Attestation Token Attribution for Privacy-Preserving Fraud Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
In online environments where client devices communicate over public networks, it is difficult to evaluate the influence of previous activities on subsequent actions, and existing technologies fail to address malicious attacks and fraudulent requests, making it challenging to attribute user actions to the correct content provider, while preserving user privacy.
Innovation Solution
The use of attestation tokens, which include a device integrity token and digital signature, ensures secure communication channels by verifying the integrity of client devices and preventing malicious activities, while maintaining user privacy through anonymous tokens.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If stable device identifiers are used to track client devices, then attribution accuracy is improved, but user privacy is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The attribution system is segmented into multiple independent components: device integrity tokens verify device authenticity, anonymous tokens provide pseudonymous identification, and hash values enable attribution without exposing raw identifiers. This segmentation allows the system to achieve accurate attribution while preserving user privacy through functional separation of identification and tracking capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
Anonymous tokens serve as intermediaries between device identification and attribution processing. These tokens contain hash values that uniquely identify devices for attribution purposes while being unlinkable to user identities. The intermediary mechanism enables accurate attribution tracking without direct exposure of stable device identifiers to external parties.
2Loss of information
If device identifiers are transmitted over public networks, then attribution data collection is improved, but communication security is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
Device integrity tokens are generated and verified in advance before attribution data is transmitted. The system performs preliminary device authentication and creates anonymous tokens with embedded hash values before network transmission. This preliminary action ensures that only authenticated devices can participate in attribution, and the data transmitted is already protected against tampering.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transforms device identifiers from their original form into hash values and anonymous tokens before transmission. This parameter change converts sensitive stable device identifiers into cryptographic representations that preserve attribution functionality while eliminating security vulnerabilities associated with transmitting raw identifiers over public networks.
3Reliability
If digital signatures are used to verify device integrity, then fraud prevention is improved, but computational overhead is increased
Solution Approach 1:
Digital signatures are computed in advance during device registration and token generation, not during each attribution transaction. The device integrity tokens and anonymous tokens are pre-signed with cryptographic keys, enabling fast verification without repeated signature computation. This preliminary action shifts computational burden to initial setup, reducing overhead during operational attribution processes.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of repeatedly computing digital signatures for each attribution event, the system creates cryptographic copies in the form of hash values and signed tokens. These copied cryptographic representations can be verified multiple times without additional signature computation, reducing computational overhead while maintaining fraud prevention capabilities.
Data Source
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AI summary
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for securely attributing a content platform while maintain user data privacy are described. In one aspect, a method includes receiving, by a content platform and from a first application executing on a client device, a request for digital components. The request includes a first anonymous token that includes a set of content. The content platform transmits, to the first application, a response including data for a digital component that includes content related to a second application and a hash value of the first anonymous token. The content platform receives, from the first application, a display notification indicating the display of the digital component via the application, the display notification including a second anonymous token and the hash value of the first anonymous token.