Distribution of trust data
First Claim
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1. A method comprising:
- detecting, at a computer, a communication associated with an online entity;
obtaining, at the computer, a trust score associated with the online entity;
based on the trust score, determining an appriate action to take with respect to the communication; and
taking the appropriate action.
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Abstract
Embodiments of the present invention provide methods, systems, software for providing, distributing and/or using trust scores for online entities. In accordance with various embodiments, one or more trust score servers may be configured to provide trust scores, perhaps in response to a request (e.g., from another trust scores server, from a client, from a border device, etc.). In other embodiments, a computer (e.g., a border device, a client, etc.) may maintain a local cache of trust scores. In some cases, a computer may request a trust score for a particular online entity in response to receiving, detecting and/or attempting to transmit a communication with that online entity.
181 Citations
49 Claims
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1. A method comprising:
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detecting, at a computer, a communication associated with an online entity;
obtaining, at the computer, a trust score associated with the online entity;
based on the trust score, determining an appriate action to take with respect to the communication; and
taking the appropriate action. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of distributing trust scores from a trust evaluation system, the method comprising:
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determining, at the trust evaluation system, a trust score for each of a plurality of online entities;
populating, with the trust evaluation system, a trust database with the trust scores; and
transmitting, from the trust evaluation system, at least a portion of the data included in the trust database to a cache server. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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21. A method of distributing trust scores from a trust evaluation system evaluating online entities, the method comprising:
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retrieving a first plurality of trust scores from a trust data store, the first plurality of trust scores associated with a first set of online entities, each of the first plurality of trust scores evaluating an online entity included in the first set;
retrieving a second plurality of trust scores from the trust data store, the second plurality of trust scores associated with a second set of online entities, each of the second plurality of trust scores evaluating an online entity included in the second set;
transmitting, from the trust evaluation system, the first plurality of trust scores to a first trust score server; and
transmitting, from the trust evaluation system, the second plurality of trust scores to a second trust score server. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24)
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25. A method of distributing trust scores for online entities, the method comprising:
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maintaining, at a domain name system (DNS) server, a DNS record comprising a set of information about an online entity, the set of information comprising one or more trust scores associated with the online entity;
upon receiving a request, providing at least some of the set of information about the online entity. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28)
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29. A trust authentication system comprising:
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a client application configured to communicate with online entities; and
a monitoring agent communicatively coupled with the client application and configured to obtain trust scores for the online entities. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A method of providing trust scores, the method comprising:
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providing a database comprising one or more trust scores for each of a plurality of online entities, wherein each of the trust scores indicates an evaluation of the trustworthiness of an online entity to which the trust score relates;
receiving at a computer a request for at least one of the one or more trust scores of one of the plurality of entities; and
providing with the computer, in response to the request, the at least one of the one or more trust scores.
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35. A system for providing trust scores, the system comprising:
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at least one database comprising one or more trust scores for each of a plurality of online entities, wherein each of the trust scores indicates an evaluation of the trustworthiness of an online entity to which the trust score relates; and
at least one trust server in communication with the at least one database, the trust server comprising a processor and instructions executable by the processor to;
receive a request for at least one of the one or more trust scores for one of the plurality of entities; and
provide, in response to the request, the at least one of the one or more trust scores. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44)
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45. A software program embodied on at least one computer readable medium, the software comprising instructions executable by one or more computers to:
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detect a communication associated with an online entity; and
obtain a trust score associated with the online entity.
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46. A software program embodied on at least one computer readable medium, the software comprising instructions executable by one or more computers to:
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maintain a database comprising one or more trust scores for each of a plurality of online entities, wherein each of the trust scores indicates an evaluation of the trustworthiness of an online entity to which the trust score relates;
receive a request for at least one of the one or more trust scores of one of the plurality of entities; and
provide, in response to the request, the at least one of the one or more trust scores.
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47. A system, comprising:
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a data store comprising one or more trust scores for each of a plurality of online entities, wherein each of the trust scores indicates an evaluation of the trustworthiness of an online entity to which the trust score relates;
means for receiving at a computer a request for at least one of the one or more trust scores of one of the plurality of entities; and
means for providing with the computer, in response to the request, the at least one of the one or more trust scores.
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48. A system for providing trust information about online entities, the system comprising:
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at least one authoritative database comprising a set scoring information about a plurality of online entities; and
at least one cache database comprising at least a subset of the set of information about the plurality of online entities; and
a trust server in communication with the cache database, the trust server being configured to;
receive a request for scoring information about a particular entity;
determine whether the cache database comprises scoring information about the particular entity;
determine whether the cache database'"'"'s scoring information about the particular entity has expired;
provide in response to the request any unexpired scoring information about the particular entity; and
if no unexpired scoring information about the particular entity exists, forward the request to the authoritative server. - View Dependent Claims (49)
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Specification