Application-Specific Network Data Filtering via Sandboxed Schema Validation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing network data processing systems are vulnerable to malicious content that can cause application crashes or corruption, especially after passing through security software, as they typically require applications to parse and decode data before filtering, making it difficult to detect unknown or unintended malicious content.

Innovation Solution

Implementing application-specific network data filtering within a sandbox environment separate from the application, where objects are parsed, decoded, and unpacked, followed by schema validation outside the sandbox to ensure only validated objects are passed to the application, preventing corruption and crashes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If applications parse and decode network data before filtering, then data processing can be performed, but the system becomes vulnerable to malicious content causing crashes or corruption

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata processing capabilityVSAvoidsystem stability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the data processing function into separate components: a sandboxed parsing/decoding process and a separate validation process. The sandbox isolates the parsing operations from the main application, allowing data processing while preventing crashes from propagating to the application layer.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

A sandbox environment acts as an intermediary between the network data and the application. The sandbox performs parsing and decoding operations, then passes validated data to the application through a controlled interface, preventing direct exposure of the application to malicious content.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If security software filters network data, then known malicious content can be detected, but unknown or unintended malicious content may still slip through

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedetection of known malwareVSAvoiddetection of unknown malware

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSDifficulty of detecting and measuring

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs schema validation as a preliminary check before data reaches the application. By validating data structure and content against expected schemas before processing, the system can detect both known and unknown malicious content that deviates from expected patterns.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system replaces traditional signature-based security filtering with schema-based validation. Instead of relying on pre-defined malware signatures, the system validates data against its expected structural schema, enabling detection of unknown malware that doesn't match known signatures.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Reliability

If a sandbox environment is used to isolate processing, then application crashes are prevented, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveapplication crash preventionVSAvoidsystem architecture complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The parsing and decoding functions are extracted from the main application and placed in a separate sandbox environment. This extraction isolates potential crash sources from the application, preventing crashes from propagating while maintaining a relatively simple overall architecture.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The sandbox environment is nested within the existing operating system framework, utilizing existing system resources and mechanisms. This nesting approach provides isolation and crash prevention without requiring a completely separate complex system, as the sandbox integrates with the host OS.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

4Manufacturing precision

If schema validation is performed outside the sandbox, then data integrity is ensured, but processing time increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedata validation accuracyVSAvoiddata processing time

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs schema validation selectively based on the data type and risk level. Not all data requires full validation depth, allowing the system to apply partial validation for low-risk data and full validation for high-risk data, reducing overall processing time while maintaining accuracy where needed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS20240380735A1Application specific network data filtering

Publication Date: 2024.11.14 APPLE INC

AI summary

The subject disclosure provides systems and methods for application-specific network data filtering. Application-specific network data filtering may be performed by a sandboxed process prior to providing the network data to an application to which the network data is directed. Any malicious or otherwise potentially harmful data that is included in the network data may be removed by the application-specific network data filter or may be allowed to corrupt the application specific network data filtering operations within the sandbox, thereby preventing the malicious or harmful data from affecting the application or other portions of an electronic device. In one or more implementations, a first process such as an application-specific network data filtering process may request allocation of memory for the first process from second process, such as an application, that is separate from a memory manager of the electronic device.