System and method for mobile communications blocking based on crowd sourced information
View Patent ↗Systems and techniques are provided for managing and categorizing undesired phone calls and text messages. In a specific implementation, information indicating that an electronic communication received at a mobile communications device of each user in the crowd should belong in a specific category is received from a crowd. If a number of users in the crowd exceeds a threshold value, information identifying the electronic communication is stored in a database as belonging in the specific category. The database is provided to a mobile communications device of a user, where when the electronic communication is transmitted to the mobile communications device of the user, the electronic communication is blocked at the mobile communications device of the user because the electronic communication is in the specific category.
1. A method comprising:
receiving from a crowd information indicating that an electronic communication received at a mobile communications device of each user in the crowd should belong in a specific category;
when a number of users in the crowd exceeds a threshold value, storing in a database information identifying the electronic communication as belonging in the specific category; and
providing the database to a mobile communications device of a user, wherein when the electronic communication is transmitted to the mobile communications device of the user, the electronic communication is blocked at the mobile communications device of the user because the electronic communication is in the specific category.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the electronic communication comprises a voice call.
3. The method of claim 1 wherein the electronic communication comprises a short message service (SMS) message.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the electronic communication comprises a multimedia message service (MMS) message.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the user is not in the crowd.
6. A method comprising:
at a server, receiving, from a crowd of mobile communication devices users, identification information indicating that a first electronic communication received at a mobile communications device of each user in the crowd should be categorized in a specific category, wherein the identification information identifies an origin of the first electronic communication;
when the server determines that it has received identification information from a number of users in the crowd that exceeds a threshold value, under the control of the server, storing in memory accessible to the server, a database of identification information identifying the first electronic communication as categorized in the specific category; and
providing, by the server, access to the database of identification information to a mobile communications device of a user, wherein when a second electronic communication is transmitted to the mobile communications device of the user, and using the provided database, the device determines that the second communication is in the specific category, then the second electronic communication is blocked at the mobile communications device of the user.
7. The method of claim 6 wherein the electronic communication comprises a voice call.
8. The method of claim 6 wherein the electronic communication comprises a short message service (SMS) message.
9. The method of claim 6 wherein the electronic communication comprises a multimedia message service (MMS) message.
10. The method of claim 6 wherein the step of determining whether the application program should be allowed to receive the electronic communication comprises:
comparing the received category to a list of categories stored on the mobile communications device;
when the list includes the received category, determining that the application program should not be allowed to receive the electronic communication; and
when the list does not include the received category, determining that the application program should be allowed to receive the electronic communication.
11. The method of claim 6 wherein the step of determining whether the application program should be allowed to receive the electronic communication comprises:
comparing the received category to a list of categories stored on the mobile communications device;
when the list includes the received category, determining that the application program should be allowed to receive the electronic communication; and
when the list does not include the received category, determining that the application program should not be allowed to receive the electronic communication.
12. The method of claim 1 wherein the electronic communication is blocked by a blocking application program at the mobile communications device of the user, and the blocking application program is different from a short message service (SMS) application program at the mobile communications device of the user.
13. The method of claim 1 wherein the electronic communication is blocked by a blocking application program at the mobile communications device of the user, and the blocking application program is different from a phone dialer application program at the mobile communications device of the user.
14. A method comprising:
receiving, at a server, from each of a plurality of mobile communications devices an indication that an electronic communication with a particular identifier is associated with a specific category;
maintaining a running total of the number of electronic communications with the particular identifier being indicated by the plurality of mobile communications devices;
when the running total exceeds a predetermined threshold value, storing in a database the particular identifier as being associated with the specific category; and
providing the database to a mobile communications device of a user, wherein when an electronic communication with the particular identifier is transmitted to the mobile communications device of the user, the electronic communication is blocked at the mobile communications device.
15. The method of claim 14 wherein the electronic communication comprises one of a voice call, a short message service (SMS) message, or a multimedia message service (MMS) message.
16. The method of claim 14 wherein the particular identifier comprises one of a phone number or an email address.
17. The method of claim 14 wherein the electronic communication is blocked by a blocking application program at the mobile communications device of the user, and the blocking application program is different from a short message service (SMS) application program at the mobile communications device of the user.
18. The method of claim 14 wherein the electronic communication is blocked by a blocking application program at the mobile communications device of the user, and the blocking application program is different from a phone dialer application program at the mobile communications device of the user.
19. The method of claim 14 wherein the threshold value is configurable by an administrator.
20. The method of claim 14 wherein the database is provided to the mobile communications device of the user as a service through at least one of an application programming interface (API), a graphical display on an electronic screen, or a report.
21. The method of claim 14 wherein the specific category is spam.
22. The method of claim 14 wherein the electronic communication is blocked at the mobile communications device when the specific identifier, after being cross-referenced with the database, matches an identifier stored in the database.
23. A non-transitory computer readable medium with code embodied therein, the computer readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method comprising:
receiving, at a server, from each of a plurality of mobile communications devices an indication that an electronic communication with a particular identifier is associated with a specific category;
cross-referencing the particular identifier with a set of identifiers stored in a first database;
when the particular identifier does not exist in the first database, adding the particular identifier to the first database;
when the particular identifier exists in the first database, adding a count to a running total of the number of electronic communications with the particular identifier being indicated by the plurality of mobile communications devices;
when the running total exceeds a predetermined threshold value, storing in a second database the particular identifier as being associated with the specific category; and
providing the second database to a mobile communications device of a user, wherein when an electronic communication with the particular identifier is transmitted to the mobile communications device of the user, the electronic communication is blocked at the mobile communications device.
24. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 23 wherein the electronic communication comprises one of a voice call, a short message service (SMS) message, or a multimedia message service (MMS) message, and the particular identifier comprises one of a phone number or an email address.
25. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 23 wherein the electronic communication is blocked by a blocking application program at the mobile communications device of the user, and the blocking application program is different from a SMS application program at the mobile communications device of the user and a phone dialer application program at the mobile communications device of the user.
26. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 23 wherein the threshold value is configurable by an administrator.