Privacy Vault Access Control for Transparent Third-Party Data Use
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users lack control and visibility over their personal data, which is extensively gathered and used by software and websites without their granular consent, leading to an imbalance in value exchange.
Innovation Solution
A privacy vault system associated with individual users, storing their data and permissions for third-party access, with AI-assisted management and auditing to provide control and transparency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If third-party entities extensively collect and use user data for targeted advertising and services, then businesses can provide personalized services and advertisements, but users lose control and transparency over their personal data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments user data access control into granular permission levels that users can independently manage. Users can specify different access rights for different third-party entities, different data types, and different purposes, allowing personalized services while maintaining user control through fine-grained authorization segments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary audit system that mediates between users and third-party entities. This audit system monitors and verifies data access requests, ensuring that third parties only access data with proper authorization and for permitted purposes, thus maintaining user control while enabling personalized services.
2Loss of energy
If third-party entities extensively collect and use user data, then businesses can derive significant value from data sets, but users have limited opportunities to determine what data is gathered and how it is being used
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where users receive notifications and information about what data is being collected, by whom, and for what purposes. The audit system provides feedback loops that allow users to review data access requests and authorizations, ensuring transparency while enabling data value extraction by businesses.
Solution Approach 2:
The audit system acts as an intermediary that provides transparency into data flows between users and third parties. It monitors and reports on data collection and usage, allowing users to see what data is gathered and how it is being used, while businesses can still derive value from authorized data access.
3Ease of operation
If users are provided with comprehensive data access controls and transparency mechanisms, then users can make informed decisions about data sharing, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal audit system that handles multiple functions: authorization verification, access monitoring, logging, and reporting. This multi-functional approach consolidates complexity into a single standardized framework that can be applied across different users and third-party entities, reducing overall system complexity while providing comprehensive user control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses parameter-based permission systems where access control is defined through configurable parameters rather than hard-coded rules. This allows the system to adapt to different users and scenarios through parameter adjustment rather than structural changes, reducing complexity while maintaining comprehensive control capabilities.
4Loss of information
If audit services monitor and verify data access compliance, then data usage transparency is improved, but processing overhead and system resource consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary authorization where access permissions are established before data access occurs. The audit system verifies compliance based on pre-defined authorization rules rather than creating complex real-time decisions, reducing processing overhead while maintaining transparency through pre-established audit criteria.
Data Source
AI summary
A system includes one or more privacy vaults. At least one of the one or more privacy vaults is associated with at least one individual user, stores contents associated with the associated at least one individual user, and stores specific identification of a plurality of third-party entities, authorized to access at least a portion of the contents stored by the one or more privacy vaults, along with access permissions, one or more of the access permissions defined for each of the plurality of third-party entities. At least one of the access permissions defines accessibility of the contents for at least one of the plurality of third-party entities for which the at least one access permission is defined.