Location Privacy via POI Event Extraction and Local Rule Evaluation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional location-based operations on electronic devices often compromise user privacy by continuously reporting precise location data to third parties, leading to potential misuse and loss of privacy.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system where electronic devices send point of interest (POI) data along with location-based rules, allowing the device to determine if rules are satisfied without revealing precise location information, generating location-based events that describe user characteristics without referencing actual locations, and transmitting these events to servers without sharing current or past device locations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If precise location data is continuously sent to servers, then location-based services can be provided, but user privacy is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary location-based event information (e.g., POI type, event timestamp) from the complete location data, sending only this processed information to servers while keeping precise location data local on the device. This resolves the contradiction by providing service functionality through extracted essential information while preventing privacy loss by removing unnecessary precise location details.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing layer (the location-based rules engine on the device) that mediates between precise location data and server communication. This intermediary evaluates location data against stored rules locally and only transmits anonymized event results, thus enabling service functionality while protecting user privacy by acting as a buffer that filters out sensitive information.
2Adaptability or versatility
If precise location history is accumulated on servers, then location-based operations can be performed, but user privacy is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential characteristics needed for location-based operations (POI type, event occurrence) while leaving out sensitive precise location information. This extracted minimal information is stored and processed on servers, enabling location-based operations to function while preventing privacy information loss by never accumulating detailed location history on servers.
Solution Approach 2:
The device performs self-service by locally evaluating location data against stored rules and generating anonymized events for server communication. This self-processing capability enables location-based operations to be performed using only necessary information, while privacy information is protected because the device serves itself with local processing rather than requiring server storage of detailed location data.
3Ease of operation
If location data is sent to third parties, then location-based services are enabled, but privacy concerns increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the minimal necessary information (anonymized POI type and event data) from complete location data before sending to third parties. This enables location-based services to be accessed and function properly while reducing privacy concerns by removing all identifiable precise location information that would otherwise be exposed to third parties.
Solution Approach 2:
The device acts as an intermediary that processes and anonymizes location data before third-party communication. This intermediary function enables ease of operation by maintaining service functionality while reducing privacy concerns through local anonymization processing that prevents sensitive location information from reaching third parties.
Data Source
AI summary
Various approaches discussed herein enable techniques for managing privacy with respect to location-based operations, for example by receiving point of interest (POI) data corresponding to location data such as global positioning service (GPS) data at a computing device along with various location-based rules, which when satisfied, result in attribution events being generated that indicate various characteristics associated with POIs in the POI data. The attribution events are then sent to a server without compromising the location privacy of the computing device, because the location of the computing device is not included with the attribution events.