Online privacy management system with enhanced automatic information detection
A privacy management system (PMS) is disclosed for a Chief Privacy Officer (CPO) or other user to use in monitoring and/or controlling in realtime the flow of data (e.g., outflow) about the user and his/her online experience. The PMS may employ pattern recognition software to evaluate analytics data and potentially block private information from being sent within the analytics data. The PMS may provide a dashboard displaying a whitelist and/or blacklist indicating what destinations/sources are blocked or allowed as well as private information settings indicating what types of private information should be blocked. The PMS includes browser-client scripting code and may also include a PMS-certified verification icon and/or lock and unlock icons for display on webpages being monitored/controlled in realtime by the PMS.
1. A method comprising:
presenting, by a computing device, a user interface configured to receive user input indicating that transmission of a type of private information to a remotely-located computing device is not permitted;
creating, by the computing device, a push model object, wherein the push model object performs push model functionality of a wrapper object that overrides a predefined object;
copying, by the computing device, user-related data of a first node of an object model of a webpage into the push model object;
configuring, by the computing device, the push model object to perform an analysis of the user-related data responsive to an attempt to access the user-related data by a second node of the object model;
configuring, by the computing device, the push model object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data corresponds to the type of private information;
configuring, by the computing device, the push model object to refrain from providing the user-related data to the second node;
configuring, by the computing device, the push model object to obtain modified user-related data based on the user-related data of the push model object and provide the modified user-related data to the second node instead of the user-related data, wherein a format of the modified user-related data matches a format of the user-related data; and
replacing, by the computing device, the first node of the object model with the push model object.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the user interface is further configured to receive additional user input comprising user-specified data and an indication that the user-specified data is not permitted to be transmitted to the remotely-located computing device and further comprising:
configuring the memory to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data matches the user-specified data.
3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
configuring the push model object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data corresponds to the type of private information and that the user-related data matches correct user-related data associated with a visitor to the webpage.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the computing device is associated with an owner of the webpage.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
the computing device is associated with a visitor to the webpage.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the creating of the push model object and the copying of data into the push model object are performed by replicating the predefined object.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein replicating the predefined object comprises creating the push model object.
8. An apparatus comprising:
one or more processors;
a display device; and
memory storing instructions that, when executed by one or more of the processors, cause the apparatus to perform steps comprising:
presenting, at the display device, a user interface configured to receive user input indicating that transmission of a type of private information to a remotely-located computing device is not permitted;
creating, in the memory, a push model object, wherein the push model object performs push model functionality of a wrapper object that overrides a predefined object;
copying user-related data of a first node of an object model of a webpage into the push model object;
configuring the push model object to perform an analysis of the user-related data responsive to an attempt to access the user-related data by a second node of the object model;
configuring the push model object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data corresponds to the type of private information;
configuring the push model object to refrain from providing the user-related data to the second node;
configuring the push model object to obtain modified user-related data based on the user-related data of the push model object and provide the modified user-related data to the second node instead of the user-related data, wherein a format of the modified user-related data matches a format of the user-related data; and
replacing the first node of the object model with the push model object.
9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein:
the user interface is further configured to receive additional user input comprising user-specified data and an indication that is not permitted to be transmitted to a remotely-located computing device; and
the instructions, when executed by one or more of the processors, further cause the apparatus to configure the push model object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data matches the user-specified data.
10. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein:
the instructions, when executed by one or more of the processors, further cause the apparatus to configure the push model object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data corresponds to the type of private information and that the user-related data matches correct data associated with a visitor to the webpage.
11. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the apparatus is associated with an owner of the webpage.
12. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the apparatus is associated with a visitor to the webpage.
13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon, that when executed, cause an apparatus to:
present a user interface configured to receive user input indicating that transmission of a type of private information to another computing device is not permitted;
replicate a first node of an object model of a webpage to obtain a wrapper object comprising user-related data of the first node;
configure the wrapper object to perform an analysis of the user-related data responsive to an attempt to access the user-related data by a second node of the object model;
configure the wrapper object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data corresponds to the type of private information;
configure the wrapper object to refrain from providing the user-related data to the second node;
configure the wrapper object to obtain modified user-related data based on the user-related data of the wrapper object and provide the modified user-related data to the second node instead of the user-related data, wherein a format of the modified user-related data matches a format of the user-related data; and
replacing the first node of the object model with the wrapper object.
14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , wherein the user interface is further configured to receive additional user input comprising user-specified data that is not permitted to be transmitted to the other computing device and the instructions, when executed, further cause the apparatus to:
configure the wrapper object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data matches the user-specified data.
15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the apparatus to:
configure the wrapper object to prevent the second node from accessing the user-related data responsive to determining from the analysis that the user-related data corresponds to the type of private information and that the user-related data matches correct data associated with a visitor to the webpage.