-end privacy in multi-level distributed computations. A distributed computation privacy platform determines one or more privacy policies associated with at least one level of a computational environment. The distributed computation privacy platform also determines one or more computation closures associated with the at least one level of the computational environment. The distributed computation privacy platform further processes and/or facilitates a processing of the one or more privacy policies and the one or more computation closures to cause, at least in part, an enforcement of the one or more privacy policies.

Claims

1. A method comprising facilitating a processing of and/or processing (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal, the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal based, at least in part, on the following:

one or more privacy policies associated with at least one level of a computational environment;

one or more computation closures associated with the at least one level of the computational environment; and

a processing, by a processor, of the one or more privacy policies and the one or more computation closures to determine whether to cause, at least in part, an enforcement of the one or more privacy policies by issuing a request for one or more higher privacy capabilities or replacing the one or more computation closures with one or more lower privacy requiring computation closures when the one or more computation closures are transferred to the at least one level of the computational environment that does not have sufficient one or more privacy capabilities from at least one other level of the computational environment,

wherein a combination of at least one of the one or more computation closures with one or more other computation closures is based, at least in part, on one or more parameters and the enforcement of the one or more privacy policies is based, at least in part, on the combination.

2. A method of claim 1, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

at least one determination that at least one capability of the at least one of the one or more computation closures is for causing, at least in part, the enforcement of the one or more privacy policies.

3. A method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include, at least in part, one or more capabilities of nodes of the computational environment, at least one functional flow of the one or more computation closures, one or more cost functions, one or more rules, or a combination thereof.

4. A method of claim 3, wherein the one or more capabilities include, at least in part, one or more energy consumption capabilities, one or more security enforcement capabilities, one or more privacy enforcement capabilities, one or more available resources, or a combination thereof.

5. A method of claim 1, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

a pre-creation of the at least one of the one or more computation closures.

6. A method of claim 1, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

one or more other privacy policies associated with the at least one other level of the computational environment,

wherein the enforcement comprises enforcing a combination of the one or more privacy policies and the one or more other privacy policies.

7. A method of claim 1, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

a processing of the one or more privacy policies, the one or more computation closures, or a combination thereof to determine one or more mechanisms for the enforcement of the one or more privacy policies.

8. A method of claim 7, wherein the one or more mechanisms include, at least in part, one or more encryption mechanisms, one or more filtering mechanisms, one or more anonymization mechanisms, or a combination thereof.

9. A method of claim 7, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

at least one determination of the one or more mechanisms based, at least in part, on the at least one level of the computational environment.

10. An apparatus comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program code for one or more programs,

the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform at least the following,

determine one or more privacy policies associated with at least one level of a computational environment;

determine one or more computation closures associated with the at least one level of the computational environment; and

process and/or facilitate a processing of the one or more privacy policies and the one or more computation closures to determine whether to cause, at least in part, an enforcement of the one or more privacy policies by issuing a request for one or more higher privacy capabilities or replacing the one or more computation closures with one or more lower privacy requiring computation closures when the one or more computation closures are transferred to the at least one level of the computational environment that does not have sufficient one or more privacy capabilities from at least one other level of the computational environment,

wherein a combination of at least one of the one or more computation closures with one or more other computation closures is based, at least in part, on one or more parameters and the enforcement of the one or more privacy policies is based, at least in part, on the combination.

11. An apparatus of claim 10, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

determine that at least one capability of the at least one of the one or more computation closures is for causing, at least in part, the enforcement of the one or more privacy policies.

12. An apparatus of claim 10, wherein the one or more parameters include, at least in part, one or more capabilities of nodes of the computational environment, at least one functional flow of the one or more computation closures, one or more cost functions, one or more rules, or a combination thereof.

13. An apparatus of claim 12, wherein the one or more capabilities include, at least in part, one or more energy consumption capabilities, one or more security enforcement capabilities, one or more privacy enforcement capabilities, one or more available resources, or a combination thereof.

14. An apparatus of claim 10, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, a pre-creation of the at least one of the one or more computation closures.

15. An apparatus of claim 10, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

determine one or more other privacy policies associated with the at least one other level of the computational environment,

wherein the enforcement comprises enforcing a combination of the one or more privacy policies and the one or more other privacy policies.

16. An apparatus of claim 10, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

process and/or facilitate a processing of the one or more privacy policies, the one or more computation closures, or a combination thereof to determine one or more mechanisms for the enforcement of the one or more privacy policies.

17. An apparatus of claim 16, wherein the one or more mechanisms include, at least in part, one or more encryption mechanisms, one or more filtering mechanisms, one or more anonymization mechanisms, or a combination thereof.

18. An apparatus of claim 16, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

determine the one or more mechanisms based, at least in part, on the at least one level of the computational environment.