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US 9,807,061 B2Granted
Privacy server for protecting personally identifiable information
AssigneePearson Education, Inc.
InventorsRichard Paul Hughes, Hong-Yu Chiang, Gregory Dean McFall, Perry Michael Spagnola
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A privacy server protects private information by substituting a token or an identifier for the private information. The privacy server recognizes that a communication includes private information and intercepts the communication. The privacy server replaces the private information with a random or pseudo-random token or identifier. The privacy server maintains the private information in a local database and associates the private information for a particular person with the token or identifier for that person.
Claims23
A non-transitory computer-readable medium capable of storing code for performing operations including:
- receiving a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a full name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyzing the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determining that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- creating a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the token is substituted for the full name of the user,
- substituting the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmitting the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
8 more elements
A method comprising:
- receiving a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a full name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyzing the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determining that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- creating a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the token is substituted for the full name of the user,
- substituting the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmitting the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
8 more elements
A privacy server comprising:
- a processor;
- and
- a memory device including instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
- receive a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a full name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyze the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determine that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- create a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the token is substituted for the full name of the user,
- substitute the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmit the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
11 more elements
A non-transitory computer-readable medium capable of storing code for performing operations including:
- receiving a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyzing the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determining that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- creating a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the name of the user is substituted with the token from the communication and a class name or course number is not substituted with the token from the communication,
- substituting the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmitting the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
8 more elements
A method comprising:
- receiving a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyzing the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determining that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- creating a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the name of the user is substituted with the token from the communication and a class name or course number is not substituted with the token from the communication,
- substituting the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmitting the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
8 more elements
A privacy server comprising:
- a processor;
- and
- a memory device including instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
- receive a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyze the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determine that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- create a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the name of the user is substituted with the token from the communication and a class name or course number is not substituted with the token from the communication,
- substitute the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmit the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
11 more elements
A non-transitory computer-readable medium capable of storing code for performing operations including:
- receiving a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyzing the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determining that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- creating a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the token includes a start code and an end code,
- substituting the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmitting the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
8 more elements
A method comprising:
- receiving a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyzing the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determining that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- creating a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the token includes a start code and an end code,
- substituting the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmitting the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
8 more elements
A privacy server comprising:
- a processor;
- and
- a memory device including instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
- receive a communication from a first computing device located in a first jurisdiction, wherein:
- the first jurisdiction includes geography that is not included in a second jurisdiction,
- the second jurisdiction includes other geography that is not included in the first jurisdiction, and
- content of the communication includes a name and identifier of a user associated with the first jurisdiction or the second jurisdiction;
- analyze the communication to determine whether the communication is intended to be transmitted to the second jurisdiction;
- determine that the content of the communication includes personally identifiable information associated with laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information;
- and
- when the content of the communication includes the personally identifiable information associated with the laws that restrict transmissions of the personally identifiable information:
- create a token to replace the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication, wherein the token includes a start code and an end code,
- substitute the personally identifiable information in the content of the communication with the token, and
- transmit the communication with the token instead of the personally identifiable information to a second computing device associated with the second jurisdiction.
11 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.