Method, electronic apparatus and non-transitory computer readable medium for masking data on electronic document

Abstract

To provide a method and an electronic apparatus for masking data on an electronic document to prevent confidential business information or personal information from being illegally used.SOLUTION: A method is performed by an electronic apparatus and includes the steps of: displaying the electronic document on a user interface; causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and a plurality of character strings of the electronic document and output a first character string among the plurality of character strings and first position information associated with the first character string, based on a result of the at least one analysis; obtaining the first character string and the first position information from the at least one analysis module; and generating, based on the first position information and the first character string, a first masking object to mask the first character string on the electronic document.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for editing an electronic document, and in particular to a method, an electronic device and a non-transitory computer-readable medium for masking data in an electronic document. [Background technology]

[0002] In today's business activities, it has become commonplace for workers to transmit electronic documents over the Internet. However, if electronic documents containing confidential commercial information or personal information are received by an inappropriate person, the information may be misused for illegal activities and the rights and interests of individuals or companies may be infringed. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] To solve the above problems, it is necessary to propose a method for shielding data in electronic documents to prevent commercial confidential information and personal information from being misused. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In view of this, the present invention provides a method for masking data in an electronic document, the method being executed by an electronic device and including the steps of: displaying an electronic document on a user interface; causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and a plurality of strings in the electronic document, and outputting a first string among the plurality of strings and first location information associated with the first string based on at least one result of the at least one analysis; obtaining the first string and the first location information from the at least one analysis module; and generating a first masking object based on the obtained first location information and the obtained first string, to mask at least a portion of the first string in the electronic document.

[0005] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes the steps of causing the at least one analysis module to output a second string of the plurality of strings and second location information associated with the second string based on the at least one result of the at least one analysis, acquiring the second string and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, and generating a second occlusion object based on the acquired second location information and the acquired second string to occlude at least a portion of the second string in the electronic document.

[0006] In one embodiment of the invention, the method further comprises the step of: the first location information includes at least one first location coordinate indicating that the first string is located at a first location in the electronic document; and the second location information includes at least one second location coordinate indicating that the second string is located at a second location in the electronic document.

[0007] In one embodiment of the present invention, the first position information further includes first width and first height values ​​indicating a first width and a first height of a first character string located in the electronic document, and the second position information further includes second width and second height values ​​indicating a second width and a second height of a second character string located in the electronic document.

[0008] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes displaying a data type menu on the user interface, the data type menu including a first selection item and a second selection item, the first selection item and the second selection item being associated with a first data type and a second data type, respectively, detecting whether at least one of the first selection item and the second selection item is selected, and after detecting that the first selection item and the second selection item are selected, causing the at least one analysis module to perform the at least one analysis based on the first data type and the second data type, and the at least one result of the at least one analysis includes determining that the first string is the first data type and determining that the second string is the second data type.

[0009] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes the steps of: after obtaining the first string, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, displaying a data type list on the user interface, the data type list including a first area associated with the first data type and a second area associated with the second data type; and listing the first string and the second string in the first area and the second area, respectively, based on the first data type and the second data type.

[0010] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes a step of detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected, generating a first marking object based on the acquired first position information to mark at least a portion of the first character string on the electronic document; and in response to a first operation event, generating the first occlusion object to replace the first marking object.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes recording the first location information and the second location information in an information file in response to a second operation event, and storing the information file in a database, the information file being independent of the electronic document.

[0012] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes the steps of: after obtaining the first string, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, generating a first marking object based on the obtained first location information and marking at least a portion of the first string in the electronic document; detecting whether the first string listed in the first area is selected; and deleting the first marking object after detecting that the first string listed in the first area is selected.

[0013] In one embodiment of the present invention, the at least one analysis module is located in at least one server, and the at least one analysis includes a first analysis and a second analysis.

[0014] In one embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes the steps of sending an analysis request and the electronic document to the at least one server; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the first analysis on a plurality of strings in the electronic document in response to the analysis request and outputting the first strings and the second strings based on a first result of the first analysis; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the second analysis on positions of the first strings and the second strings in the electronic document in response to the analysis request and outputting the first location information and the second location information based on a second result of the second analysis; and receiving the first strings, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one server and obtaining the first strings, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information.

[0015] The present invention provides an electronic device for masking data of an electronic document, the electronic device comprising a processor, a display and a storage device, the display being electrically connected to the processor, the storage being electrically coupled to the processor and configured to store a plurality of computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by the processor, cause the electronic device to perform the following steps: displaying the electronic document in a user interface; causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and a plurality of strings in the electronic document, and outputting a first string of the plurality of strings and first location information associated with the first string based on at least one result of the at least one analysis; obtaining the first string and the first location information from the at least one analysis module; and generating a first masking object based on the obtained first location information and the obtained first string, to mask at least a portion of the first string in the electronic document.

[0016] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device further performs the steps of: causing the at least one analysis module to output a second string of the plurality of strings and second location information associated with the second string based on the at least one result of the at least one analysis; acquiring the second string and the second location information from the at least one analysis module; and generating a second occlusion object to occlude at least a portion of the second string in the electronic document based on the acquired second location information and the acquired second string.

[0017] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device further performs the steps of: causing the display to display a data type menu on the user interface, the data type menu including a first selection item and a second selection item, the first selection item and the second selection item being associated with a first data type and a second data type, respectively; detecting whether at least one of the first selection item and the second selection item is selected; and after detecting that the first selection item and the second selection item are selected, causing the at least one analysis module to perform the at least one analysis based on the first data type and the second data type. Also, the at least one result of the at least one analysis includes determining that the first string is the first data type and determining that the second string is the second data type.

[0018] In one embodiment of the present invention, after obtaining the first string, the second string, the first location information and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, the electronic device further performs the steps of: causing the display to display a data type list on the user interface, the data type list including a first area associated with the first data type and a second area associated with the second data type; and listing the first string and the second string in the first area and the second area, respectively, based on the first data type and the second data type.

[0019] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device further performs the steps of detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected, generating a first marking object based on the acquired first position information to mark at least a portion of the first character string on the electronic document; and generating the first occlusion object to replace the first marking object in response to a first operation event.

[0020] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device further performs the steps of: after obtaining the first string, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, generating a first marking object based on the obtained first location information and marking at least a portion of the first string in the electronic document; detecting whether the first string listed in the first area is selected; and deleting the first marking object after detecting that the first string listed in the first area is selected.

[0021] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electronic device further performs the steps of sending an analysis request and the electronic document to the at least one server; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the first analysis on a plurality of strings in the electronic document in response to the analysis request and outputting the first strings and the second strings based on a first result of the first analysis; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the second analysis on positions of the first strings and the second strings in the electronic document in response to the analysis request and outputting the first location information and the second location information based on a second result of the second analysis; and receiving the first strings, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one server and obtaining the first strings, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information.

[0022] The present invention provides a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a plurality of computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause an electronic device to perform a method of masking data of an electronic document, the method including the steps of: displaying an electronic document including a plurality of character strings on a user interface, causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and the plurality of character strings, and outputting a first character string of the plurality of character strings and first location information associated with the first character string based on at least one result of the at least one analysis, obtaining the first character string and the first location information from the at least one analysis module, and generating a first masking object based on the obtained first location information and the obtained first character string to mask at least a portion of the first character string of the electronic document. Effect of the Invention

[0023] The method of masking data in electronic documents of the present invention can prevent the unauthorized use of confidential commercial information and personal information. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device for shielding data in an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram of a system for masking data in an electronic document in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3A] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3B] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3C] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3D]2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3E] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3F] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3G] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3H] 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device for shielding data in an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3I] 2A-2C are diagrams illustrating different operational states of a user interface for obscuring data of an electronic document according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 3 is a flow chart of a method for masking data in an electronic document according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] In the present invention, unless the article is otherwise limited in context, "a" and "the" may refer to one or more.

[0026] Additionally, the terms "including," "having," and similar terms as used herein are open-ended terms and include the stated features, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude one or more other features, elements, components, and / or groups thereof other than those stated.

[0027] As used herein, "coupled" can refer to two or more members or devices being in direct physical contact with each other or in indirect physical contact with each other, and can also refer to two or more members or devices operating or acting on each other.

[0028] Furthermore, ordinal terminology (such as "first," "second," "third," etc.) used in this disclosure and in the claims to modify the elements themselves does not imply any priority or sequence of one element relative to another element, or a chronological order of steps in performing a method, but rather is merely a label to distinguish a particular named element from other elements having the same name.

[0029] The spirit of the present invention will be explained below with reference to the drawings and detailed description, but those skilled in the art can make changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention using the techniques taught by the present invention after understanding the embodiments of the present invention.

[0030] 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device 100 for shielding data of an electronic document according to an embodiment of the present invention. The electronic device 100 includes a processor 102, a display 104, a storage 106, a first input member 108, and a second input member 110. The display 104, the storage 106, the first input member 108, and the second input member 110 are each electrically connected to the processor 102. In this embodiment, the first input member 108 and the second input member 110 can each be implemented by, for example, a mouse, a touch screen, or a keyboard. The storage 106 is configured to store a plurality of computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by the processor 102, cause the electronic device 100 to perform the method for shielding data of an electronic document of the present invention.

[0031] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a system for shielding data of an electronic document according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 2, the system for shielding data of an electronic document includes an electronic device 100, a management server 120, a database 130, a first service server 140, and a second service server 150. In this embodiment, the management server 120, the first service server 140, and the second service server 150 are servers with computing and network functions. The management server 120 and the database 130 may be two independent cloud servers, or may be provided in the same cloud server. The management server 120 is configured to receive an analysis request and an electronic document from the electronic device 100, and generate a first instruction and a second instruction based on the analysis request. The management server 120 is configured to send the first instruction to the first service server 140, instructing the first service server 140 to provide a first document analysis service. The management server 120 is further configured to send the second instruction to the second service server 150, instructing the second service server 150 to provide a second document analysis service. In this embodiment, the first document analysis service provided by the first service server 140, for example, performs an analysis of the text content of the electronic document, finds different types of confidential or sensitive data from the analyzed text content, such as name, date of birth, ID number, phone number, and the like, and finally returns the discovered confidential or sensitive data to the management server 120. The second document analysis service provided by the second service server 150, for example, performs an analysis on the position of the confidential or sensitive data in the electronic document 210, generates position information of the confidential or sensitive data based on the analyzed position, and finally returns the generated position information to the management server 120. After the management server 120 receives confidential or sensitive data from the first service server 140 and location information from the second service server 150, the management server 120 organizes and sorts the received confidential or sensitive data and location information, and returns the organized and sorted confidential or sensitive data and location information to the electronic device 100 and responds to the analysis request sent from the electronic device 100.In this embodiment, the first service server 140 and the second service server 150 may be two independent cloud servers, or may be provided in the same cloud server.

[0032] In this embodiment, the first service server 140 includes a first analysis module 140a, receives a first command from the management server 120, performs a first analysis on the electronic document and / or the text content of the electronic document according to the first command, returns a first analysis result generated by the first analysis to the management server 120, and responds to the first command received from the management server 120. The second service server 150 includes a second analysis module 150a, receives a second command from the management server 120, performs a second analysis on the location of confidential or sensitive data in the electronic document according to the second command, returns a second analysis result generated by the second analysis to the management server 120, and responds to the second command received from the management server 120. The service provided by the first service server 140 and the second service server 150 may be, for example, an artificial intelligence (AI) document analysis service utilizing machine learning to automatically and accurately extract characters, index keys, and / or tables from the electronic document and convert the electronic document into usable data. In addition, the first analysis module 140a and the second analysis module 150a may be different AI models generated by analyzing a large amount of electronic documents through machine learning or deep learning. In one embodiment, the first service server 140 is, for example, a ChatGPT server, and the first command is, for example, a ChatGPT command (for example, a prompt command). In addition, the second service server 150 may be a different type of AI server, such as an Azure server provided by Microsoft, and the service provided by the second service server 150 may be an Azure AI document smart service.Furthermore, the management server 120 has a first application interface (API) and a second application interface installed therein, and sends analysis requests to the first service server 140 and the second service server 150 via the first API and the second API, respectively, provides data input (e.g., electronic documents and / or character data of electronic documents, etc.), and receives analysis results (e.g., strings, data output after analysis, or location information related to the strings and data) from the first service server 140 and the second service server 150 via the first API and the second API.

[0033] 3A to 3I are explanatory diagrams of different operation states of a user interface for shielding data of an electronic document according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a method for shielding data of an electronic document according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is used to explain the method for shielding data of an electronic document in this embodiment. The method for shielding data of an electronic document in this embodiment is executed by the electronic device 100. Referring to FIGS. 1, 3A and 4, in step S10, the processor 102 causes the display 104 to display an electronic document 210 on the user interface 200. In this embodiment, the user interface 200 can be generated by the processor 102 executing a document editing software, and includes at least a name area 202, a document editing area 204, a function selection area 206 and an item selection area 208. The name area 202 is a file name for displaying the electronic document 210. The document editing area 204 is used to display some or all of the pages included in the electronic document 210. In this embodiment, the electronic document 210 is a home rental, and a 1 / 2 page of the home rental includes multiple character strings such as "Home Rental", "Landlord", "David Chen", "Lesser", and "John Hwang". The function selection area 206 has at least five function selection items A, B, C, D, and E, but is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, the function selection items A, B, C, D, and E may be an "Open File" selection item and an "Hide File" selection item, respectively. In this embodiment, the first input member 108 may be a mouse or a touch pad, and may control a cursor (not shown) displayed on the display 104 and operate the user interface 200. In addition, the second input member 110 may be a keyboard, and may input characters and perform operations on the user interface 200.

[0034] In step S12, the processor 102 can select the function selection item E "shield data" based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, and after the function selection item E "shield data" is selected, the display 104 displays a document type menu in the item selection area 208 of the user interface 200. In this embodiment, the document type menu includes a plurality of document type selection items, such as a "general document" selection item 208a, a "contract" selection item 208b, a "personal information" selection item 208c, and a "resume" selection item 208d. When a user wants to shield confidential or sensitive data in the electronic document 210, the user can select the "contract" selection item 208b and the "next" key 212 using the first input member 108 or the second input member 110 according to the document type of the electronic document 210, and cause the processor 102 to select the "contract" selection item 208b and the "next" key 212 based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110. In this embodiment, after the "contract" selection item 208b is selected, a "V" indicating that the "contract" selection item 208b has been selected is displayed in the selection frame of the "contract" selection item 208b. After the processor 102 selects the "next" key 212, the processor 102 executes step S14.

[0035] 1, 3B, 3C, and 4, in step S14, the processor 102 causes the display 104 to display a data type menu in the item selection area 208 of the user interface 200, and allows the user to select a data type to be hidden. In this embodiment, the data type menu includes a number of data type selection items, such as a "select all" selection item 213, a "name" selection item 214a, a "phone number" selection item 214b, an "identification number" selection item 214c, an "address" selection item 214d, an "amount" selection item 214e, and a "date" selection item 214f. 3, page 2 / 2 of electronic document 210 includes multiple character strings, including "8th:XXX", "9th:XXX", "Lender", "David Chen", "Borrower", "John Hwang", "Phone", "0983001333", "0977456078", "ID Number", "S381456745", and "N123456789". After processor 102 causes display 104 to display the data type menu in item selection area 208 of user interface 200, processor 102 executes step S16.

[0036] In step S16, the processor 102 detects whether the data type selection item is selected. In this embodiment, if the confidential or sensitive data that the user wants to block is the name, phone number, and ID number of the electronic document 210, the user can use the first input member 108 or the second input member 110 to select the "Name" selection item 214a, the "Phone Number" selection item 214b, and the "ID Number" selection item 214c, and have the processor 102 detect that the "Name" selection item 214a, the "Phone Number" selection item 214b, and the "ID Number" selection item 214c have been selected. After the "Name" selection item 214a, the "Phone Number" selection item 214b, and the "ID Number" selection item 214c are selected, "V" is displayed in the selection frame of the "Name" selection item 214a, the "Phone Number" selection item 214b, and the "ID Number" selection item 214c, indicating that the "Name" selection item 214a, the "Phone Number" selection item 214b, and the "ID Number" selection item 214c have been selected. If the processor 102 does not detect that any of the selection items 214a to 214f ​​has been selected, the processor 102 repeats step S16. Next, the user selects the "Start Detection" key 216 using the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, and causes the processor 102 to select the "Start Detection" key 216 based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, and starts detecting character strings associated with the "Name", "Phone Number", and "ID Number" in the electronic document 210. After the processor 102 selects the "start detection" key 216, the processor 102 executes step S18.

[0037] 1, 2, 3B, 3C, and 4, in step S18, the processor 102 causes the first analysis module 140a of the first service server 140 and the second analysis module 150a of the second service server 150 to perform analysis on the electronic document 210 and a plurality of character strings in the electronic document 210 according to the data type selected in step S16, and outputs an output character string associated with the selected data type and position information associated with the output character string. In this embodiment, after the "start detection" key 216 is selected, the processor 102 transmits an analysis request and the electronic document 210 to the management server 120. After receiving the analysis request, the management server 120 generates a first command and a second command in response to the analysis request. Thereafter, the management server 120 transmits the first command and the plurality of character strings of the electronic document 210 to the first service server 140, causes the first analysis module 140a to respond to the first command generated by the analysis request, performs a first analysis on the plurality of character strings of the electronic document 210, searches for character strings associated with “name”, “phone number”, and “identification number” based on a first result of the first analysis, and outputs the character strings to the management server 120. The character strings associated with “name”, “phone number”, and “identification number” detected by the first analysis module 140a include “David Chen”, “John Hwang”, “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789”. In this embodiment, the first result of the first analysis may, for example, determine "David Chen" and "John Hwang" as a data type of "name", determine "0983001333" and "0977456078" as a data type of "telephone number", and determine "S381456745" and "N123456789" as a data type of "identification number".In addition, after the management server 120 receives the character strings “David Chen”, “John Hwang”, “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789”, the management server 120 transmits the character strings, the electronic document 210, and the second command to the second service server 150, and causes the second analysis module 150a to perform a second analysis on the position of the received character strings on the electronic document 210 in response to the second command generated by the analysis request, and outputs location information associated with the character strings “David Chen”, “John Hwang”, “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” to the management server 120 based on a second result of the second analysis. After the management server 120 receives the character strings “David Chen”, “John Hwang”, “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” from the first analysis module 140a and receives the location information associated with the character strings from the second analysis module 150a, the management server 120 transmits the character strings and the location information associated with the character strings to the electronic device 100.

[0038] In this embodiment, the position information associated with each string output by the second analysis module 150a may include at least one coordinate, a width value, and a height value. The at least one coordinate is used to indicate a position on the electronic document 210 where the corresponding string is located, and may be represented by (x, y) coordinates, for example. The width value and the height value are used to indicate a width and a height of the corresponding string located on the electronic document 210, and the length units of the width value and the height value may be defined according to different requirements. For example, the length unit may be, but is not limited to, the number of words, the number of characters, the ratio of the width of the electronic document to the width of the string, or the ratio of the height of the electronic document to the height of the string, etc. In another embodiment, the position information may further include a page number to indicate a page number on the electronic document 210 where the corresponding string is located. In one embodiment of the present invention, before the management server 120 transmits the character strings "David Chen", "John Fan", "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" and the location information associated with these character strings to the electronic device 100, the management server 120 arranges and arranges the character strings and the location information. For example, the management server 120 may organize the character strings and the location information into a plurality of data items in Table 1 below according to numbers, and transmit each data item to the electronic device 100 according to the number sequence in Table 1. In another embodiment of the present invention, the management server 120 may store a plurality of data items in Table 1 below in a data file, and transmit the data file to the electronic device 100.

[0039] [Table 1]

[0040] In step S20, the processor 102 receives the eight data shown in Table 1 from the management server 120, and acquires position information of character strings associated with "name", "phone number", and "ID number" output by the first analysis module 140a and the second analysis module 150a. In this embodiment, each data includes, but is not limited to, a data number, a data type, the contents of the character string, a page number, a position coordinate, the height of the character string, and / or the width of the character string. In other embodiments, each data may further include the date of data creation, the date of data modification, and / or the name of the person who modified the data. After the processor 102 acquires the character strings associated with "name", "phone number", and "ID number" and the position information of the character strings, the processor 102 executes step S22.

[0041] 1, 3D, 3E and 4, in step S22, the processor 102 causes the display 104 to display a list of data types in the item selection area 208 of the user interface 200, and lists the contents of the character strings associated with the data acquired by the processor 102, "Name", "Phone Number", "Phone Number" and "ID Number", in different areas of the data type list, respectively. In this embodiment, the data type list includes a status display area 218 and a number of selectable areas 219-227. The status display area 218 is configured to indicate the number of detected character strings that match the selected data type. The selectable areas 219-227 each have a number of selection frames 219a-227a, and are used to indicate whether a data type selection item associated with the number of selectable areas 219-227 is selected. Specifically, since the data type associated with the selectable areas 219 to 221 is "name", the processor 102 can list the character string contents "David Chen" and "John Hwang", which are determined to be a "name" or associated with a "name" based on the data type of "name", in the selectable areas 220 and 221, respectively. Since the data type associated with the selectable areas 222 to 224 is "telephone" (or "telephone number"), the processor 102 can list the character string contents "0983001333" and "0977456078", which are determined to be a "telephone" or associated with a "telephone", in the selectable areas 223 and 224, respectively, based on the data type of "telephone". Since the data type associated with selectable areas 225 to 227 is "ID number", processor 102 can list the character string contents "S381456745" and "N123456789", which are determined to be "ID number" or associated with "ID number", in selectable areas 226 and 227, respectively, based on the data type of "ID number". After processor 102 causes display 104 to display the data type list, processor 102 executes step S24.

[0042] 1, 3F, 3H, and 4, the processor 102 detects whether the character string contents listed in the selectable areas 219 to 227 are selected. In this embodiment, if the user determines that the secret or sensitive data to be finally shielded are the character strings "phone number" and "identification number", the user can use the first input member 108 or the second input member 110 to select the character strings "0983001333" and "0977456078" listed in the selectable areas 223 and 224, and the character strings "S381456745" and "N123456789" listed in the selectable areas 226 and 227, and cause the processor 102 to detect that the character strings listed in the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, and 227 are selected. When the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" listed in the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, and 227 are selected, "V" is displayed in the selection frames 223a, 224A, 226A, and 227A of the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, and 227, indicating that the character strings listed in the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, and 227 are selected. When the processor 102 does not detect that any of the character string contents listed in the selectable areas 219 to 227 has been selected, the processor 102 repeatedly executes step S24. In this embodiment, when the data type “Name” listed in the selectable area 219 is selected and a “V” is displayed in the selection frame 219a, the character strings “David Chen” and “John Hwang” listed in the selectable areas 220, 221 are automatically selected, and the selection frames 220a, 221a automatically display a “V” to indicate that the character strings “David Chen” and “John Hwang” listed in the selectable areas 220 and 221 have been selected.When the data type "Telephone" listed in the selectable area 222 is selected and causes the selection frame 222a to display a "V", the character strings "0983001333" and "0977456078" listed in the selectable areas 223, 224 are automatically selected and the selection frames 223a, 224a automatically display a "V" to indicate that the character strings "0983001333" and "0977456078" listed in the selectable areas 223, 224 have been selected. When the data type "ID number" listed in the selectable area 225 is selected and causes the selection frame 225a to display "V", the character strings "S381456745" and "N123456789" listed in the selectable areas 226, 227 are automatically selected, and the selection frames 226a, 227a automatically display "V" to indicate that the character strings "S381456745" and "N123456789" listed in the selectable areas 226, 227 are selected. After the processor 102 detects that the character string contents listed in the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, 227 have been selected, the processor 102 executes step S26.

[0043] In step S26, after the processor 102 detects that the character string contents listed in the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, 227 have been selected, the processor 102 generates marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236 based on the position information acquired in step S20, and marks the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" on the electronic document 210, as shown in FIG. 3H. In this embodiment, after processor 102 detects that the contents of the strings listed in selectable areas 223, 224, 226, 227 have been selected, processor 102 uses position information of strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" to generate marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236. In this embodiment, the position information of string "0983001333" includes position coordinates (X5, Y5), string height in length unit 1, and string width in length unit 10. The position information of string "0977456078" includes position coordinates (X6, Y6), string height in length unit 1, and string width in length unit 10. The position information of the character string "S381456745" includes position coordinates (X7, Y7), a character string height in length unit 1, and a character string width in length unit 10. The position information of the character string "N123456789" includes position coordinates (X8, Y8), a character string height in length unit 1, and a character string width in length unit 10. After the processor 102 generates the marking objects 230, 232, 234, and 236 to mark the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" on the electronic document 210 (see FIG. 3H), the processor 102 can further detect whether the character string contents listed in the selectable areas 223, 224, 226, and 227 are selected again.After the processor 102 detects that the character string contents listed in the selectable areas 222, 223, 224, 225, 226, and 227 have been selected again, the "V" displayed in the selection frames 222a, 223a, 224a, 225a, 226a, and 227a automatically disappears, and the marking objects 230, 232, 234, and 236 marking the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" are also automatically deleted.

[0044] In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, after the processor 102 detects that the character string contents listed in the selectable regions 223, 224, 226, 227 are selected, the processor 102 does not generate the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236, as shown in Fig. 3G. Also, since the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236 are mainly used to mark the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745" and "N123456789" so that the user can preview the occluded character strings, the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236 may be any object capable of marking the character strings, such as, for example, a transparent color block, a sign or a pattern, and are not limited to the rectangular box disclosed in this embodiment. After the processor 102 generates the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236, the processor 102 executes step S28.

[0045] 1, 3H, 3I, and 4, in step S28, in response to a first operation event, the processor 102 generates occlusion objects 240, 242, 244, and 246 to replace the marking objects 230, 232, 234, and 236, thereby occluding the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" in the electronic document 210, as shown in Fig. 3I. In this embodiment, the first operation event may be the selection of the "occlusion" key 228. Specifically, a user can select the “obscure” key 228 using the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, causing the processor 102 to select the “obscure” key 228 based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, and generate obscuring objects 240, 242, 244, 246 to replace the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236 and obscure the character strings “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” in the electronic document 210. In an alternative embodiment, the first operational event can be the selection of the “Save File” selection B. Specifically, the user can select the “Save File” selection item B using the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, and based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, the processor 102 can select the “Save File” selection item B and generate occlusion objects 240, 242, 244, 246 to replace the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236, and occlude the character strings “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” in the electronic document 210. In another embodiment, if the processor 102 does not generate the marking objects 230, 232, 234, 236 (see FIG. 3G ), the user can use the first input member 108 or the second input member 110 to select the “cover” key 228 as shown in FIG. 3G , causing the processor 102 to select the “cover” key 228 based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110. After the “cover” key 228 is selected, the processor 102.Based on the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" acquired in step S20 and the position information of these character strings, occluding objects 240, 242, 244, and 246 are generated to occlude the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" on the electronic document 210, as shown in Fig. 3I. In another embodiment, if the processor 102 does not generate marking objects 230, 232, 234, and 236 (see Fig. 3G), the user. The first input member 108 or the second input member 110 can be used to select the "Save File" selection item B as shown in FIG. 3G, and the processor 102 can be caused to select the "Save File" selection item B based on the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110. After the "Save File" selection item B is selected, the processor 102 generates occlusion objects 240, 242, and 244 based on the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" acquired in step S20 and position information of these character strings, to occlude the character strings "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" on the electronic document 210 as shown in FIG. 3I. After the processor 102 generates the occlusion objects 240, 242, 244, 246, the processor 102 executes step S30.

[0046] In the above embodiment, electronic document 210 may be, for example, an electronic document in PDF format. In addition, after the occlusion objects 240, 242, 244, and 246 occlude the character strings “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” on the electronic document 210, the occlusion objects 240, 242, 244, and 246 and the character strings “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” are flattened to the same layer using a PDF flattening technique, so that the character strings “0983001333”, “0977456078”, “S381456745”, and “N123456789” cannot be subsequently edited or searched, thereby improving the occlusion and confidentiality effect.

[0047] 1, 2, 3I, and 4, in step S30, the processor 102 records the location information of the occluded character string contents "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745", and "N123456789" in an information file in response to the second operation event, and saves the information file in a database. In this embodiment, the information file is independent of the electronic document 210. Also, the second operation event may be the selection of the "save file" selection item B. Specifically, the user selects the "Save File" option B using the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, and causes the processor 102 to select the "Save File" option B under the control of the first input member 108 or the second input member 110, record the location information of the masked string contents "0983001333", "0977456078", "S381456745" and "N123456789" into an information file, and save the information file into a database. In this embodiment, the database is the database 130 or can be provided in the storage 106 of the electronic device 100.

[0048] In the above embodiment, the shielding objects 240, 242, 244, 246 shown in FIG. 3I are rectangular black blocks, but are not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the shielding objects 240, 242, 244, 246 may be color blocks, symbols, or patterns of other colors or shapes. In another embodiment, the shielding objects 240, 242, 244, 246 may only shield at least some words or characters of the confidential or sensitive data, and still achieve the purpose of shielding the data.

[0049] The present invention further provides a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a plurality of computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an electronic device (such as electronic device 100 as shown in FIG. 1) to perform the method for shielding data of an electronic document of the above embodiment. In one embodiment of the present invention, the non-transitory computer-readable medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, a hard disk, an optical disk, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) flash drive, a solid-state drive (SSD), etc.

[0050] Although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, the present invention is not limited thereto, and those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention is subject to the scope of the following claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0051] A Function selection items B Function selection items C Function selection items D Function selection items E Function selection items S10 Step S12 Step S14 Step S16 Step S18 Step S20 Step S22 Step S24 Step S26 Step S28 Step S30 Step 100 Electronic equipment 102 processors 104 Display 106 Storage 108 First input member 110 Second input member 120 Management Server 130 Databases 140 First Service Server 140a First Analysis Module 150 Second Service Server 150a Second Analysis Module 200 User Interface 202 Namespace 204 Document Editing Area 206 Function selection area 208 Item Selection Area 208a Selection 208b Selection 208c Selection 208d Selection 210 Electronic Documents 212 Keys 213 Selection 214a Selection 214b Selection 214c Selection 214d Selection 214e Selection 214f Selection 216 keys 218 Status display area 219~227 Selectable area 219a~227a Selection frame 228 Keys 230 Marking Objects 232 Marking Objects 234 Marking Objects 236 Marking Objects 240 occluding objects 242 occluding objects 244 occluding objects 246 occluding objects

Claims

1. Executed by an electronic device, displaying an electronic document including a plurality of character strings on a user interface; causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and the plurality of character strings, and outputting a first character string of the plurality of character strings and first location information associated with the first character string based on at least one result of the at least one analysis; obtaining the first string and the first location information from the at least one analysis module; generating a first occluding object based on the acquired first position information and the acquired first character string, and occluding at least a portion of the first character string in the electronic document; 16. A method for masking data in an electronic document, comprising:

2. causing the at least one analysis module to output a second string of the plurality of strings based on the at least one result of the at least one analysis and second location information associated with the second string; obtaining the second string and the second location information from the at least one analysis module; generating a second occluding object based on the acquired second position information and the acquired second character string to occlude at least a portion of the second character string in the electronic document; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

3. the first location information includes at least one first location coordinate indicating that the first character string is located at a first location in the electronic document; The method of claim 2 , wherein the second location information includes at least one second location coordinate indicating that the second string is located at a second location in the electronic document.

4. the first position information further includes a first width value and a first height value indicating a first width and a first height of a first character string located in the electronic document; The method of claim 3 , wherein the second position information further comprises second width and height values ​​indicating a second width and a second height of a second string of characters located in the electronic document.

5. displaying a data type menu on the user interface, the data type menu including a first selection item and a second selection item, the first selection item and the second selection item being associated with a first data type and a second data type, respectively; detecting whether at least one of the first selection item and the second selection item is selected; after detecting that the first selection item and the second selection item have been selected, causing the at least one analysis module to perform the at least one analysis based on the first data type and the second data type; Further comprising:

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one result of the at least one analysis includes a determination that the first string is of the first data type and a determination that the second string is of the second data type.

6. after obtaining the first string, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, displaying a data type list on the user interface, the data type list including a first region associated with the first data type and a second region associated with the second data type; listing the first string and the second string in the first area and the second area, respectively, based on the first data type and the second data type; The method of claim 5 further comprising:

7. detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected, generating a first marking object based on the acquired first position information to mark at least a portion of the first character string on the electronic document; generating the first occlusion object to replace the first marking object in response to a first manipulation event; The method of claim 6 further comprising:

8. The method for masking data of an electronic document as described in claim 7, further comprising the step of recording the first location information and the second location information in an information file in response to a second operation event, and storing the information file in a database independent of the electronic document.

9. after obtaining the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, generating a first marking object based on the obtained first location information to mark at least a portion of the first character string in the electronic document; detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; deleting the first marking object after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected; The method of claim 5 further comprising:

10. The at least one analysis module is located in at least one server; The at least one analysis includes a first analysis and a second analysis; The method comprises: transmitting an analysis request and the electronic document to the at least one server; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the first analysis on a plurality of character strings of the electronic document in response to the analysis request and outputting the first character strings and the second character strings based on a first result of the first analysis; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the second analysis on locations of the first character string and the second character string in the electronic document in response to the analysis request and to output the first location information and the second location information based on a second result of the second analysis; receiving the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one server, and acquiring the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information; The method of claim 2 further comprising:

11. 1. An electronic device for masking data of an electronic document, comprising: A processor; a display electrically connected to the processor; a storage device electrically coupled to the processor and configured to store a plurality of computer-executable instructions; Equipped with The computer-executable instructions, when executed by the processor, displaying an electronic document including a plurality of character strings on a display in a user interface; causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and the plurality of character strings, and outputting a first character string of the plurality of character strings and first location information associated with the first character string based on at least one result of the at least one analysis; obtaining the first string and the first location information from the at least one analysis module; generating a first occluding object based on the acquired first position information and the acquired first character string, and occluding at least a portion of the first character string in the electronic document; An electronic device for masking data of an electronic document, the electronic device executing:

12. causing the at least one analysis module to output a second string of the plurality of strings based on the at least one result of the at least one analysis and second location information associated with the second string; obtaining the second string and the second location information from the at least one analysis module; generating a second occluding object based on the acquired second position information and the acquired second character string to occlude at least a portion of the second character string in the electronic document; The electronic device for masking data of an electronic document of claim 11 further comprising:

13. causing the display to display a data type menu on the user interface, the data type menu including a first selection item and a second selection item, the first selection item and the second selection item being associated with a first data type and a second data type, respectively; detecting whether at least one of the first selection item and the second selection item is selected; after detecting that the first selection item and the second selection item have been selected, causing the at least one analysis module to perform the at least one analysis based on the first data type and the second data type; Further execute 13. The electronic device for shielding data in an electronic document of claim 12, wherein the at least one result of the at least one analysis includes: the first string being determined to be of the first data type; and the second string being determined to be of the second data type.

14. after obtaining the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, causing the display to display a data type list on the user interface, the data type list including a first region associated with the first data type and a second region associated with the second data type; listing the first string and the second string in the first area and the second area, respectively, based on the first data type and the second data type; 14. The electronic device for masking data of an electronic document of claim 13, further comprising:

15. detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected, generating a first marking object based on the acquired first position information to mark at least a portion of the first character string on the electronic document; generating the first occlusion object to replace the first marking object in response to a first manipulation event; 15. The electronic device for masking data of an electronic document of claim 14, further comprising:

16. after obtaining the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, generating a first marking object based on the obtained first location information to mark at least a portion of the first character string in the electronic document; detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; deleting the first marking object after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected; 14. The electronic device for masking data of an electronic document of claim 13, further comprising:

17. The at least one analysis module is located in at least one server; The at least one analysis includes a first analysis and a second analysis; The electronic device comprises: transmitting an analysis request and the electronic document to the at least one server; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the first analysis on a plurality of character strings of the electronic document in response to the analysis request and outputting the first character strings and the second character strings based on a first result of the first analysis; causing the at least one analysis module to perform the second analysis on locations of the first character string and the second character string in the electronic document in response to the analysis request and to output the first location information and the second location information based on a second result of the second analysis; receiving the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one server, and acquiring the first character string, the second character string, the first location information, and the second location information; The electronic device for masking data of an electronic document of claim 12, further comprising:

18. 1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a plurality of computer-executable instructions, the plurality of computer-executable instructions, when executed by one or more processors, causing an electronic device to perform a method of shielding data of an electronic document, the method comprising: displaying an electronic document including a plurality of character strings on a user interface; causing at least one analysis module to perform at least one analysis on the electronic document and the plurality of character strings, and outputting a first character string of the plurality of character strings and first location information associated with the first character string based on at least one result of the at least one analysis; obtaining the first string and the first location information from the at least one analysis module; generating a first occluding object based on the acquired first position information and the acquired first character string, and occluding at least a portion of the first character string in the electronic document; A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising:

19. The method comprises: causing the at least one analysis module to output a second string of the plurality of strings based on the at least one result of the at least one analysis and second location information associated with the second string; obtaining the second string and the second location information from the at least one analysis module; generating a second occluding object based on the acquired second position information and the acquired second character string to occlude at least a portion of the second character string in the electronic document; displaying a data type menu on the user interface, the data type menu including a first selection item and a second selection item, the first selection item and the second selection item being associated with a first data type and a second data type, respectively; detecting whether at least one of the first selection item and the second selection item is selected; after detecting that the first selection item and the second selection item have been selected, causing the at least one analysis module to perform the at least one analysis based on the first data type and the second data type; Further comprising:

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the at least one result of the at least one analysis includes: the first string being determined to be of the first data type; and the second string being determined to be of the second data type.

20. The method comprises: after obtaining the first string, the second string, the first location information, and the second location information from the at least one analysis module, displaying a data type list on the user interface, the data type list including a first region associated with the first data type and a second region associated with the second data type; listing the first string and the second string in the first area and the second area, respectively, based on the first data type and the second data type; detecting whether the first character string listed in the first area is selected; after detecting that the first character string listed in the first area is selected, generating a first marking object based on the acquired first position information to mark at least a portion of the first character string on the electronic document; generating the first occlusion object to replace the first marking object in response to a first manipulation event; 20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 19, further comprising:

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