Broker-based management of mobile devices

• US 8,799,365 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2011
• Issued: 08/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Ren, Dahai
• Primary Examiner(s): Gee, Jason K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ullah, Sharif E
• Application Number:
  US13/246,892
• Publication Number:
  US 20130080522A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,042 Days
• Field of Search: 709/204, 713/150, 713/160, 713/181, 726/2, 726/16, 726/21
• US Class Current: 709/204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/6418 Hybrid transport
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/108 when the policy decisions are valid for a limited amount of time
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/08 Access security
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/37 Managing security policies for mobile devices or for controlling mobile applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/61 Time-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/50 Service provisioning or reconfiguring

Abstract

An authorized blocker application is installed on a user device to monitor application usage and enforce usage restrictions. A network device receives, from the user device, information identifying a list of applications installed on the user device and receives from a customer terminal, configuration settings including usage restrictions for at least one application from the list of applications. The network device receives, from the user device, application usage data for the at least one application from the list of applications and compares the configuration settings received from the customer terminal and the application usage data received from the user device. When the application usage data includes times exceeding the configurations settings, the network device sends, to the user device, a blocking instruction to prevent use of the at least one application.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a network device, authorization to install a blocker application on a user device that is linked to a customer account, wherein the authorization is provided from a source other than the user device, wherein the blocker application has a higher level of privilege than other applications residing on the user device so as to enable the blocker application to selectively prevent use of the other applications, and wherein the blocker application is configured to provide application usage data to the network device as a background operation that is transparent to a user of the user device;

providing, by the network device and to the user device, the blocker application;

receiving, by the network device and from the blocker application on the user device, a list of applications installed on the user device;

providing, by the network device and to a customer terminal with access to the customer account, a settings interface including the list of applications installed on the user device, wherein the settings interface includes a section to solicit usage limits for each application in the list of applications installed on the user device;

receiving, by the network device and from the customer terminal via the settings interface, customer-defined usage limits for at least one application from the list of applications;

receiving, by the network device and from the blocker application on the user device, application usage data for the at least one application from the list of applications;

comparing, by the network device, the customer-defined usage limits and the application usage data;

sending, by the network device and to the blocker application on the user device, a blocking instruction to prevent use, by a user of the user device, of the at least one application when the application usage data includes times exceeding the customer-defined usage limits; and

sending, by the network device and to the customer terminal, a notification when the application usage data includes times exceeding the customer-defined usage limits.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the user device is a different device than the customer terminal.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, from the customer terminal, a request to view the application usage data; and

providing the application usage data to the customer terminal.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein providing the application usage data to the customer terminal includes one or more of:

retrieving the application usage data from a memory within the network device,

formatting the application usage data into a graphical format, and

providing, to the customer terminal, a graphical user interface that includes a presentation of the application usage data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the settings interface further includes sections to define the usage limits as include one or more of:

a cumulative time limit, over a particular period, for use of the least one application;

a cumulative time limit, over a particular period, for use of a group of applications that includes the least one application; and

a time period when use of the least one application is prohibited.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the network device and from the customer terminal, login information to access the customer account; and

verifying, by the network device, the login information.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sending to the user device, as part of an operating system update, changes to the blocker application.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the settings interface further includes a section for selecting a particular recurring period for the usage limits.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification includes a text message or an email.

10. A network device, comprising:

a memory to store a plurality of instructions; and

a processor configured to execute instructions in the memory to;

receive authorization to install a blocker application on a user device that is linked to a customer account, wherein the authorization is from a source other than the user device, wherein the blocker application has a higher level of privilege than other applications residing on the user device so as to enable the blocker application to selectively prevent use of the other applications, and wherein the blocker application is configured to provide application usage data to the network device as a background operation that is transparent to a user of the user device,

provide, to the user device, the blocker application,

receive, from the blocker application on the user device, information identifying a list of applications installed on the user device,

provide, to a customer terminal, a settings interface including the list of applications installed on the user device, wherein the settings interface includes a section to solicit usage limits for each application in the list of applications,

receive, from the customer terminal, usage time limits for at least one application from the list of applications,

receive, from the blocker application on the user device, application usage data for the at least one application from the list of applications,

monitor the application usage data received from the blocker application on the user device against the usage time limits received from the customer terminal,

format the application usage data for presentation to a customer, and

provide the formatted application usage data to the customer terminal.

11. The network device of claim 10, wherein the usage time limits include a shared time limit among multiple applications from the list of applications.

12. The network device of claim 10, wherein, when formatting the application usage data, the processor is further configured to configured to execute instructions in the memory to:

format the application usage data in relation to the usage time limits, or

format the application usage data in relation to usage data for other applications of the list of applications.

13. The network device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to configured to execute instructions in the memory to:

store the application usage data and the usage time limits.

14. The network device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to configured to execute instructions in the memory to:

send, to the user device, a blocking instruction to prevent use, by a user of the user device, of the at least one application when the application usage data includes times exceeding the usage time limits.

15. The network device of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

provide, to the customer terminal, an interactive user interface that includes the list of applications installed on the user device and an input mechanism to set or modify the usage time limits.

16. A user device, comprising:

a memory to store a plurality of instructions; and

a processor configured to execute instructions in the memory to;

receive, from a network device, a blocker application that is linked to a customer account, wherein the blocker application has a higher level of privilege than other applications residing on the user device so as to enable the blocker application to selectively prevent use of the other applications,

identify, via the blocker application, the other applications residing on the memory of the user device,

send, to a network device and via the blocker application, a list of the identified applications,

record, via the blocker application, usage times of applications in the list of applications,

send, via the blocker application and to the network device, the usage times of applications in the list of applications, wherein the usage times are sent as a background operation that is transparent to a user of the user device,

receive, from the network device, a blocking instruction to prevent use, by a user of the user device, of at least one application in the list of applications, when the usage times of the at least one application exceed a customer-defined usage limit, and

block access to the at least one application based on the receiving the blocking instruction.

17. The user device of claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to execute instructions in the memory to:

receive, from the network device, an indication that the usage limits are

configured for the user device.

18. The user device of claim 16, wherein the user device includes one of:

a personal communications system (PCS) terminal,

a tablet computer,

a wireless device,

a cellular telephone,

a smart phone,

a laptop computer,

a music playing device, or

a portable gaming device.

19. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a user device, a blocker application that includes a higher level of privilege than other applications residing on a memory the user device, wherein the blocker application is linked to a customer account;

identifying, by the user device and via the blocker application, the other applications residing on the memory of the user device;

sending, by the user device and to a network device, a list of the identified other applications;

recording, by the user device and via the blocker application, usage times of the other applications in the list of identified other applications;

sending, via the blocker application and to the network device, the usage times of the other applications in the list of identified other applications, wherein the usage times are sent as a background operation that is transparent to a user of the user device,

receive, from the network device, a blocking instruction to prevent use, by a user of the user device, of at least one application in the list of identified other applications, when the usage times of the at least one application exceed a customer-defined usage limit, and

blocking, by the user device and based on the blocking instruction, access to the at least one application when the usage time for the at least one application exceeds a corresponding one of the usage limits.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

presenting, to a user of the user device, a notification when access to the particular application has been blocked.