Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Danpo Zhang

Iulian Doroftei Calinov

Gilbert Martin McQuillan

Brian M Jones

Josh D Benaloh

Melissa Wood Dunn

Ashvin Mathew

Wei Jiang

Wei-Quiang Michael Guo

Rajeev Dujari

Cem Paya

Puhazholi Vetrivel

Munir Mahmood

Julien Couvreur

Christopher N Peterson

Sanjeev M Nagvekar

Robert M Hyman

Li-Fen Wu

Sachin Kukreja

Barry I Kelman

Jonathan Wilkins

Josh R Cohen

Hai Zhuang

Laurel S Abbott

Jeff Steinbok

Elaine Lan Chen

E Castedo Ellerman

Methods and system of preventing unauthorized scripting. The invention includes providing one or more tests to a user for distinguishing the user from a machine when the user requests access to the server. By storing information on a correct solution to the test in a block of data and sending the block of data together with the test, the invention provides stateless operation. Moreover, maintaining a database of previously used correct responses prevents replay attacks. The invention also includes providing combinations of alternative tests, such as visually altered textual character strings, audible character strings, and computational puzzles. Other aspects of the invention are directed to computer-readable media for use with the methods and system.

Prevention of unauthorized scripts

A method, system, and computer-readable medium are provided for managing consent between online entities to perform tasks. The consent mechanism uses an asynchronous protocol for submitting consent requests, managing consent requests, and resolving consent requests. An application that requires consent to perform a task submits a request for consent to the consent mechanism. The resolving authority obtains pending request information from the consent mechanism and sends the consent mechanism request resolution information. The application obtains resolved request information from the consent mechanism. If the resolved request is approved, the consent mechanism allows the application to perform the task. If the resolved request is denied, the consent mechanism does not allow the application to perform the task.

Consent mechanism for online entities

A general provider of a core registration service provides registration services to a special service provider. In one implementation, a first party presents a user registration form to a second party on behalf of a third party The first party receives registration provisioning data from the third party, which is used by the first party to generate a custom registration form. Responsive to receiving a request from a second party to register for a specialized service provided by a third party, the first party communicates the custom registration form to second party.

Presenting customized consumer registration information on behalf of a third party

Secure site-to-site transactional communication between at least two network servers coupled to a data communication network, including secure registration by an authentication server associated with a multi-site user authentication system. A network server receives a request via a browser f of a client computer. In response, the network server initiates a transaction with the authentication server and defines a data structure, such as a query string, associated with the transaction. The network server also generates a digital signature of the data structure and then adds it to the data structure before directing the client computer from the network server to the authentication server with the data structure and the added digital signature. The network server also adds an index to the data structure. The index is associated with the transaction and unique, per transaction, to the network server initiating the transaction.

Secure registration

Methods and systems for resolving naming contests when a user seeks to register an account associated with a login identifier that is already in use by another user. An authentication server notifies the user of a contested registration when the requested login identifier, such as an e-mail address, matches one of the identifiers stored in an authentication database. The server then solicits confirmation from the user that the login identifier belongs to the requesting user rather than the earlier user. By forcing the earlier user to select a different login identifier, the server renders the existing user account inactive but retains a unique account identifier and associated account information for the inactive user account.

Contested account registration

Two new cache control headers in the cache control header, &ldquo;post-check&rdquo; and &ldquo;pre-check&rdquo;, enable the display of content from the cache, with a later synchronization of the content performed in the background via a conditional request such as an IMS request. These headers enable the server to define a non-validate time period relative to the cached content's age in which the user will receive content from the cache, a background synchronization period in which the user will receive content from the cache and automatically queue a request for background synchronization thereof, and a validate period in which the cached content may or may not be used, depending on a response to a validation request sent to the server. The content is quickly rendered for the user in the non-validate and background synchronization periods, and the hit count is correct in the background synchronization and validate periods. In the background synchronization time period, the user has a fast experience with rapidly rendered content, while via the background synchronization, the server receives the proper number of hits.

Background cache synchronization

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Issaquah, WA, United States of America

Danpo Zhang