Maintaining Subscriber Privacy in Cellular Communication Networks
AssigneeRakuten Symphony, Inc.
InventorVolkan Sevindik
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
In a cellular communication network including a plurality of subnetworks, a request is received in a first subnetwork for private user data, such as IMSI. A computerized component responds to the request if the requestor is within the first subnetwork or separated from the first subnetwork by a single router. If the requester is separated from the computerized component by a greater number of routers, a response is transmitted to the requester and is encrypted. If the number of routers exceeds a maximum number, the request is blocked. The maximum number may be a function of the size of the cellular communication network and a characteristic size of the plurality of subnetworks.
Claims20
A cellular communication network comprising:
- a plurality of subnetworks;
- a database executing in a first subnetwork of the plurality of subnetworks, the database storing private subscriber data;
- and
- a computerized component executing in the first subnetwork of the plurality of subnetworks, the computerized component configured to:
- receive a request to access the private subscriber data from a requestor;
- evaluate a number of routers intervening between the requestor and the computerized component;
- and
- determine whether to block or respond to the request based on the number of routers.
A method comprising:
- receiving, by a computerized component in a first subnetwork of a plurality of subnetworks in a cellular communication network, a request for private subscriber data for a subscriber of the cellular communication network;
- determining, by the computerized component, that a source of the request is not in the first subnetwork;
- in response to determining that the source of the request is not in the first subnetwork performing, by the computerized component:
- transmitting a query to the source of the request;
- receiving a response to the query from the source of the request;
- evaluating a number of routers traversed by the query indicated by the response;
- determining that the number of routers exceeds a threshold;
- and
- in response to determining that the number of routers exceeds the threshold, blocking the request.
A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing executable that, when executed by one or more processing devices, causes the one or more processing devices to perform a method comprising:
- receiving, by a computerized component in a first subnetwork of a plurality of subnetworks in a cellular communication network, a request for private subscriber data for a subscriber of the cellular communication network;
- determining, by the computerized component, that a source of the request is not in the first subnetwork;
- in response to determining that the source of the request is not in the first subnetwork performing, by the computerized component:
- transmitting a query to the source of the request;
- receiving a response to the query from the source of the request;
- evaluating a number of routers traversed by the query indicated by the response;
- determining that the number of routers exceeds a threshold;
- and
- in response to determining that the number of routers exceeds the threshold, blocking the request.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.