Automatic resource ownership assignment systems and methods

• US 8,805,884 B2
• Filed: 01/27/2011
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Varonis Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Varonis Systems, Inc.
• Inventors: Faitelson, Yakov, Korkus, Ohad, Kretzer-Katzir, Ophir
• Primary Examiner(s): PYO, MONICA M
• Application Number:
  US13/014,762
• Publication Number:
  US 20110184989A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,293 Days
• Field of Search: 707/999.009, 707781-785
• US Class Current: 707/784
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/13 File access structures, e.g. distributed indices arrangements of input from, or output to, record carriers G06F3/06
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6218 to a system of files or objects, e.g. local or distributed file system or database
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2101 Auditing as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2141 Access rights, e.g. capability lists, access control lists, access tables, access matrices
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources

Abstract

An automatic resource ownership assignment system, the system including resource ownership indicators definition functionality operative to allow an operator of the system to define resource ownership indicators, automatic resource ownership recommendation functionality operative to provide, to at least one user of the system, a recommendation to assign ownership of at least one resource to a potential owner, based on the resource ownership indicators, and automatic resource ownership assignment functionality which, responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of the at least one recommendation by the at least one user and approval of said at least one recommendation by the potential owner, is operative to automatically assign ownership of the at least one resource to the potential owner.

Claims

1. An automatic resource ownership assignment system, said system comprising at least one processor comprising:

resource ownership indicators definition functionality operative to allow an operator of said system to define resource ownership indicators;

automatic resource ownership recommendation functionality operative to provide, to at least one user of said system, a recommendation to assign ownership of at least one resource to a potential owner, based on said resource ownership indicators, said ownership of at least one resource comprising responsibility for managing access permissions to said resource; and

automatic resource ownership assignment functionality which;

responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of said at least one recommendation by said at least one user and approval of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, is operative to automatically assign ownership of said at least one resource to said potential owner; and

responsive to rejection of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, and responsive to receiving an alternative recommendation from said potential owner to assign ownership of said at least one resource to an alternative owner, is operative to automatically assign ownership of said at least one resource to said alternative owner.

2. An automatic folder ownership assignment system, said system comprising at least one processor comprising:

folder ownership indicators definition functionality operative to allow an administrator of said system to define folder ownership indicators;

automatic folder ownership recommendation functionality operative to provide, to at least one user of said system, a recommendation to assign ownership of at least one folder to a potential owner, based on said folder ownership indicators, said ownership of at least one folder comprising responsibility for managing access permissions to said folder; and

automatic folder ownership assignment functionality which;

responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of said at least one recommendation by said at least one user and approval of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, is operative to assign ownership of said at least one folder to said potential owner; and

responsive to rejection of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, and responsive to receiving an alternative recommendation from said potential owner to assign ownership of said at least one folder to an alternative owner, is operative to automatically assign ownership of said at least one folder to said alternative owner.

3. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 2 and wherein said access permissions comprise at least one of:

read permissions to at least one file within said folder;

write permissions to at least one file within said folder;

permissions to create at least one file in said folder; and

permissions to delete at least one file in said folder.

4. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 2 and wherein said managing access permissions to said folder is achieved by at least one of manually setting user access permissions to said folder, and configuring automatic rules for setting user access permissions to said folder.

5. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 2 and wherein said system resides on a computer server.

6. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 5 and wherein said computer server is connected to an enterprise level network.

7. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 6 and wherein said system includes a database.

8. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 7 and wherein said database comprises access permissions information for at least some of the folders in said network.

9. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 8 and wherein said database also comprises folder ownership information for all folders in said network.

10. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 7 and wherein said database comprises actual access history information for at least some of the folders in said network.

11. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 10 and wherein said folder ownership indicators include at least one of actual access to said at least one folder, access permissions to said at least one folder and the identity of a creator of said at least one folder.

12. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 7 and wherein said database comprises metadata relating to at least some of the folders in said network.

13. The automatic folder ownership assignment system according to claim 12 and wherein said metadata comprises at least one of creation date and size.

14. An automatic library ownership assignment system, said system comprising at least one processor comprising:

library ownership indicators definition functionality operative to allow an operator of said system to define library ownership indicators;

automatic library ownership recommendation functionality operative to provide, to at least one user of a library, a recommendation to assign ownership of said library to a potential owner, based on said library ownership indicators, said ownership of said library comprising responsibility for managing access permissions to said library; and

automatic library ownership assignment functionality which;

responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of said at least one recommendation by said at least one user and approval of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, is operative to automatically assign ownership of said library to said potential owner; and

responsive to rejection of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, and responsive to receiving an alternative recommendation from said potential owner to assign ownership of said library to an alternative owner, is operative to automatically assign ownership of said library to said alternative owner.

15. A method for automatic resource ownership assignment, said method comprising using at least one server for:

defining resource ownership indicators;

automatically providing, to at least one individual, a recommendation to assign ownership of at least one resource to a potential owner, based on said resource ownership indicators, said ownership of at least one resource comprising responsibility for managing access permissions to said resource;

responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of said at least one recommendation by said at least one individual and approval of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, to automatically assign ownership of said at least one resource to said potential owner; and

responsive to rejection of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, and responsive to receiving an alternative recommendation from said potential owner to assign ownership of said at least one resource to an alternative owner, automatically assigning ownership of said at least one resource to said alternative owner.

16. A method for automatic folder ownership assignment, said method comprising using at least one server for:

defining folder ownership indicators;

automatically providing, to at least one individual, a recommendation to assign ownership of at least one folder to a potential owner, based on said folder ownership indicators, said ownership of at least one folder comprising responsibility for managing access permissions to said folder;

responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of said at least one recommendation by said at least one individual and approval of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, to automatically assign ownership of said at least one folder to said potential owner; and

responsive to rejection of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, and responsive to receiving an alternative recommendation from said potential owner to assign ownership of said at least one folder to an alternative owner, automatically assigning ownership of said at least one folder to said alternative owner.

17. The method for automatic folder ownership assignment according to claim 16 and wherein said access permissions comprise at least one of:

read permissions to at least one file within said folder;

write permissions to at least one file within said folder;

permissions to create at least one file in said folder; and

permissions to delete at least one file in said folder.

18. The method for automatic folder ownership assignment according to claim 16 and wherein said managing access permissions to said folder is achieved by at least one of manually setting user access permissions to said folder, and configuring automatic rules for setting user access permissions to said folder.

19. The method for automatic folder ownership assignment according to claim 18 and wherein said folder ownership indicators include at least one of actual access to said at least one folder, access permissions to said at least one folder and the identity of a creator of said at least one folder.

20. A method for automatic library ownership assignment, said method comprising using at least one server for:

defining library ownership indicators;

automatically providing, to at least one user of a library, a recommendation to assign ownership of said library to a potential owner, based on said library ownership indicators, said ownership of said library comprising responsibility for managing access permissions to said library; and

responsive to predetermined at least partial approval of said at least one recommendation by said at least one user and approval of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, to automatically assign ownership of said library to said potential owner; and

responsive to rejection of said at least one recommendation by said potential owner, and responsive to receiving an alternative recommendation from said potential owner to assign ownership of said library to an alternative owner, automatically assigning ownership of said library to said alternative owner.