Reputation Based URL Redirection Service
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current tools lack the ability to effectively check the reputation of a URL before accessing a website, leading to potential abuse, as malicious URLs can disguise their true location and characteristics, putting users at risk of credential theft, malware infection, or spam.
Innovation Solution
A reputation-based redirection service that wraps URLs with characteristics and a security hash, allowing for verification and redirection to interstitial pages if the destination URL is abusive or unknown, thereby protecting users from malicious sites.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a URL is wrapped with characteristics and security hash for reputation checking, then user safety is improved, but URL functionality and simplicity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a redirection service as an intermediary between the user and the destination URL. The service receives wrapped URLs, checks their reputation, and redirects users to safe pages or interstitial pages if the URL is malicious or unknown. This mediator approach allows the system to maintain security while preserving URL functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The URL wrapping process segments the URL into components: the original URL, characteristics (such as domain information), and a security hash. This segmentation allows each component to be processed independently for reputation checking while maintaining the overall URL functionality.
2Reliability
If reputation checking is performed on all URLs, then user protection is improved, but processing time and system overhead worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs reputation checking on URLs that are wrapped and submitted to the redirection service. Not all URLs need to be checked - only those that pass through the wrapping mechanism. This partial action approach balances security with processing efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The URL wrapping process performs preliminary actions by embedding characteristics and security hashes into the URL structure before the user accesses the destination. This allows reputation checking to occur in advance, preventing access to malicious sites before potential harm occurs.
3Ease of operation
If existing redirection services are used without reputation lookup, then ease of operation is maintained, but user safety deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the redirection service with reputation lookup capabilities into a unified system. The service combines URL wrapping, reputation checking, and redirection functionality into a single integrated solution that maintains ease of operation while significantly improving user safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides feedback to users through interstitial pages that explain why a URL was blocked or redirected. This feedback mechanism maintains user trust and ease of operation by transparently communicating security decisions, while simultaneously protecting users from malicious sites.
Data Source
AI summary
A reputation based redirection service is usable to build URL wrappers for un-trusted and unknown URLs. Such URL wrappers can be used to protect Web users by, for example, redirecting traffic to interstitial Web pages. Additionally, reputation decisions can be made by the service to further protect users from malicious URLs.