Method for performing in interactive review of data contents of a computer

• US 6,182,081 B1
• Filed: 12/16/1998
• Issued: 01/30/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Computercop Software Corporation
• Original Assignee: ComputerCop Corp (Vaso Corp.)
• Inventors: Dietl, Bo, Balan, Sajay, Rybalko, Oleg, Warman, Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): FLEURANTIN, JEAN B
• Application Number:
  US09/213,071
• Time in Patent Office: 776 Days
• Field of Search: 707/100, 707/101, 707/102, 707/103, 707/9, 709/217-218, 713/200
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99939 Privileged access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface

Abstract

The present invention protects a computer user from exposure to offensive materials from the Internet or other sources, by allowing a user without any computer knowledge or experience to determine if the computer has been exposed to offensive materials. The present invention does not require any installation and does not leave any recognizable traces of it being executed. It collects all the viewable files and all files having offensive words, based on a pre-compiled list, in them and allows the user to review and delete these files. The files are collected from all directories on the attached computer disks without regard to their access control status, e.g., hidden and files marked deleted are collected as well.

Claims

1. An investigating method of performing an interactive review of the contents of computer files stored on a personal computer, said interactive review enabled with minimal user involvement and minimal technical knowledge, said method comprising steps of:

a. instantiating an investigative computer program in said personal computer from a removable disk;

b. displaying a dialogue window on a computer screen for enabling said interactive review;

c. defining a list of words to be flagged as suspect;

d. scanning each file stored on said personal computer and compiling a list of image files and a list of text files containing words flagged as suspect;

e. sequentially displaying image files and text files having said words flagged as suspect in said dialogue window; and

f. terminating said investigative computer program and removing said removable disk from said personal computer.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein an operating system of said personal computer includes a registry file and said method further comprises the step of entering runtime date in said registry for further reference.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein step (c) further comprising steps of:

determining from said registry file whether said interactive review was performed on said personal computer prior to a predetermined date; and

scanning only said files which were created after said predetermined date.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein step (c) further includes the step of displaying the progress of said scan in said dialogue window.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein step (d) further includes the step of enabling the user to input a choice of

(i) displaying said image files,

(ii) displaying said text files, or

(iii) terminating processing.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein step (d) further comprises accepting user input choice on display of a next image file, a next text file and a next word flagged as suspect in said text file.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein step (d) further comprises displaying upon user request a definition from said list of words for each of said words flagged as suspect.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising a step for allowing said user to delete files.

9. The method of claim 5, wherein step (d) comprises the following steps:

d1. setting user request to image display;

d2. displaying next image file, if said image file list is not empty and said user request is image display;

d3. displaying next suspect word in said text files, if said text file list is not empty and said user request is text file display;

d4. determining whether said user has requested a different action in said dialogue window; and

d5. performing cleanup of log and temporary files and terminating processing, if said image file list and said text file list are both empty or if said user requested program termination.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of eliminating temporary files created on a non-removable disk during a runtime of said investigating method.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein said investigating method is conducted for determining exposure at said computer to image files and text files having suspect words in a substantially undetectable manner.

10. A computer program device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by a machine to perform investigating method steps of performing an interactive review of the contents of computer files stored on a personal computer, said interactive review enabled with minimal user involvement and minimal technical knowledge, said method comprising steps of:

a. instantiating an investigative computer program in said personal computer from a removable disk;

b. displaying a dialogue window on a computer screen for enabling said interactive review;

c. defining a list of words to be flagged as suspect;

d. scanning each file stored on said personal computer and compiling a list of image files and a list of text files containing words flagged as suspect;

e. sequentially displaying image files and text files having said words flagged as suspect in said dialogue window; and

f. terminating said investigative computer program and removing said removable disk from said personal computer.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein an operating system of said personal computer includes a registry file and said method further comprises the step of entering runtime date in said registry for further reference.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein step (c) further comprising steps of:

determining from said registry file whether said interactive review was performed on said personal computer prior to a predetermined date; and

scanning only said files which were created after said predetermined date.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein step (c) further includes the step of displaying the progress of said scan in said dialogue window.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein step (d) further includes the step of enabling the user to input a choice of

(i) displaying said image files,

(ii) displaying said text files, or

(iii) terminating processing.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein step (d) further comprises accepting user input choice on display of a next image file, a next text file and a next word flagged as suspect in said text file.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein step (d) further comprises displaying upon user request a definition from said list of words for each of said words flagged as suspect.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising a step for allowing said user to delete files.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein step (d) comprises the following steps:

d1. setting user request to image display;

d2. displaying next image file, if said image file list is not empty and said user request is image display;

d3. displaying next suspect word in said text files, if said text file list is not empty and said user request is text file display;

d4. determining whether said user has requested a different action in said dialogue window; and

d5. performing cleanup of log and temporary files and terminating processing, if said image file list and said text file list are both empty or if said user requested program termination.

21. The method of claim 10, further comprising the step of eliminating temporary files created one a non-removable disk during a runtime of said investigating method.

22. The method of claim 10, wherein said investigating method is conducted for determining exposure at said computer to image files and text files having suspect words in a substantially undetectable manner.