People directory with social privacy and contact association features

• US 9,917,816 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2016
• Issued: 03/13/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wu, Charles Chu-Shin
• Primary Examiner(s): Tolentino, Roderick
• Application Number:
  US15/392,538
• Publication Number:
  US 20170111327A1
• Time in Patent Office: 440 Days
• Field of Search: 726 26- 30
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0421 Anonymous communication, i.e. the party's identifiers are hidden from the other party or parties, e.g. using an anonymizer
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/102 Entity profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/107 wherein the security policies are location-dependent, e.g. entities privileges depend on current location or allowing specific operations only from locally connected terminals

Abstract

In one embodiment, a social networking system provides people look up service and establish anonymous communication session between users; creates contact association for future communication between users; and configures one or more privacy settings for users.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

by one or more computing devices associated with a social-networking system, receiving from an initiating user a request for contact information of a target user;

by one or more computing devices associated with a social-networking system, determining location information associated with the initiating user;

by one or more computing devices associated with the social-networking system, determining that one or more privacy settings of the target user prevent the contact information of the target user from being provided to the initiating user, the privacy settings including one or more spatiotemporal conditions;

by one or more computing devices associated with the social-networking system, determining whether one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy settings allow for a communication session between the initiating user and the target user based on the location information associated with the initiating user; and

by one or more computing devices associated with the social-networking system, in response to determining that one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions allow for the communication session between the initiating user and the target user, establishing an anonymous communication session between the initiating and target users, wherein contact information of the initiating user is presented to the target user in the anonymous communication session and contact information of the target user is hidden from the initiating user in the anonymous communication session.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in response to the anonymous communication session ending, providing, from the social-networking system, an automatic prompt to the target user-to;

create a social-networking relationship with the initiating user in the social-networking system, comprising;

sending a friend request to the initiating user from the target user, or

adding the initiating user to a white list associated with the target user, the white list configured to authorize further communication requests from the initiating user to the target user;

or

block the initiating user from the target user in the social-networking system.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the location information associated with the initiating user is automatically determined by the social-networking system.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining location information associated with the target user, wherein the spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy settings of the target user are determined based at least in part on the location information associated with the target user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining that one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions allow for the communication session between the initiating user and the target user further comprises:

comparing a current location associated with the initiating user with a current location associated with the target user, and

allowing for the communication session when a distance between the current location associated with the initiating user and the current location associated with the target user is less than or equal to a predetermined distance.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the predetermined distance is set by the target user as part of the one or more spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy setting.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the location information associated with the initiating user comprises accessing the location information from a data store associated with the social-networking system, or retrieving the location information as information attached to one or more previously messages transmitted from a computing device associated with the initiating user to the social-networking system.

8. One or more computer-readable non-transitory media embodying software that is configured when executed to:

at a social-networking system, receive from an initiating user a request for contact information of a target user;

at the social-networking system, determine location information associated with the initiating user;

at the social-networking system, determine that one or more privacy settings of the target user prevent the contact information of the target user from being provided to the initiating user, the privacy settings including one or more spatiotemporal conditions;

at the social-networking system, determine whether one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy settings allow for a communication session between the initiating user and the target user based on the location information associated with the initiating user; and

at the social-networking system, in response to determining that one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions allow for the communication session between the initiating user and the target user, establish an anonymous communication session between the initiating and target users, wherein contact information of the initiating user is presented to the target user in the anonymous communication session and contact information of the target user is hidden from the initiating user in the anonymous communication session.

9. The media of claim 8, further comprising:

in response to the anonymous communication session ending, provide, from the social-networking system, an automatic prompt to the target user-to;

create a social-networking relationship with the initiating user in the social-networking system, comprising;

send a friend request to the initiating user from the target user, or

add the initiating user to a white list associated with the target user, the white list configured to authorize further communication requests from the initiating user to the target user;

or

block the initiating user from the target user in the social-networking system.

10. The media of claim 8, wherein the location information associated with the initiating user is automatically determined by the social-networking system.

11. The media of claim 8, further comprising determining location information associated with the target user, wherein the spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy settings of the target user are determined based at least in part on the location information associated with the target user.

12. The media of claim 8, wherein the determining that one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions allow for the communication session between the initiating user and the target user further comprises:

comparing a current location associated with the initiating user with a current location associated with the target user, and

allowing for the communication session when a distance between the current location associated with the initiating user and the current location associated with the target user is less than or equal to a predetermined distance.

13. The media of claim 12, wherein the predetermined distance is set by the target user as part of the one or more spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy setting.

14. The media of claim 8, wherein determining the location information associated with the initiating user comprises accessing the location information from a data store associated with the social-networking system, or retrieving the location information as information attached to one or more previously messages transmitted from a computing device associated with the initiating user to the social-networking system.

15. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

logic encoded in one or more computer-readable tangible storage media that, when executed by the one or more processors, is operable to;

at a social-networking system, receive from an initiating user a request for contact information of a target user;

at the social-networking system, determine location information associated with the initiating user;

at the social-networking system, determine that one or more privacy settings of the target user prevent the contact information of the target user from being provided to the initiating user, the privacy settings including one or more spatiotemporal conditions;

at the social-networking system, determine whether one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy settings allow for a communication session between the initiating user and the target user based on the location information associated with the initiating user; and

at the social-networking system, in response to determining that one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions allow for the communication session between the initiating user and the target user, establish an anonymous communication session between the initiating and target users, wherein contact information of the initiating user is presented to the target user in the anonymous communication session and contact information of the target user is hidden from the initiating user in the anonymous communication session.

16. The system of claim 15, further comprising:

in response to the anonymous communication session ending, provide, from the social-networking system, an automatic prompt to the target user-to;

create a social-networking relationship with the initiating user in the social-networking system, comprising;

send a friend request to the initiating user from the target user, or

add the initiating user to a white list associated with the target user, the white list configured to authorize further communication requests from the initiating user to the target user;

or

block the initiating user from the target user in the social-networking system.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the location information associated with the initiating user is automatically determined by the one or more computing devices.

18. The system of claim 15, further comprising determining location information associated with the target user, wherein the spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy settings of the target user are determined based at least in part on the location information associated with the target user.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the determining that one or more of the spatiotemporal conditions allow for the communication session between the initiating user and the target user further comprises:

comparing a current location associated with the initiating user with a current location associated with the target user, and

allowing for the communication session when a distance between the current location associated with the initiating user and the current location associated with the target user is less than or equal to a predetermined distance.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the predetermined distance is set by the target user as part of the one or more spatiotemporal conditions of the privacy setting.