Preserving privacy related to networked media consumption activities

• US 9,794,296 B1
• Filed: 09/23/2016
• Issued: 10/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Quantcast
• Original Assignee: Quantcast
• Inventors: Reeves, Damian John
• Primary Examiner(s): Armouche, Hadi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Song, Hee
• Application Number:
  US15/274,090
• Time in Patent Office: 389 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/60 Protecting data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6263 during internet communication, e.g. revealing personal data from cookies
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2111 Location-sensitive, e.g. geographical location, GPS
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0407 wherein the identity of one or more communicating identities is hidden cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for anonymous credentials or for identity based cryptographic systems H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/20 for managing network security; network security policies in general filtering policies H04L63/0227
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/53 using third party service providers

Abstract

Preserving privacy related to networked media consumption activity. Source privacy zones are defined and associated with privacy standards. Privacy standards include frequency criteria governing the storage of datasets including information associated with networked media consumption activity collected from the source privacy zone. Transaction requests including a networking protocol address are received over a network from a client device at a target location by a networked privacy system. The source privacy zone associated with the client device is identified. Using the networking protocol address to access characteristics having characteristic value(s), a dataset can be created including associating the networked media consumption activity with the characteristic and characteristic value(s). The dataset is pre-processed to comply with the privacy standards. The networking protocol address is discarded. The pre-processed dataset can be stored in a filtered database on a physical storage device at a storage location coupled to the networked privacy system.

Claims

1. A method for preserving privacy related to networked media consumption activity, the method comprising:

defining multiple privacy zones;

associating a privacy standard with each respective privacy zone;

receiving a request sent from a client device to a networked privacy system requesting content from the networked privacy system, the request related to a networked media consumption activity of the client device; and

responsive to receiving the request;

selecting a privacy zone from the multiple privacy zones for the client device according to a location of the client device;

accessing a characteristic of the client device'"'"'s location;

estimating a frequency of the accessed characteristic in the selected privacy zone from a data structure selected from the group consisting of a Bloom Filter data structure and a Count-Min Sketch data structure; and

responsive to the estimated frequency complying with a frequency criterion of the selected privacy zone'"'"'s privacy standard, adding the accessed characteristic to a dataset.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

responsive to the estimated frequency not complying with a frequency criterion of the selected privacy zone'"'"'s privacy standard, preventing the accessed characteristic from being added to the dataset.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the request comprises the characteristic.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein:

accessing comprises retrieving a characteristic by providing information received in the transaction request.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the privacy standard comprises restrictions associated with a location of the networked privacy system.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the privacy standard comprises restrictions associated with a location of the dataset.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the networked privacy system is a third party system with respect to the client device.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

storing the dataset in a storage at the networked privacy system.

9. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium executing computer program instructions, the computer program instructions comprising instructions for:

defining multiple privacy zones;

associating a privacy standard with each respective privacy zone;

receiving a request sent from a client device to a networked privacy system requesting content from the networked privacy system, the request related to a networked media consumption activity of the client device; and

responsive to receiving the request;

selecting a privacy zone from the multiple privacy zones for the client device according to a location of the client device;

accessing a characteristic of the client device'"'"'s location;

estimating a frequency of the accessed characteristic in the selected privacy zone from a data structure selected from the group consisting of a Bloom Filter data structure and a Count-Min Sketch data structure; and

responsive to the estimated frequency complying with a frequency criterion of the selected privacy zone'"'"'s privacy standard, adding the accessed characteristic to a dataset.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions further comprise:

storing the dataset in a storage at the networked privacy system.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein:

accessing comprises retrieving a characteristic by providing information received in the transaction request.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions further comprise:

responsive to the estimated frequency not complying with a frequency criterion of the selected privacy zone'"'"'s privacy standard, preventing the accessed characteristic from being added to a dataset.

13. A system, comprising:

a processor; and

a computer readable non-transitory storage medium storing processor-executable computer program instructions, the instructions comprising instructions for;

defining multiple privacy zones;

associating a privacy standard with each respective privacy zone;

receiving a request sent from a client device to the system requesting content from the system, the request related to a networked media consumption activity of the client device; and

responsive to receiving the request,

selecting a privacy zone from the multiple privacy zones for the client device according to a location of the client device;

accessing a characteristic of the client device'"'"'s location;

estimating a frequency of the accessed characteristic in the selected privacy zone from a data structure selected from the group consisting of a Bloom Filter data structure and a Count-Min Sketch data structure; and

responsive to the estimated frequency complying with a frequency criterion of the selected privacy zone'"'"'s privacy standard, adding the accessed characteristic to a dataset.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions further comprise:

storing the dataset in a storage at the networked privacy system.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein:

accessing comprises retrieving a characteristic by providing information received in the transaction request.