Alert for real-time risk of theft or loss

• US 8,902,066 B2
• Filed: 06/05/2014
• Issued: 12/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Absolute Software Corporation
• Original Assignee: Absolute Software Corporation
• Inventors: Parker, Timothy, Loveland, Damien Gerard
• Primary Examiner(s): Hofsass, Jeffery
• Assistant Examiner(s): DARAMOLA, ISRAEL O
• Application Number:
  US14/297,432
• Publication Number:
  US 20140285343A1
• Time in Patent Office: 180 Days
• Field of Search: 340/438, 340/539.13, 340/572.1, 455/411, 702/187, 709/224, 726/21, 726/35
• US Class Current: 340/568.1
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/14 by lifting or attempted removal of hand-portable articles
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1427 with transmitter-receiver for distance detection
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/22 Electrical actuation
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/22 responsive to presence or absence of persons
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 31/00 Predictive alarm systems characterised by extrapolation or other computation using updated historic data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/12 Detection or prevention of fraud
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/126 Anti-theft arrangements, e.g. protection against subscriber identity module [SIM] cloning
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/63 Location-dependent; Proximity-dependent
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/67 Risk-dependent, e.g. selecting a security level depending on risk profiles

Abstract

A computer process is disclosed for assessing the risk of theft or loss of electronic devices in particular locations. The risk assessments may be based on data regarding reported theft and/or loss events, and based on data regarding current locations of user devices. The risk assessments may be used to generate location-based alerts.

Claims

1. A method of determining whether to take an action in a monitored electronic device regarding risk of inadvertent loss of said device, the method comprising:

determining a location of the monitored electronic device;

retrieving location data associated with other monitored electronic devices, which have been inadvertently lost;

calculating, based at least partly on said location and said location data, a loss risk level associated with said location; and

determining whether to act based upon said loss risk level;

said method performed programmatically by a computerized system.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said location data relates to locations of loss events of the other monitored electronic devices.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said location data relates to current locations of the other monitored electronic devices.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said location data relates to recent locations of the other monitored electronic devices.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising, prior to retrieving said location data, receiving loss reports of the other monitored electronic devices.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising retrieving further location data associated with further monitored electronic devices that are not lost;

wherein the calculating step is further based on said further location data.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein to act is to alert a user of said monitored electronic device.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising transmitting to the monitored electronic device a message that causes the monitored electronic device to output the alert.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to the loss risk level satisfying a threshold, running a proximity detection system that detects a separation between said monitored electronic device and a second electronic device associated with a user of said monitored electronic device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the separation is detected using an accelerometer in one or both of said monitored electronic device and said second electronic device.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the second electronic device is possessed by the user.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the second electronic device is possessed by an individual related to the user.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising, in response to the loss risk level satisfying a threshold, transmitting, from said monitored electronic device, a signal comprising descriptive information about said monitored electronic device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the signal is transmitted using short range radio.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the descriptive information has previously been uploaded to a monitoring center by a user or an owner of said monitored electronic device.

16. The method of claim 1, comprising determining a zone that the location is in, wherein the calculating step comprises calculating a loss risk level of the zone.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein determining whether to act is based on a presence in the zone of at least one other monitored electronic device that is lost.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the presence is a current presence.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the presence is a recent presence.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein determining whether to act comprises calculating the loss risk level of the zone substantially in real time.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein determining whether to act comprises determining whether a number of reported losses within the zone within a selected time period satisfies a threshold.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein determining whether to act comprises taking into consideration dates of reported losses within the zone.

23. The method of claim 16, further comprising calculating a time-averaged risk profile of the zone based at least partly on the location data and providing the time-averaged risk profile to a third party.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the time-averaged risk profile indicates a risk level trend of the zone.

25. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitored electronic device is a device that is not currently reported as lost.

26. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed by a monitoring system that monitors locations and loss statuses of the monitored electronic devices.

27. Non-transitory computer storage having stored thereon executable program code that directs a computer system to at least:

maintain a database of data regarding locations and inadvertent losses of mobile electronic devices;

define a zone for assessing loss risk;

calculate a risk level associated with the zone based at least partly on said data; and

determine, based on the risk level, whether to instruct a mobile electronic device located in the zone to take an action.

28. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein the action is one or more of:

alerting a user of said monitored electronic device;

running a proximity detection system that detects a separation between said monitored electronic device and a second electronic device associated with the user; and

transmitting, from said monitored electronic device, a signal comprising descriptive information about said monitored electronic device.

29. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein the zone is defined as an area falling within a selected distance of said mobile electronic device.

30. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein the risk level is determined based at least partly on a number of loss events within the zone.

31. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein the risk level is determined based additionally on dates of the loss events.

32. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein the risk level is determined substantially in real time for the mobile electronic device.

33. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein the program code further directs the computer system to generate a time-averaged risk profile of the zone based on said data.

34. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein defining the zone comprises selecting a zone size based at least partly on said data.

35. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 34, wherein the zone size is selected based at least partly on a density of the mobile electronic devices.

36. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 34, wherein the zone size is based additionally on a precision with which a location of the mobile electronic device is known.

37. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 27, wherein defining the zone comprises dynamically defining the zone to be centered about the mobile electronic device.

38. The non-transitory computer storage of claim 37, wherein dynamically defining the zone comprises dynamically selecting a zone size.