Alias-based social media identity verification

• US 9,235,695 B2
• Filed: 09/17/2014
• Issued: 01/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Markwordt, Joshua D., Skeen, Michael M., Thomason, Michael S.
• Primary Examiner(s): AVERY, JEREMIAH L
• Application Number:
  US14/488,573
• Publication Number:
  US 20150012992A1
• Time in Patent Office: 482 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/384 using social networks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4014 Identity check for transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/104 Grouping of entities
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles

Abstract

An approach is provided to use social media content to verify the identity of a user using aliases established by the user in a social media environment. In the approach, a user authentication request pertaining to a user is received. Aliases corresponding to the user'"'"'s social media contacts are retrieved from a social media data store. User questions and expected answers are prepared based on the user'"'"'s social media contacts and the corresponding aliases. The user is prompted to provide one or more user answers responsive to the user questions. In response to receiving answers that match the expected answers, the user authentication request is confirmed. Conversely, in response to receiving user answers that fail to match the expected answers, the user authentication request is invalidated.

Claims

1. A method of social media based identity verification, implemented by an information handling system, the method comprising:

receiving a user authentication request pertaining to a user;

retrieving one or more aliases corresponding to one or more social media contacts of the user, wherein the one or more aliases are configured by the user prior to the reception of the authentication request;

calculating a divergence strength score corresponding to a plurality of social media activities, wherein limiting overlap between the one or more social media contacts from which the plurality of social media activities are obtained increases the divergence strength score;

preparing one or more user questions and one or more expected answers based on the one or more aliases corresponding to the user'"'"'s one or more social media contacts and the plurality of social media activities, wherein the one or more user questions and one or more expected answers are further based upon obtaining a divergence strength score that correlates to a security level received with the user authentication request;

prompting the user to provide one or more user answers responsive to the one or more user questions;

responsive to determining that the one or more user answers match the one or more expected answers, confirming the user authentication request; and

responsive to determining that the one or more user answers fail to match the one or more expected answers, invalidating the user authentication request.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

selecting a social media content corresponding to a selected one of the social media contacts corresponding to a selected one of the aliases, wherein at least one of the one or more user questions includes the selected social media content and at least one of the one or more expected answers is the selected one of the aliases.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the selecting further comprises:

identifying a set of the social media content that has been acknowledged by the user, wherein the selected social media content is selected from the set of social media content.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the security level is based upon a monetary transaction risk level.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

randomly selecting the one or more aliases from a data store maintained by a social media application, wherein a number of aliases selected is based on the security level;

forming the one or more user questions based on the user'"'"'s one or more social media contacts that correspond to the randomly selected one or more aliases; and

forming the one or more expected answers based on the randomly selected one or more aliases.