Systems and methods for providing an integrated identifier

• US 8,954,459 B1
• Filed: 11/09/2012
• Issued: 02/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Experian Marketing Solutions, LLC (Experian plc)
• Original Assignee: Experian Marketing Solutions Incorporated (Experian plc)
• Inventors: McMillan, Helen, Skurtovich, John Lawrence Jr., Kress, Anita, Sumida, Timothy, McVey, Michael Charles
• Primary Examiner(s): Ortiz Ditren, Belix M
• Application Number:
  US13/673,918
• Time in Patent Office: 823 Days
• Field of Search: 707/758, 702/19, 709/224
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/284 Relational databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2149 Restricted operating environment
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46

Abstract

Embodiments described herein provide systems and methods to streamline the mechanism by which data users access differently regulated data through the use of one or more integrated identifiers. The integrated identifiers lessen or eliminate the need to separately maintain one set of identifiers for regulated data and another set for non-regulated data. The methods and systems may be applicable in various credit and healthcare contexts where regulations over data use are prevalent. In one or more embodiments, a data user receives a unique integrated identifier for each of the data user'"'"'s current or prospective customers, and the integrated identifiers can be used to persistently identify and track the customers over time and across applications that access regulated and/or non-regulated data. In the healthcare context, a healthcare provider may utilize a patient ID as the integrated identifier. To protect privacy, the integrated identifier may not include social security numbers or birthdates.

Claims

1. A method for providing an integrated data identifier usable to access credit data and medical data stored in separate and distinct data stores, the method comprising:

accessing from a medical database, one or more medical data identifiers associated with

a plurality of medical records comprising patient data for respective individuals, wherein the medical records are accessible using the one or more medical data identifiers;

accessing from a credit database, one or more credit data identifiers associated with

a plurality of credit records comprising credit data for respective individuals, wherein the credit records are accessible using the one or more credit data identifiers;

identifying, by a computer processor, respective medical data identifiers and credit data identifiers each associated with a first individual;

linking, by the computer processor, the identified medical data identifiers and credit data identifiers that are each associated with the first individual by assigning an integrated data identifier to the first individual, wherein the integrated data identifier is configured to permit access to data records for the first individual associated with the medical data identifiers and/or the credit data identifiers; and

storing, by the computer processor, in a central database separate from both the medical database and the credit database, the linked integrated data identifier with the one or more credit data identifiers and the one or more medical data identifiers.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining, by the computer processor, whether multiple medical data identifiers correspond to the first individual; and

in response to determining that multiple medical data identifiers correspond to a single individual, triggering a merge of the one or more medical data identifiers into one medical data identifier.

3. A method comprising:

accessing, by a computing system having one or more computer processors, a plurality of regulated data identifiers associated with regulated data of respective consumers;

accessing, by the computing system, a plurality of non-regulated data identifiers associated with non-regulated data of respective consumers;

identifying, by the computing system, one or more non-regulated data identifiers of the plurality of non-regulated data identifiers each associated with a single consumer;

identifying, by the computing system, one or more regulated data identifiers of the plurality of regulated data identifiers each associated with the single consumer;

associating, by the computing system, the identified one or more regulated data identifiers and the identified one or more non-regulated data identifiers with an integrated data identifier configured to permit access to both regulated data and non-regulated data associated with the single consumer,

wherein the associating further comprises storing, in a linkage table, a linking between the integrated identifier and each of the identified regulated data identifiers and the identified non-regulated data identifiers.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

in response to identifying respective regulated data identifiers of the plurality of regulated data identifiers each associated with the single consumer, triggering a merge of the identified regulated data identifiers into one regulated data identifier.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the integrated data identifier is one of the non-regulated data identifiers.

6. The method of claim 3 further comprising accessing the non-regulated data associated with the single consumer using the integrated data identifier, from a non-regulated database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the non-regulated data, wherein the non-regulated database is different from a regulated database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the regulated data.

7. The method of claim 3, further comprising accessing the regulated data associated with the single consumer using the integrated data identifier, from a regulated database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the regulated data, wherein the regulated database is different from a non-regulated database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the non-regulated data.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the non-regulated database stores marketing data.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the regulated database stores credit data or medical data.

10. The method of claim 3, wherein the single consumer is an individual or a business.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage comprising computer executable instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a hardware processor, are configured to perform operations comprising:

accessing a plurality of regulated data identifiers associated with regulated data of respective consumers;

accessing a plurality of non-regulated data identifiers associated with non-regulated data of respective consumers;

identifying one or more non-regulated data identifiers of the plurality of non-regulated data identifiers each associated with a single consumer;

identifying one or more regulated data identifiers of the plurality of regulated data identifiers each associated with the single consumer; and

associating the identified one or more regulated data identifiers and the identified one or more non-regulated data identifiers with an integrated data identifier configured to permit access to both regulated data and non-regulated data associated with the single consumer,

wherein the associating further comprises storing, in a linkage table, a linking between the integrated identifier and each of the identified regulated data identifiers and the identified non-regulated data identifiers.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable storage of claim 11, wherein the integrated data identifier is one of the non-regulated data identifiers.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise:

accessing the non-regulated data associated with the single consumer using the integrated data identifier, from a non-regulated database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the non-regulated data, wherein the non-regulated database is different from a regulated database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the regulated data.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage of claim 13, wherein the non-regulated database stores marketing data.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage of claim 13, wherein the regulated database stores credit data or medical data.

16. A system comprising:

an electronic data store configured to at least store linked associations between, first data identifiers, second data identifiers, and integrated data identifiers; and

a computing device including a processor, the computing device in communication with the electronic data store and configured to at least;

access a plurality of first data identifiers associated with first data of respective consumers;

access a plurality of second data identifiers associated with second data of respective consumers, wherein the second data is regulated differently than the first data;

identify one or more first data identifiers of the plurality of first data identifiers each associated with a single consumer;

identify one or more second data identifiers of the plurality of second data identifiers each associated with the single consumer; and

associate the identified one or more first data identifiers and the identified one or more second data identifiers with an integrated data identifier configured to permit access to both the first data and the second data associated with the single consumer,

wherein the associating further comprises storing, in a linkage table, a linking between the integrated identifier and each of the identified first data identifiers and the identified second data identifiers.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the first data is regulated data and the second data is non-regulated data.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the computing device is further configured to:

access the second data associated with the single consumer using the integrated data identifier, from a second database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the second data, wherein the second database is different from a first database that stores a plurality of data records comprising the first data.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the second database stores marketing data.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the first database stores credit data or medical data.