Inferring security decisions from trusted users
View Patent ↗Inferring security decisions from trusted users, including: identifying, by a security inference module on a computing device, a candidate application to be installed on the computing device; identifying, by the security inference module, one or more trusted users; identifying, by the security inference module, trusted user installation activity associated with the candidate application; and determining, by the security inference module, whether to install the candidate application in dependence upon the trusted user installation activity associated with the candidate application.
1. A method comprising:
by first program instructions on a first computing device,
identifying a candidate application to be installed on the first computing device;
identifying a trusted user that a user of the first computing device has identified and indicated as being trusted;
receiving from a second computing device, an indication of installation activity of said candidate application by said trusted user on said second computing device; and
determining whether to install the candidate application on the first computing device in dependence upon the indication of installation activity.
2. The method of claim 1 further comprising, responsive to determining to install the candidate application, installing the candidate application using preferences of the trusted user.
3. The method of claim 1 identifying the trusted user includes specifying, by the user of the first computing device, the trusted user.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein identifying the trusted user includes identifying types of installation activity associated with each trusted user.
5. The method of claim 1 further comprising storing in a repository, information identifying the installation activity associated with one or more applications for each trusted user.
6. The method of claim 5 further comprising displaying the installation activity associated with the candidate application for said trusted user.
7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:
transmitting to the second computing device, a request for input from the trusted user and corresponding to the candidate application;
receiving from the second computing device, the input; and
wherein determining whether to install the candidate application further comprises determining whether to install the candidate application in dependence upon the input.