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

• US 9,009,232 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2010
• Issued: 04/14/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Inventors: Ye, Jun, Mo, Jianxiang
• Primary Examiner(s): DENNISON, JERRY B
• Application Number:
  US12/867,874
• Publication Number:
  US 20110113101A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,798 Days
• Field of Search: 709/205
• US Class Current: 709/205
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• 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 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles

Abstract

A method and an apparatus for processing an authentication request message in a social network are provided. To improve the inefficiency of existing technology in processing user authentication and request to establish social relationship as well as inadequacy of parameters available for said authentication, the disclosed method includes a social network server detecting an authentication request message sent by a first client to a second client requesting to establish a social relationship with the second client. The social network server obtains information social attributes that are common to the first client and the second client, forwards the authentication request message, and sends the obtained information of common social attributes to the second client. The social attribute information is used by the second client to decide whether or not to authenticate the authentication request message.

Claims

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

detecting, by a social network server, that a first client sends the authentication request message to a second client to request to establish a social relationship with the second client;

determining one or more social attributes shared by the first client and the second client by searching in an index to identify one or more index records including social network activities shared by the first client and the second client, the one or more social attributes including multiple clients having social connections with the first client and the second client;

determining a plurality of overall sums of degrees of familiarity, each of the plurality of overall sums corresponding to a respective overall sum of the degrees of familiarity between the first client, the second client, and one of the multiple clients, and each respective overall sum of degrees of familiarity being calculated by summing results of a plurality of predetermined types of determining familiarity between two clients;

identifying a third client among the multiple clients, the third client being identified based on having a highest overall sum of the plurality of the overall sums of degrees of familiarity; and

forwarding, by the social network server, the authentication request message and information of the third client to the second client to enable the second client to determine whether or not to authenticate the authentication request message.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

obtaining social attribute information of the first client according to identification information of the first client and a correlation between the identification information and the social attribute information of the first client; and

obtaining social attribute information of the second client according to identification information of the second client and a correlation between the identification information and social attribute information of the second client.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the index includes multiple index records, and an individual index record of the multiple index records includes social network activities shared by at least two clients and a key having identification information of the at least two clients.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, from a plurality of servers that store correlations between identification information and social attribute information of clients, one or more servers that store identification information and social attribute information of the first client and identification information and social attribute information of the second client based on the identification information of the first client and the second client.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

selecting multidimensional social attribute information of the first client and the second client; and

sending the selected multidimensional social attribute information to the second client.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising establishing a social relationship between the first client and the second client in response to a determination that a number of one or more social attributes is greater than a predetermined value.

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

one or more processors; and

memory to maintain a plurality of components executable by the one or more processors, the plurality of components comprising;

an acquisition module, that;

detects the authentication request message sent by a first client to a second client requesting to establish a social relationship with the second client,

determines one or more social attributes shared by the first client and the second client by searching in an index to identify one or more index records including social network activities shared by the first client and the second client, the one or more social attributes including information of multiple clients having social connections with the first client and the second client, and

identifies, from the multiple clients, a third client based on a comparison of a number of social connections of each respective client of the multiple clients, the third client having a highest number of social connections, and

a transmitting module, that forwards the authentication request message and information of the third client to the second client thereby enabling the second client to use the social attribute information to decide whether or not to authenticate the authentication request message.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the acquisition module further:

obtains social attribute information of the first client according to identification information of the first client and a correlation between the identification information and social attribute information of the first client; and

obtains social attribute information of the second according to identification information of the second client and a correlation between the identification information and social attribute information of the second client.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein the index includes multiple index records, and an individual index record of multiple index records includes social network activities shared by at least two clients and a key having the identification information of the at least two clients.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, further comprising:

a determination module, that identifies a first server of a plurality of servers, that store correlations between identification information of clients and social attribute information of clients, as storing identification information and social attribute information of the first client, and further identifies a second server of the plurality of servers as storing identification information and social attribute information of the second client according to the identification information of the first client and the identification information of the second client.

20. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the acquisition module further establishes a social relationship between the first client and the second client by automatically adding the first client into a social network of the second client in response to a determination that a number of one or more social attributes is greater than a predetermined value.

11. Non-transitory server memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, instruct the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:

receiving a request of a first user for establishing a social relationship with a second user;

analyzing the request to extract an identification (ID) of the first user and an ID of the second user;

performing a search using a key including the ID of the first user and the ID of the second user to determine one or more common social attributes that are shared by the first user and the second user;

determining whether a number of the one or more common social attributes is greater than a predetermined value;

in response to a determination that the number of the one or more common social attributes is greater than the predetermined value, automatically establishing a social relationship between the first user and the second user; and

in response to a determination that the number of the one or more common social attributes is not greater than the predetermined value, transmitting the request and the one or more common social attributes to a user device associated with the second user.

12. The non-transitory server memory of claim 11, wherein the acts further comprise determining a relationship chain that includes one or more users having social relationships with the first user and the second user.

13. The non-transitory server memory of claim 12, wherein the transmitting the request and the one or more common social attributes comprises transmitting the request, the one or more common social attributes, and information associated with the one or more users having social relationships with the first user and the second user.

14. The non-transitory server memory of claim 12, wherein the acts further comprise determining a third user from the relationship chain based on a predetermined rule, and the transmitting the request and the one or more social attributes comprises transmitting the request, the one or more common social attributes, and identification information of the third user.

15. The non-transitory server memory of claim 11, wherein the performing the search comprises performing the search in an inverted index.

16. The non-transitory server memory of claim 15, wherein the inverted index includes multiple index records, and an individual index record of the multiple index records include social network activities shared by two or more users and one key having identification information of the two or more users.

17. The non-transitory server memory of claim 11, where the one or more social attributes includes social network activities shared by the first user and the second user.

18. The non-transitory server memory of claim 11, wherein the acts further comprise attaching the request with the one or more common social attributes.

19. The non-transitory server memory of claim 11, wherein the transmitting the request and the one or more common social attributes comprises separately transmitting the request and the one or more social attributes.