System and method of ownership of an online collection

• US 8,925,106 B1
• Filed: 04/20/2012
• Issued: 12/30/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Steiner, Matthew, Smilak, Kevin C.
• Primary Examiner(s): HOLDER, BRADLEY W
• Application Number:
  US13/452,191
• Time in Patent Office: 984 Days
• Field of Search: 726/28
• US Class Current: 726/28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/101 Access control lists [ACL]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatuses, including computer programs encoded on computer-readable media, for providing access to content of a web-based collection, which includes receiving content from at least two users authorized to provide content. A request is received from another user to view content in the web-based collection, the another user not authorized to provide content to the web-based collection. A determination is made as to whether the another user is associated with either of the two users. If so, the another user is enabled to view any content on the web-based collection. If not, the another user is prevented from viewing any content on the web-based collection. The another user is determined to be associated with one of the two users based on the one of the two users selecting the another user as having a relationship to the one of the two users on a social network website.

Claims

1. A method of determining which users are allowed to add content into a web-based collection and to view content from the web-based collection, the content including photos and/or videos, the method comprising:

receiving, by a processor as output by an administrator of the web-based collection, a list of users who are authorized to provide content onto a website, the list of users including a first group and a second group;

receiving, by the processor, a request from a first user to provide selected content to the website;

determining, by the processor, whether the first user making the request is on the list of users, and if so, allowing the first user to provide selected content to the website;

receiving, by the processor, a request from a second user to view the content on the website;

determining, by the processor, whether the second user is on the list of users or is associated with any user on the list of users, wherein determining that the second user is associated with any user on the list of users includes determining that the second user is within a first degree of association with any user in the first group or within a second degree of association with any user in the second group,

wherein determining that the second user is associated with any user on the list of users includes the administrator of the web based collection using a user interface to set a value corresponding to the first degree of association and the second degree of association for each user on the list of authorized users, and wherein the value can be set by the administrator of the web-based collection to be any integer number; and

if the determining is that the second user is on the list of users or is associated with any user on the list of users, allowing the second user to view the content on the website, and if not, disallowing the second user to view the content on the website.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein in a case where the first user is determined to be authorized to provide content to the web-based collection, the method further comprising:

receiving, by the processor, a request from the first user to remove the content from the web-based collection; and

removing, by the processor, the content from the web-based collection based on the request from the first user.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second user is determined to be associated with the list of users when the second user has been assigned as a friend of a user on the list of users on an online social network in which the web-based collection is a part of.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a photo or video uploaded onto the web-based collection by the first user;

performing image recognition of faces on each photo or video uploaded onto the website, to obtain facial parameters associated with each face;

comparing the facial parameters associated with each face as obtained in the performing step with a database of facial parameters of known users;

determining whether any of the facial parameters associated with each face as obtained in the performing step matches with facial parameters of a known user stored in the database of facial parameters of known users; and

if the determining is that there is a match, associating the known user with the list of users and sending an online invitation to the known user to either view the content on the web-based collection and/or upload content to the web-based collection.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the web-based collection is associated with a particular event that occurred, the method further comprising:

determining position information associated with where the particular event occurred;

determining time information associated with when the particular event occurred;

comparing the determined position information and the determined time information of the particular event with a database of time information and position information associated with other users and where the other users were located at particular times in the past; and

if the comparing is such that at least one of the other users has position information and time information that matches the determined position information and the determined time information of the particular event, determining that the least one other user is associated with the list of users and sending an online invitation to the at least one other user to either view the content on the website and/or upload content to the web-based collection.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the position information for each of the other users is obtained from GPS coordinates of a respective electronic device owned by the plurality of users.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the electronic device corresponds to a cellular phone.

8. A server configured to store a web-based collection, the server comprising:

one or more hardware processors configured to perform operations including;

determining whether a user attempting to access the server to thereby access a web-based collection is on a list of users who are allowed to provide content onto the web-based collection, the list of users including a first group and a second group or whether the user is associated with a user on the list of users, and if so, enabling access by the user to the web-based collection; and

determining to allow access by the user to the web-based collection when the user is on the list of users or is associated with a user on the list of users, and to not allow access by the user to the web-based collection when the user is not on the list of users and is not associated with a user on the list of users;

wherein the user requesting access is determined by the server to be associated with one or more users on the list of users based on the one or more users on the list of users having selected the user requesting access as having a relationship to the one or more users on the list of users on a social network website, and the user is within a first degree of association with any user in the first group or within a second degree of association with any user in the second group, and wherein

determining that the user is associated with an user on the list of users includes the administrator of the web based collection using a user interface to set a value corresponding to the first degree of association and the second degree of association for each user on the list of authorized users the value can be set by the administrator of the web-based collection to be an integer number.

9. The server according to claim 8, wherein the user requesting access is determined to have a relationship with the one or more users on the list of users when the user requesting access has been assigned as a friend of the one or more users on the list of users on the social network website.

10. The server according to claim 8, wherein the web-based collection includes photos and/or videos.

11. The server according to claim 8, further comprising:

determining if the user requesting access is in any of the content of the web-based collection,

wherein, if the user requesting access is determined by a facial recognition unit to be in any of the content of the web-based collection, the user requesting access is granted access to the web-based collection.

12. The server according to claim 8, further comprising:

determining if the user requesting access was in a location associated with the web-based collection during a predetermined time,

wherein, if the user requesting access is determined to have been in the location associated with the web-based collection during the predetermined time, the user requesting access is granted accessed to the web-based collection.

13. The server according to claim 8, further comprising determining an identity of the user by accessing data in a facial recognition database.