Masking data within JSON-type documents

• US 9,699,145 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2014
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AirBNB Incorporated
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Ben-Natan, Ron, Rozenberg, Boris, Gorkhman, Igor, Goldsteen, Abigail, Farkash, Ariel, Domany, Tamar
• Primary Examiner(s): Pwu, Jeffrey
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ambaye, Samuel
• Application Number:
  US14/526,547
• Publication Number:
  US 20160127322A1
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 726 26
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6254 by anonymising data, e.g. decorrelating personal data from the owner's identification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6263 during internet communication, e.g. revealing personal data from cookies
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/04 for providing a confidential data exchange among entities communicating through data packet networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/40 Network security protocols

Abstract

A method comprising using at least one hardware processor for: receiving input from a user with respect to masking of a data element in one or more documents of a java script object notation (JSON) type, wherein the input comprises: an identifier of the data element, and one or more constraints for masking the data element based on the hierarchy of the one or more documents of the JSON-type; and generating a masking rule for the one or more documents of the JSON-type based on the input.

Claims

1. A method comprising using at least one hardware processor for:

receiving input from a user with respect to masking of a data element in one or more documents of a java script object notation (JSON) type, said one or more documents each comprise a hierarchy of at least two levels identified by name-value pairs, wherein the input comprises;

(i) an identifier of the data element, and (ii) one or more constraints for masking the data element based on the hierarchy of the one or more documents of the JSON-type, said one or more constraints define the masking with respect to a level of the at least two levels; and

generating a masking rule for the one or more documents of the JSON-type based on the input, wherein the masking role is generated automatically upon completion of the masking rule being defined by the input;

wherein the generating of the masking rule comprises generating a script; and

the enforcing of the masking rule on the document comprises executing the script on the document.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one hardware processor is further used for enforcing the masking rule on a document of the one or more documents of the JSON-type.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the enforcing of the masking rule on the document is performed online.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the enforcing of the masking rule comprises:

listening to traffic in a network,

identifying the document as it passes through the network, and

enforcing the masking rule on the object.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the enforcing of the masking rule on the document is performed offline.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the masking rule comprises generating a script.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the language of the script is JavaScript.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the language of the script is extended with one or more additional functions.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the input from the user comprises providing the user with a form to be filled out and wherein the input is received by the form.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the receiving of the input from the user comprises providing the user with a display of a document of the one or more documents of the JSON-type and wherein the input is received by a selection made by the user on the display.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more documents are selected from the group consisting of:

NoSQL queries responses, messages and files.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the JSON-type of the one or more documents is selected from the group consisting of:

JSON documents and binary JSON (BSON) documents.

13. A method comprising using at least one hardware processor for:

receiving a masking rule of a data element in one or more documents of a JSQN-type, said one or more documents each comprise a hierarchy of at least two levels identified by name-value pairs, wherein the masking rule is based on the hierarchy of the one or more documents of the JSON-type, wherein the masking rule is defined according to one or more constraints with respect to a level of the at least two levels; and

enforcing the masking rule on a document of the one or more documents of the JSON-type;

wherein the enforcing of the masking rule comprises, listening to traffic in a network;

identifying the document as it passes through the network; and

enforcing the masking rule on the document.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the enforcing of the masking rule on the document is performed online.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the enforcing of the masking rule on the document is performed offline.

16. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having program code embodied therewith, the program code executable by at least one hardware processor to:

receive input from a user with respect to masking of a data element in one or more documents of a java script object notation (JSON) type, said one or more documents each comprise a hierarchy of at least two levels identified by name-value pairs, wherein the input comprises;

(i) an identifier of the data element, and (ii) one or more constraints for masking the data element based on the hierarchy of the one or more documents of the JSON-type, said one or more constraints defines the masking with respect to a level of the at least two levels; and

generate a masking rule for the one or more documents of the JSON-type based on the input, wherein the masking rule is generated automatically upon completion of the masking rule being defined by the input;

wherein the generating of the masking rule comprises generating a script; and

the enforcing of the masking rule on the document comprises executing the script on the document.

17. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein said program code is further executable by the at least one hardware processor to enforce the masking rule on a document of the one or more documents of the JSON-type.

18. The computer program product of claim 16, wherein the generating of the masking rule comprises generating a script.