COMPUTER-IMPLEMENTED AUTHORISATION PROCEDURE

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a computer-implemented authorization method for digital image information for use with a digital delivery service, wherein image information is provided to the digital delivery service by at least one first delivery service user in a first delivery step, and wherein derived image information based on the provided image information is made available by the delivery service to at least a second delivery service user by means of a delivery service infrastructure.

[0002] Within the scope of the present invention, such a digital provision service is a digital medium through which users, referred to herein as provision service users, can provide at least image information, i.e., publish and / or forward it. Preferably, the provision service user is registered with the provision service for this purpose. The provision service user has provided their name and / or a username and / or their address and / or their email address and / or their telephone number and / or other information identifying the user to the provision service.

[0003] In particular, such a digital delivery service is a social network, such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, WhatsApp, YouTube, Facebook Messenger, Reddit, QQ, Telegram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.

[0004] The image information provided by a delivery service user includes static images, such as photos and / or drawings, and also moving images, especially in the form of videos and / or animations.

[0005] When it is stated that the provided image information is made available to a second service user, this means that the second service user can receive, retrieve, and / or download the provided image information. The service user to whom the provided image information is made available may also be registered with the service; alternatively, the service user may also receive, retrieve, and / or download the provided image information even if they are not registered with the service.

[0006] When providing, i.e., distributing and / or publishing, image information, the user of the service must respect the right to their own image of the person(s) depicted if at least one person is shown. In such cases, the consent of the person(s) depicted may be required for the provision of the image information.

[0007] The fundamental problem is that an individual, especially if they are not registered with the relevant digital service, either does not notice when a picture of them is published or distributed, or only notices it after it has already been published or distributed. In this case, without personal contact between the service user and the person depicted, there is no way to prevent uncensored publication.

[0008] A method for automatically tagging individuals in images on social networks is known from publication EP 2 557 524 A1. This method assigns individuals captured in uploaded images to registered users of the social networks if there is a sufficient match in facial recognition. A disadvantage of this method is that such an assignment can only occur if the captured individual is registered on the social network and has uploaded a photo. Furthermore, the individuals are only tagged after the image information has already been published.

[0009] Based on this state of the art, the object of the present invention is to provide a computer-implemented authorization method by which an authorization method user can prevent or permit the publication and / or distribution of an uncensored representation that infringes upon his right to his own image.

[0010] According to the teaching of the invention, the aforementioned problem is solved by a method described at the outset in that authorization data of authorization procedure users are stored or are stored in a computer-based authorization database, wherein the authorization data includes user-specific, in particular biometric information and user-specific provisioning options. that in a first person recognition step it is determined whether a person is depicted in the provided image information; that, at least in the case where a person is recognized, a computer-based authorization infrastructure is used in a second person recognition step to determine, using user-specific, in particular biometric, information, whether the depicted person includes a representation of an authorization procedure user; that, in the case that the provided digital image information includes a representation of an authorization procedure user, image information is derived accordingly from the provided digital image information in a censorship step using the user-specific provisioning options of the depicted authorization procedure user; and that the derived image information is made available for provision in a release step.

[0011] The invention relates in particular to an upload filter and an authorization database, wherein the authorization infrastructure according to the invention is used to monitor whether representations are provided by authorization procedure users, i.e., published and / or distributed.

[0012] The method according to the invention has the advantage that the user of the authorization procedure does not need to be registered with the corresponding service provider in order to control the publication and / or distribution of their image by the service provider. Furthermore, censorship of unwanted publications and / or distributions of an authorization procedure user's image is implemented even before the publication and / or distribution of their image.

[0013] It is particularly advantageous for the authorization database to be set up on a server external to the provisioning service. Authorization database users should ideally be able to access the authorization database and enter and / or change their authorization data.

[0014] The authorization method according to the invention is preferably executed on the infrastructure of the provisioning service, with access to and data exchange with the authorization database according to the invention taking place via a software interface. In this way, the transfer of large amounts of data can be prevented.

[0015] Alternatively, it is also conceivable that the method according to the invention is stored and executed on a server that is external to the provisioning service. In this case as well, the authorization infrastructure is linked to the infrastructure of the provisioning service via a software interface.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the procedure, the second person recognition step is carried out depending on at least one further criterion, wherein the at least one further criterion relates to the environment shown in the image information, in particular the number of people shown and / or the first provision service user.

[0017] In detail, by taking into account at least one further criterion, it is assessed whether the right to one's own image of the person depicted is actually affected.

[0018] The second person recognition step is particularly preferably not performed if the number of persons recognized in the image information is greater than 1, preferably greater than 5, and particularly preferably greater than 10. In the case where the number of persons is greater than 5, it is particularly preferably also checked whether a person is highlighted, for example, by making that person's face larger, and in particular at least twice as large, as the faces of the other persons depicted. If this is confirmed, the second person recognition step is performed even though the number of persons recognized in the image information is greater than 5.

[0019] Alternatively or additionally, the second person identification step is not carried out if the depicted person is particularly small compared to the depicted environment, such as a building. This can be assessed, for example, if the depicted person's face comprises no more than 5% of the depicted environment. In this case, it can be assumed that the depicted person is merely incidental to the depicted environment. The right to one's own image is not affected in this case.

[0020] Furthermore, the identity of the service user may also preclude any infringement of the right to one's own image. For example, if the service user is part of a government agency or the press, it may likewise be ruled out that the right to one's own image is affected.

[0021] According to a further specification, the second person identification step is not carried out if the identified person and / or group of people is depicted in the context of a historical event, such as a demonstration. This can be achieved, for example, by recording features such as the clothing of the depicted persons and / or other environmental features, such as demonstration signs, which, for example, indicate that a demonstration is being depicted.

[0022] Furthermore, according to another implementation, text associated with the image information, in particular a caption, can be evaluated with regard to the purpose of its provision. For this purpose, the text associated with the image information is analyzed specifically for keywords that indicate that the image information does not merely concern the depicted person as incidental.

[0023] Furthermore, the group of people to whom the image information is to be made available can also be used to assess whether the right to one's own image is affected.

[0024] If the second person identification step is not carried out, the image information is preferably made available directly in the release step for provision, i.e. for publication and / or forwarding.

[0025] According to a further embodiment of the procedure, the biometric information includes the proportions of the face and / or body of the authorization procedure user, wherein preferably an individual user ID (user identification) derived from the biometric information is created or stored in the authorization database. For this purpose, the authorization procedure user can, for example, store at least one photograph showing a front view of themselves, in particular their face, and optionally at least one further photograph showing a profile view, in the authorization database.

[0026] For example, the biometric information includes, alternatively or additionally, data in particular regarding the position and / or distance of characteristic reference points, such as the distance between the eyes and / or the distance between at least one eye and a reference point of the nose and / or the distance between at least one eye and a reference point in the area of ​​the mouth and / or the distance between at least one reference point of the nose and at least one reference point in the area of ​​the mouth.

[0027] Alternatively or additionally, the biometric data includes eye color and / or hair color and / or at least one other unchangeable identifying characteristic, such as a birthmark.

[0028] Alternatively and / or additionally, the biometric data includes at least one variable identifying feature, such as an earring.

[0029] According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the user ID is designed as at least one string containing the unique description of the depicted face.

[0030] If more than one photo is present, the user ID will contain more than one string.

[0031] Furthermore, it is advantageous if the user-specific provisioning options include at least one authorized provider, wherein the at least one authorized provider is preferably stored or will be stored via a profile, the profile comprising a username and / or an email address and / or a telephone number and / or other identification attributable to the provider. Particularly preferably, the profile of the authorized provider corresponds at least partially to the profile with which the authorized provider is registered with the provisioning service.

[0032] Another advantageous design is characterized by the fact that the user-specific provisioning options include at least one of the following options: partial obscuring of the provided image information, in particular in the area of ​​the face of the authorization procedure user, complete obscuring of the provided image information, no influencing of the provided image information, encryption of the provided image information, blocking of the possible provision of the image information.

[0033] For this purpose, the position of the face within the pixel grid of the image information to be provided is preferably determined.

[0034] According to the defined user-specific deployment options, in a particularly preferred configuration the face is made unrecognizable, in particular pixelated and / or colored.

[0035] If a person is identified in the first step of the identification process, it is particularly preferred to create a person ID (person identification), especially based on the displayed biometric information. For example, the proportions of the recognized face and, optionally, the body measurements of the recognized person are taken into account to create the person ID.

[0036] As already explained, the biometric information of the identified person is preferably taken into account when creating the personal ID.

[0037] For example, the biometric information includes data, in particular regarding the position and / or distance of characteristic reference points, especially the distance between the eyes and / or the distance between at least one eye and a reference point of the nose and / or the distance between at least one eye and a reference point in the area of ​​the mouth and / or the distance between at least one reference point of the nose and at least one reference point in the area of ​​the mouth.

[0038] Alternatively or additionally, the biometric data includes eye color and / or hair color and / or at least one other unchangeable identifying characteristic, such as a birthmark.

[0039] Alternatively and / or additionally, the biometric information includes at least one variable identifying feature, such as an earring.

[0040] According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the person ID is designed as at least one string containing the unique description of the depicted face.

[0041] Any method known from the prior art for facial recognition or for comparing image information relating to two persons is suitable as a method for facial recognition or for recognizing whether a recognized person represents a user of an authorization procedure. For example, the comparison of the image information to be provided with the image information stored in the authorization database can also be carried out directly using at least one piece of biometric information, i.e., without creating an individual ID. This also applies to future developments of the methods described above that are used to implement the method according to the invention.

[0042] Preferably, in the second person identification step, the generated person ID is compared with the user IDs stored in the authorization database, whereby a representation of an authorization procedure user is affirmed if the match between the person ID and a user ID is at least 70%, preferably at least 80%, particularly preferably at least 90%.

[0043] As an alternative to comparing the user ID with the person ID, individual biometric information can also be directly compared with each other, as already explained.

[0044] According to a further implementation, if a person is identified in the image information during the first person identification step and a match is found between the generated person ID and a user ID of an authorization procedure user, the image information is made available to the authorization procedure user. For example, the image information can be transmitted directly to the authorization procedure user or offered to them for download.

[0045] The authorization procedure user is given a particularly advantageous time window within which they can decide whether to apply one of the aforementioned possible censorship measures or to release the image information unchanged. In the latter case, the derived image information created during the censorship step corresponds to the originally provided image information.

[0046] According to a further refinement of the procedure, if the user of the authorization process is provided with the image information as previously described, they can alternatively or additionally confirm whether the identified person in the image information is indeed a depiction of themselves. This prevents depictions of people resembling the user of the authorization process from being wrongly censored.

[0047] The procedure is particularly preferred if it is designed in such a way that the user of the authorization procedure is provided with the image information for confirmation if the match between the user ID and the person ID is between 60% and 80%.

[0048] According to a further embodiment of the procedure, user-specific provisioning options are implemented when the match between the person ID and the user ID is greater than 80%, whereby the image information is made available to the authorization procedure user for confirmation when the match is between 60% and 80%. This embodiment thus differentiates between the case where the authorization procedure user is highly likely to be depicted and the case where a person resembling the authorization procedure user is possibly depicted.

[0049] In addition to the provided image information, information about the first provisioning service user is also provided with particular preference, whereby if the first provisioning service user is registered as the authorized provider, the derived image information created in the censorship step corresponds to the originally provided image information, and insofar as the originally provided image information is made available uncensored to the digital provisioning service in the release step.

[0050] In cases where the delivery service user is not registered as an authorized provider, the authorization procedure user is preferably notified of the impending censorship before the censorship step. The authorization procedure user then has a specified time window to add the delivery service user as an authorized provider to their user-specific delivery options, thus preventing censorship of the provided image information during the censorship step. This time window could be, for example, 24 hours. If the authorization procedure user does not add the delivery service user as an authorized provider to their user-specific delivery options within this time window, the image will be censored during the censorship step.

[0051] According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the possibility of receiving a message if a provisioning service user wishes to provide image information that includes a representation of the authorization procedure user is also a user-specific provisioning option that each authorization procedure user can select individually.

[0052] According to another preferred embodiment, after the derived image information has been released, the authorization procedure user can, within a defined time window, modify their user-specific provisioning options with respect to the provisioning service user, thus implementing the change to the user-specific provisioning options for the released image information. For example, the authorization procedure user can subsequently add the provisioning service user to their list of authorized providers, thereby reversing any censorship of the released image information.

[0053] For this purpose, the unaltered image information is stored in the database. A message is then sent to the authorization procedure user, informing them that the image information has been stored. In the next step, the authorization procedure user can consent to the release of the image information. The derived, censored image information is then overwritten with the unaltered image information.

[0054] In detail, there are numerous possibilities for designing and further developing the method according to the invention. Reference is made to the claims subordinate to the independent claim as well as to the following description of preferred embodiments in conjunction with the drawing. The drawing shows Fig. 1 a first embodiment of a method according to the invention, Fig. 2 a second embodiment of a method according to the invention, Fig. 3 a third embodiment of a method according to the invention and Fig. 4 an embodiment of an authorization infrastructure.

[0055] In Fig. 1 This is a first embodiment of a computer-implemented authorization method 1 for digital image information for use in a digital delivery service 11. In detail, the method 1 comprises checking whether an authorization method user of an authorization infrastructure 15 according to the invention is depicted on image information intended for publication and / or forwarding, wherein, in the case in which an authorization method user is recognized, user-specific options are implemented.

[0056] For this purpose, user-specific biometric information as well as user-specific options are stored in an authorization database 12 for the authorization procedure user 13.

[0057] In a first provisioning step 2, image information 16 is provided to the digital provisioning service 11 by at least one first provisioning service user. In addition to the digital image information 16, information about the first provisioning service user is also provided.

[0058] In a first person recognition step 3, a facial recognition procedure is used to determine whether a person is depicted in the provided image information 16.

[0059] If no person is captured in the provided image information 16, the image information will be released 6.

[0060] In the case where a person is detected, a second person recognition step 4 uses a computer-based authorization infrastructure 15 to determine whether the person depicted is an authorization procedure user 13.

[0061] If the person depicted is not an authorization procedure user 13, the image information 16 will be released 6.

[0062] In the case where the person captured on the image information 16 can be assigned to an authorization procedure user 13, image information 17 derived from the provided digital image information 16 is created in a censorship step 5 using the user-specific provisioning options.

[0063] In the illustrated example, the user-specific provisioning options include a list of authorized providers. By providing the information of the provisioning service user, it can be determined whether the provisioning service user is included in the list of authorized providers.

[0064] In the case where the provisioning service user is included in the list of authorized providers, the derived image information 17 corresponds to the originally provided image information 16.

[0065] If the provisioning service user is not included in the list of authorized providers, in the illustrated embodiment the image information 16 is partially obscured, in detail in the area of ​​the face of the authorization procedure user 13.

[0066] In a final step 6, the derived image information is released for publication and / or forwarding.

[0067] In Fig. 2 A second embodiment of a computer-implemented authorization method 1 for digital image information for use with a digital delivery service 11 is shown. The authorization database 12 according to the invention contains biometric information of an authorization method user 13, from which a user ID is derived. In addition, user-specific delivery options are also stored, which include a list of authorized providers.

[0068] As in the first embodiment, in a first provisioning step 2, image information 16 is provided to the digital provisioning service 11 by at least one first provisioning service user. In addition, information about the first provisioning service user is also provided.

[0069] In a first person recognition step 3, a facial recognition procedure is used to determine whether a person is depicted in the provided image information 16.

[0070] If a person is identified, in the next step 7 a person ID is created from the biometric information 16 obtained from the image information.

[0071] For the determination within the framework of the second person identification step 4, the person ID is compared with the user IDs stored in the authorization database 12 8. A representation of an authorization procedure user is affirmed if the match between the person ID and a user ID is at least 80%.

[0072] If a match between the depicted person and an authorization procedure user 13 is found, image information 17 derived from the provided digital image information 16 is created in a subsequent censorship step 5 using the user-specific provisioning options.

[0073] Specifically, the information provided about the provisioning service user is used to verify whether the provisioning service user is included in the list of authorized providers.

[0074] In the case where the provisioning service user is included in the list of authorized providers, the derived image information 17 corresponds to the originally provided image information 16.

[0075] If the provision service user is not included in the list of authorized providers, the authorization procedure user 13 will receive a message in a next step 9 about the upcoming censorship of the provided image information 16.

[0076] Preferably, the authorization procedure user also receives the image information 16 with the message or a means of accessing it, for example, a link to download the image information. Upon receiving this message, the authorization procedure user 13 can add the provision service user to their list of authorized providers within a defined time window, which in this embodiment is 24 hours. During this time window, the subsequent censorship of the image information 16 is not performed.

[0077] If the authorization procedure user 13 does not add the provisioning service user to its list of authorized providers, or does not do so within the specified time window, then in the illustrated embodiment, the image information relating to the authorization procedure user 13 is completely obscured.

[0078] In a final step 6, the derived image information 17 is released for provision.

[0079] Fig. 3 Figure 1 shows a further embodiment of a computer-implemented authorization method 1 for digital image information for use with a digital delivery service 11. The authorization database according to the invention contains biometric information of at least one authorization method user 13, from which an individual user ID is derived. In addition, user-specific delivery options are also stored, which include a list of authorized providers.

[0080] As in the previously described embodiments, in a first provisioning step 2, image information 16 is provided to the digital provisioning service 11 by a provisioning service user. In addition to the image information 16, information about the provisioning service user is also provided.

[0081] In a first person recognition step 3, a facial recognition procedure is used to determine whether a person is depicted in the provided image information 16.

[0082] If a person is identified, in the next step 7 a person ID is created from the biometric information 16 obtained from the image information.

[0083] For the determination within the framework of the second person identification step 4, the person ID is compared with the user IDs stored in the authorization database 8. A representation of an authorization procedure user is affirmed if the match between the person ID and a user ID is at least 90%.

[0084] If a match between the depicted person and an authorization procedure user 13 is found, image information derived from the provided digital image information is created in a subsequent censorship step 5 using the user-specific provisioning options.

[0085] Specifically, the information provided by the provisioning service user is used to verify whether the provisioning service user is included in the list of authorized providers.

[0086] In the case where the provisioning service user is included in the list of authorized providers, the derived image information 17 corresponds to the originally provided image information 16.

[0087] If the provisioning service user is not included in the list of authorized providers, the image information relating to the authorization procedure user is completely obscured in the illustrated example.

[0088] In the next step 6, the derived image information 17 is released for provision.

[0089] After the release of the derived image information 17, the authorization procedure user can change his user-specific provisioning options with respect to the provisioning service user 10 within a defined time window, so that the change of the user-specific provisioning options for the released image information 17 is subsequently implemented.

[0090] Fig. 4 Figure 1 schematically shows the infrastructure relating to the invention. To implement the method 1 according to the invention, the digital provisioning service 11 is connected to the authorization database 12 according to the invention via a software interface.

[0091] In the illustrated embodiment, the inventive method 1 is called and executed on the infrastructure of the provisioning service 11, in detail on the computers of the provisioning service 11.

[0092] The authorization data 14 of the authorization procedure users 13 are stored on external servers, so that in the course of the inventive method 1 communication takes place via the software interface between the infrastructure of the provisioning service 11 and the infrastructure of the authorization database 12.

[0093] Furthermore, the authorization procedure users 13 have access at any time to the authorization data 14 they have stored, for example to change and / or check their authorization data 14. Reference sign

[0094] 1 Computer-implemented authorization process 2 First deployment step 3 First person identification step 4 Second person identification step 5 Censorship step 6 Approval step 7 Creation of a person ID 8 Comparison with user IDs 9 Notification of authorization process user 10 Subsequent notification of authorization process user 11 Deployment service 12 Authorization database 13 Authorization process user 14 Authorization data 15 Authorization infrastructure 16 Deployed image information 17 Derived image information

Claims

1. Computer-implemented authorization method (1) for digital image information for use with a digital delivery service (11), wherein the digital delivery service (11) is provided with image information (16) by at least one first delivery service user in a first delivery step (2), wherein derived image information (17) based on the provided image information is made available to at least one second delivery service user by the delivery service using a delivery service infrastructure, wherein the digital delivery service is a social network, wherein, in a computer-based authorization database (12), authorization data (14) from authorization procedure users (13) is or are stored, wherein the authorization data (14) comprises user-specific, in particular biometric, information and user-specific provision options, that in a first person recognition step (3), it is recognized whether a person is depicted in the provided image information (16) , that, at least in the case where a person is recognized, a computer-based authorization infrastructure (15) is used in a second person recognition step (4) to determine, using the user-specific, in particular biometric, information, whether the person depicted comprises a representation of an authorization procedure user (13), that, in the case the provided digital image information includes a representation of an authorization procedure user (13), using the user-specific delivery options of the depicted authorization procedure user (13) in a censorship step (5), image information (17) derived accordingly is derived from the provided digital image information (16), and that the derived image information (17) is made available for delivery in an approval step (6), wherein the authorization procedure user does not have to be registered with the corresponding delivery service in order to control the publication and / or distribution of the representation of his person by the delivery service, characterized in that in addition to the provided image information, information about the first delivery service user is also provided, and that in the event the first delivery service user is registered as an authorized provider, the derived image information (17) created in the censorship step (5) corresponds to the originally provided image information (16), so that the originally provided image information (16) is made available to the digital delivery service (11) uncensored in the release step (6) and that in the event that the delivery service user is not registered as an authorized provider, a message regarding the following censorship is transmitted to the authorization procedure user (13) prior to the censorship step (5), and wherein the authorization procedure user (13) can add the delivery service user to his user-specific delivery options within a specified time window, so that no censorship of the provided image information takes place in the censorship step (5) or that after the release (6) of the derived image information (17), the authorization procedure user (13) can change his user-specific delivery options with regard to the delivery service user within a specified time window, so that the change to the user-specific delivery options for the released image information (17) is implemented.

2. Computer-implemented method (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the second person recognition step (4) is performed depending on at least one further criterion, wherein the at least one further criterion preferably relates to the environment depicted in the image information, in particular the number of persons depicted and / or the delivery service user.

3. Computer-implemented method (1) according to claim 2, characterized in that the second person recognition step (4) is not performed if the number of persons recognized in the image information (16) is greater than 1, preferably greater than 5, and particularly preferably greater than 10.

4. Computer-implemented method (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the biometric information comprises, for example, proportions of the face and / or body of the authorization procedure user (13) and / or at least one further characteristic identification feature, wherein, preferably, an individual user ID derived from the biometric information is created or stored in the authorization database (12).

5. Computer-implemented method (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the user-specific delivery options comprise at least one authorized provider, wherein the at least one authorized provider is stored or will be stored preferably via a user name and / or an e-mail address and / or a telephone number and / or another identification assignable to the provider.

6. Computer-implemented method (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the user-specific delivery options comprise at least one of the following options: partial obscuring of the provided image information, in particular in the area of the face of the authorization procedure user, complete obscuring of the provided image information, no influence on the provided image information, encryption of the provided image information, blocking of the possible delivery of the image information.

7. Computer-implemented method (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that if a person is recognized in the first person recognition step (3), a person ID is created, in particular based on the displayed biometric information.

8. Computer-implemented method (1) according to claim 7, characterized in that in the second person recognition step (4), the created person ID is compared with the user IDs stored in the authorization database (12) and that a representation of an authorization procedure user (13) is affirmed if the person ID matches a user ID by at least 70%, preferably at least 80%, and particularly preferably at least 90%.