Method of Anonymising an Interaction Between Devices

• US 20110276404A1
• Filed: 11/28/2008
• Published: 11/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Privitar Limited
• Original Assignee: Really Virtual Company Limited
• Inventors: Cleevely, David, Taysom, John Graham
• Granted Patent: US 8,812,372 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.66
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0269 based on user profile or attribute
• 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 63/102 Entity profiles

Abstract

A method is provided of anonymising an interaction between a user entity and a service provider node wishing to provide a service to the user entity in dependence upon characteristics of the user entity determined or revealed as a result of the interaction, the method comprising: assigning the user entity to at least one set, each set comprising as members a plurality of user entities sharing a characteristic associated with that set; ensuring that the intersection of the at least one set comprises at least a predetermined minimum number of user entities; and providing to the service provider node information relating to the or each characteristic associated with the at least one set, the information being for use at the service provider node in providing a service to the user entity that is appropriate in view of the characteristics of the user entity but insufficient to identify the user entity.

Claims

1. A method of anonymising an interaction between a user entity and a service provider node wishing to provide a service to the user entity in dependence upon characteristics of the user entity determined or revealed as a result of the interaction, the method comprising:

assigning the user entity to at least one set, each set comprising as members a plurality of user entities sharing a characteristic associated with that set;

ensuring that the intersection of the at least one set comprises at least a predetermined minimum number of user entities; and

providing to the service provider node information relating to the or each characteristic associated with the at least one set, the information being for use at the service provider node in providing a service to the user entity that is appropriate in view of the characteristics of the user entity but insufficient to identify the user entity.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising populating at least one set with dummy user entities to ensure that the intersection comprises at least the predetermined minimum number of user entities.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising presenting a warning at the user entity if the intersection comprises a number of user entities within a predetermined range.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, in which an information broker node communicates with a clustering engine node to determine the at least one set to be assigned to the user entity, with the clustering engine node having knowledge of membership of the sets and the information broker node providing to the clustering engine node information sufficient to assign the user entity to the at least one set.

5. A method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the clustering engine node acts on abstractions of identities the translation of which to real identities is not known by the clustering engine node.

6. A method as claimed in claim 4, wherein the information broker node maintains information sufficient to identify the user entity without retaining knowledge of the characteristics of the user entity.

7. A method as claimed in claim 4 wherein the information broker node is distributed across a plurality of nodes.

8. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising maintaining a record of user entity membership for each set, and updating the membership of the at least one set when the user entity is assigned to the at least one set.

9. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least some of the steps are performed at a node, or a cooperation of nodes, disposed on a communication path between the user entity and the service provider node.

10. A method as claimed in claim 9, wherein the service is provided to the user entity via the node or cooperation of nodes.

11. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising, on request of the user entity, allowing the user entity to be identified to another user entity in the at least one set.

12. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising, on request of the user entity, allowing the user entity to be identified to the service provider node.

13. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising providing a service to the user entity in dependence upon the information.

14. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the service comprises sending data to the user entity.

15. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the data comprise media content.

16. A method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the data comprise advertising content.

17. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predetermined minimum number is at least three.

18. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predetermined minimum number is at least ten.

19. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predetermined minimum number is at least 100.

20. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising determining the predetermined number dynamically.

21. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the user entity comprises a device.

22. A method as claimed in claim 21, wherein the characteristics comprise at least one of the hardware capabilities of the device, software capabilities of the device, and location of the device.

23. A method as claimed in claim 21, wherein the user entity comprises a user of the device.

24. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the user entity comprises a user of a device.

25. A method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the characteristics comprise personal information relating to the user, such as an indication of at least one of the age, gender, home address, postcode, salary, likes, and dislikes of the user.

27. A program for controlling an apparatus to perform a method as claimed in claim 1.

28. A program as claimed in claim 27, carried on a carrier medium.

29. A program as claimed in claim 28, wherein the carrier medium is a storage medium.

30. A program as claimed in claim 28, wherein the carrier medium is a transmission medium.

31. An apparatus programmed by a program as claimed in claim 27.

32. A storage medium containing a program as claimed in claim 27.

33. A method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the characteristics comprise personal information relating to the user, such as an indication of at least one of the age, gender, home address, postcode, salary, likes, and dislikes of the user.

26. An apparatus for anonymising an interaction between a user entity and a service provider node wishing to provide a service to the user entity in dependence upon characteristics of the user entity determined or revealed as a result of the interaction, the apparatus comprising:

means for assigning the user entity to at least one set, each set comprising as members a plurality of user entities sharing a characteristic associated with that set;

means for ensuring that the intersection of the at least one set comprises at least a predetermined minimum number of user entities; and

means for providing to the service provider node information relating to the or each characteristic associated with the at least one set, the information being for use at the service provider node in providing a service to the user entity that is appropriate in view of the characteristics of the user entity but insufficient to identify the user entity.