Proofpoint, Inc.

Socialware, Inc.

Cameron Blair Cooper

Christopher Lee Richter

Algis Woss

Embodiments disclosed herein provide secure communication among enterprise users utilizing social networking sites. A server computer may encrypt a post intended for a social networking site and forward the encrypted data or may save the post locally and send a placeholder to the social networking site. The server may receive a message from the social networking site containing the encrypted data or placeholder and determine that a recipient is authorized to view the original post. The server may then decrypt the data or retrieve the original post for servicing the request. In this way, authorized users of an enterprise can utilize social networking sites, which are independently owned and operated, to communicate with each other in a secure manner.

Method, system, and storage medium for secure communication utilizing social networking sites

Embodiments disclosed herein may intercept, quarantine, and moderate communications internal to an uncontrolled system. An example of an uncontrolled system may be a web application associated with a social networking site. In accessing the social networking site, a user may type in a message. An instance of the uncontrolled system running on the user's device may prepare a request containing the message. Some embodiment disclosed herein may determine that the message is subject to moderation, intercept the request, and place the message in a queue. This determination may be based on the destination of the request as well the type of the message. Some embodiments may reconstruct the original request for resubmission. If the session is expired, some embodiments may log in for the user and resubmit the reconstructed request. Some embodiments may wait for the next time the user logs in to resubmit the reconstructed request.

Method, system and computer program product for interception, quarantine and moderation of internal communications of uncontrolled systems

Embodiments disclosed herein provide a system, method, and computer readable storage medium storing computer instructions for implementing a Socialware architecture encompassing a suite of applications for continuously and adaptively monitoring and filtering traffic to and from social networking sites, particularly useful in an enterprise computing environment. In some embodiments, an appliance may be coupled to a proxy server for providing a plurality of Socialware services, including analyzing, logging, and reporting on traffic to and from social networking sites. Some embodiments may allow a user to report, identify, and prevent malicious and potentially malicious content and/or activity by another user. Some embodiments may encrypt outgoing traffic to and decrypt incoming traffic from social networking sites. Some embodiments may provide an enterprise user to define and restrict certain social networking activities outside of the enterprise computing environment.

Method, system, and storage medium for adaptive monitoring and filtering traffic to and from social networking sites

Embodiments disclosed herein provide feature-level access control functionality useful for enforcing access controls to features and subfeatures on uncontrolled, third party Web Applications such as those associated with social networking sites. Specifically, pages of uncontrolled Web applications are programmatically inspected as they are accessed by users of an enterprise computing environment. Specific features on the pages are located and access to these features is enabled or disabled on a per user basis. A modified page is generated if feature(s) on a Web page is/are to be disabled. To block certain feature(s), content may be rewritten on-the-fly. Because embodiments disclosed herein can programmatically inspect a Web page and understand what is on the page at a much finer granularity, it is possible for enterprises to gain benefits that may come from embracing social networking sites without risking the downsides of allowing enterprise users access to uncontrolled Web applications.

Method, system and computer program product for enforcing access controls to features and subfeatures on uncontrolled web application

Communications by a device in a private network to a site operating outside of the network can be programmatically inspected. Unstructured data, including messages and application content, originating from outside of the network may be dynamically converted to structured data that can be tagged. Interactions and activities can be monitored and processed differently according to internal policies and/or business rules. For example, at least a portion of the structured data can be modified prior to forwarding to the device, access by the device to at least a portion of the structured data can be blocked or limited, access by the device to one or more features associated with the structured data can be blocked or limited, etc.

Method, system and computer program product for tagging content on uncontrolled web application

Communications by a device in a private network to a site operating outside of the network can be programmatically inspected. Unstructured data, including messages and application content, originating from outside of the network may be disassembled, analyzed, and categorized into source specific application element types (AETs). A monitoring layer may allow a user of the device in the network to switch between different modes of interaction with the site operating outside of the network. Interactions and activities in different modes can be monitored and processed differently according to internal policies and/or business rules.

Method, system and computer program product for tagging content on uncontrolled Web application

Embodiments disclosed herein may intercept, quarantine, and moderate communications internal to an uncontrolled system. An example of an uncontrolled system may be a web application associated with a social networking site. In accessing the social networking site, a user may type in a message. An instance of the uncontrolled system running on the user's device may prepare a request containing the message. Some embodiment disclosed herein may determine that the message is subject to moderation, intercept the request, and place the message in a queue. This determination may be based on the destination of the request as well the type of the message. Some embodiments may reconstruct the original request for resubmission. If the session is expired, some embodiments may log in for the user and resubmit the reconstructed request. Some embodiments may simply wait for the next time the user logs in to resubmit the reconstructed request.

Embodiments disclosed herein provide a control logic that can identify and track social identities of users belonging to a private network. The control logic may be implemented as a middleware communicatively connected to network user devices and to social networking platforms. The middleware can programmatically identify and extract particular pieces of information from requests and/or responses monitored at a network proxy server and correlate the extracted pieces of information to identify social identities across social networking platforms. The correlated information for each identified social identity may be stored in an identity database as a cohesive user identity record. Information stored in the identity database can be used to consistently apply and enforce policies that are applicable to individual users in the private network.

Growing community of inventors

Lakeway, TX, United States of America

Cameron Blair Cooper