Anonymizing Consumer Purchasing Search System
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Users face challenges with privacy in e-commerce, as they must provide personally identifiable information that can be subject to breaches or misused for marketing purposes, without direct benefit to the user.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that empower users to control their personal information, allowing them to determine what information is shared, with whom, and for how long, while also enabling anonymous searching and purchasing, and aligning users into communities to determine appropriate goods based on aggregated information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If users provide personally identifiable information to e-commerce platforms, then personalized service and product recommendations are improved, but user privacy and security are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments user information handling into multiple stages: anonymous browsing phase where no personal information is collected, and transaction phase where information is temporarily disclosed only for completion of purchase. This segmentation allows personalized service through anonymous behavior tracking while minimizing privacy exposure by not collecting identifiable information during browsing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary anonymous user profile that mediates between the user and the e-commerce platform. This profile contains no personally identifiable information but enables personalized recommendations through anonymous behavior patterns, acting as a buffer that protects user privacy while still allowing customization of service.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If users remain anonymous to the search system, then privacy protection is improved, but personalized recommendations based on individual preferences are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates an anonymous copy of user behavior patterns that captures preferences and browsing habits without containing any personally identifiable information. This anonymous profile copy enables personalized recommendations to be generated from aggregated anonymous data while the actual user remains unidentified and protected.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameters of user identification from using personally identifiable information to using anonymous identifiers and behavioral patterns. This parameter change allows the system to maintain personalized service capabilities while operating with fundamentally different, non-identifiable data characteristics.
3Productivity
If user information is collected and stored for future marketing purposes, then business monetization is improved, but user control and consent are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary user consent acquisition before any information is collected or used for marketing purposes. Users must explicitly opt-in to information collection and marketing communications, giving them control from the outset rather than requiring later consent management.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes feedback mechanisms where users can review how their information is being used and adjust their preferences at any time. This continuous feedback loop allows users to maintain control over their information while the system adapts to their choices for monetization activities.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for implementing user purchasing while remaining anonymous. The method includes receiving information from a potential user by an onboarding system including one or more wants, needs, and desires for attaching the user to one or more communities with similar wants, needs, and desires, receiving one or more search terms from the user related to a good or service the user wishes to purchase, performing a search based upon the received search terms and the one or more communities to which the user is attached, and displaying the response to the search to the user. The method then further includes confirming a user preference to the presented response by a preference receiving system, and dynamically updating the communities to which the user is attached, and updating the wants, needs, and desires of the communities to which the user is attached in response to the user preference.