U.S. patent application number 12/821469 was filed with the patent office on 2011-01-20 for system and method for verification, authentication, and notification of transactions.
Invention is credited to Alexander William EVANS.
Application Number | 20110016050 12/821469 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 32095752 |
Filed Date | 2011-01-20 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110016050 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
EVANS; Alexander William |
January 20, 2011 |
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VERIFICATION, AUTHENTICATION, AND
NOTIFICATION OF TRANSACTIONS
Abstract
A system and method for verifying, authenticating, and providing
notification of a transaction, such as a commercial or financial
transaction, with and/or to at least one party identified as
engaging in the transaction and/or identified as having a potential
interest in the transaction or type of transaction, are provided. A
central system accepts information regarding a transaction,
including information about at least one party identified as
engaging in the transaction, such as by a credit account number or
Social Security number or merchant account number, and/or
identified as having a potential interest in the transaction. Based
on the information regarding the transaction and any supplemental
information the central system determines, the central system
communicates with and/or to at least one party and/or additional or
alternative parties, via at least one communications device or
system having a communications address, such as a telephone number
or Short Message Service address, predetermined as belonging to the
at least one party and/or additional or alternative parties. Via
said communications, at least one party having an interest or a
potential interest in the transaction may be notified of it, and
may further be enabled or required to supply additional verifying
or authenticating information to the central system. If the
transaction was initiated or engaged in via a communications link,
such as via the Internet, said communications preferably occur over
at least one different communications link and/or protocol, such as
via a wireless voice network. The central system may then compute a
result based on the outcomes of said communications, and may then
transmit the result to the user and/or to a second system or
device.
Inventors: |
EVANS; Alexander William;
(US) |
Correspondence
Address: |
HUNTON & WILLIAMS LLP;INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DEPARTMENT
1900 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 1200
WASHINGTON
DC
20006-1109
US
|
Family ID: |
32095752 |
Appl. No.: |
12/821469 |
Filed: |
June 23, 2010 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10354609 |
Jan 30, 2003 |
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12821469 |
|
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60354275 |
Feb 4, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/44 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 20/10 20130101;
G06Q 20/40 20130101; G06Q 20/386 20200501; G06Q 40/025 20130101;
G06Q 40/00 20130101; G06Q 30/06 20130101; G06Q 20/4014 20130101;
G06Q 20/382 20130101; G06Q 20/401 20130101; G06Q 20/3255
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/44 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 40/00 20060101
G06Q040/00 |
Claims
1-110. (canceled)
111. A computer-implemented system for providing a transaction, the
system comprising: a transaction processing module configured to
process a transaction and to communicate via a first communications
link and one or more second communications links, wherein the
transaction processing module: receives, via the first
communications link, incoming information associated with a
transaction; identifies at least one party associated with the
transaction, wherein the at least one party is authorized to verify
the transaction and is a non-merchant with regards to the
transaction; transmits, via the one or more second communications
links, a verification request to the at least one party to verify
the transaction, wherein the one or more second communications
links are different from the first communications link; recognizes
an occurrence of an event; determines authenticity of the
transaction based on the recognition of the occurrence of the
event; and continues processing the transaction initiated over the
first communications link.
Description
PARENT CASE TEST
[0001] This application is a continuation (CON) application of U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 10/354,609, filed Jan. 30, 2003,
entitled "System and Method for Verification, Authentication, and
Notification of a transaction," which claims priority to U.S.
Provisional No. 60/354,275 with filing date Feb. 4, 2002, both of
which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The invention relates to fraud prevention and fraud "early
warning" notifications for transactions, in particular remote
and/or electronic transactions such as "e-commerce" and "m
commerce" transactions wherein it is desirable to authenticate and
verify one or more parties' identities and intentions before the
transaction is concluded and/or to notify one or more parties of
the occurrence of the transaction.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] In a transaction in which security is a concern, such as an
electronically conducted transaction involving a funds transfer or
a purchase or payment, there are three basic questions which must
be satisfied: [0006] 1. Are the parties to the transaction who they
say they are? (Do they own the goods, services, or funds or
financial accounts that they represent they do?) [0007] 2. Do they
have the necessary authority or authorization to approve the
transaction? [0008] 3. Is the environment in which the transaction
occurs secure? That is, can other parties gain access to the
private information being exchanged during such a transaction?
[0009] Regarding question 1, the payments industry has devoted
considerable attention to methods and systems designed to a) verify
the identity of a purchaser, b) assess the risk of any given
transaction, and c) take follow-on action in high-risk cases,
either by subsequently inquiring of the payer whether the
transaction was proper, or by denying funds or credit at the time
of the transaction subject to later manual contact with the
payer.
[0010] For more complex or higher-value transactions, per question
2 a buyer may be subject to a set of audit and control procedures
designed to limit his/her purchasing authority. In most consumer
purchasing cases, the buyer and authority-holder are usually the
same person. In many organizational purchasing situations, the
buyer(s) and authority-holder(s) are not the same. The payments
industry has one primary tool for limiting purchasing authority,
which is the spending limit or credit limit associated with the
buyer's account. Attempted solutions to question 1 also help
address question 2, since verifying identity helps address cases
wherein a buyer is suborning the purchasing authority of another
party by use of a stolen credit card number or other private
information.
[0011] As regards question 3, the most relatively secure
environment for purchase transactions remains a merchant's store,
in which a buyer and seller can interact face to face, multiple
forms of identification can be reviewed, and the opportunities for
theft of private information are generally limited. At the other
extreme are telephone, mail, and electronic commerce, in which the
buyer is represented merely by his/her account information as
supplied by phone, on a mailed form, or by data entry via a
computer or other electronic device. Here, the opportunities for
fraud and the theft of private information are relatively high.
Further, there is a prevailing public perception that electronic
purchasing environments (for example, virtual storefronts or
Internet auctions) are inherently insecure in regard to the
transmission and/or storage of private information.
[0012] The above factors are reflected in the relative "discount
rate" (price) charged to merchants by credit card processors for
in-store transactions vs. "card not present" transactions, for
example. Typically, merchants pay 60% more per sales dollar in a
"card not present" transaction than when a credit card is
physically presented for swiping.
[0013] These differences in risk also apply when accounts
themselves are opened, closed, and modified remotely, as via mail,
telephone, wire, or other electronic means.
[0014] Current transaction-verification systems and methods, such
as for credit, debit, and purchase-card purchases and payments,
Automated Teller Machine (ATM) interactions, e-ticket redemption,
and the like, may be grouped into four broad categories: 1)
physical identification of the purchasing party or of a difficult
to-mimic characteristic of the purchasing party, such as by
signature comparison or biometric scanning, 2) data entry of
passwords or other identification codes, such as the Personal
Identification Number (PIN) codes used with ATMs and calling cards,
3) validation of embedded digital authenticating information, such
as is found in "smart cards", and 4) verifying private knowledge
presumed known only to the account holder, such as the account
holder's billing address or Social Security Number (SSN), prior to
approving a transaction, including opening, closing, and modifying
an account. A fifth category, devoted to limiting the exposure of
sensitive private information such as credit card numbers to
insecure or weakly secure environments subject to high levels of
electronic theft or hacking, such as the Internet, is the
substitution of dummy information for the actual private
information, which dummy information is reconciled with the actual
private information after its receipt by the payment processing
organization.
[0015] Additional systems and methods have been employed by credit
reporting agencies, which agencies already monitor the status of
individuals' credit accounts. Such organizations may offer their
customers regular monthly communications by mail or electronic mail
identifying new accounts established in the customer's name or with
the customer's federal tax identification number since the last
such communication.
[0016] Especially in categories (2) (3) and (4) above, transaction
approval by a bank or other merchant processing or payment
processing organization or network is often coupled with an
automated risk detection processes and human follow-up, as when a
credit card issuer's risk assessment system determines that an
unexpectedly large, out-of-state purchase is "high risk" for a
given account holder, and then provides that information to a
customer service representative who may call the account holder's
telephone to attempt to confirm the transaction's validity,
typically after the fact, or to leave a message for the account
holder that the card account is suspended pending the account
holder's reply. It is often the case that the account holder's
ability to judge what constitutes a fraudulent transaction
conducted in his/her name considerably exceeds that of said risk
assessment system and customer service representative. Despite this
judgment-gap, today's account holders have, at best, only
after-the-fact means available to them from their financial
institutions, or from merchants, to audit transactions occurring in
their name, including the opening, closing, and modification of
accounts, or at-the-time means which involve significant new
technologies and new processes to implement, learn, and use. In
some cases the burden of implementing, learning and using falls on
the merchant or other provider of goods, services, or funds, as
well as the account holder.
[0017] Merchants subjected to fraudulent transactions are informed
after the fact as well, when the true account holder disputes a
transaction with his/her payments organization. In the case of
credit card transactions, the merchant is then charged back for the
value of the disputed transaction and may also be charged a dispute
investigation fee, resulting in a loss of profits and goods.
[0018] Additional research and development in the payments industry
has focused on adding encrypted identifying codes or digital
certificates to credit cards via an embedded microprocessor (as in
"smart cards") or via software on a personal computer
("e-wallets"); and on physically printing unique numeric
identification numbers or numeric passwords (such as CVV2/CVC2/CID
codes) on credit cards. Said codes are a relatively recent security
feature for use in "card-not-present" transactions and now appear
on, for example, Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover
cards. As of this writing, these codes are comprised of a three- or
four-digit number which provides a cryptographic check of the
information embossed on the card, called CVV2 (Visa, 3-digit), CVC2
(MasterCard, 3-digit), and CID (American Express, 4-digit, and
Discover, 3-digit). These code values help validate two things: a)
the customer has the physical credit card in his/her possession,
and b) the card account is legitimate. CVV2/CVC2/CID data are
printed only on the card; they are not contained in the magnetic
stripe information per se, nor do they appear on sales receipts or
statements. The use of these codes attempts to make it more
difficult for a person who has stolen a credit card number, but not
the actual card, to enter into fraudulent transactions, provided
the other parry or parties to such transactions have also invested
in the requisite changes to their systems and processes to support
the use of these codes.
[0019] The prior art attempts, with mixed results, to solve the
common problem of how to authenticate and verify a transaction,
such as purchase, funds transfer, account opening or closing or
modification, etc., particularly when conducted remotely or
electronically, how to authenticate and verify the relevant party
or parties, and how to provide the earliest possible warning of
fraud, with a high degree of accuracy and completeness and
near-zero delay.
[0020] U.S. Pat. No. 6,182,894 to Hackett describes systems and
methods to use CVV2/CVC2/CID values, in lieu of PIN codes, to
verify that a consumer engaged in a point-of-sale (POS) transaction
possesses the transaction card at the time of purchase and/or is
the true card owner. The CVV2/CVC2/CID information is provided to
the POS system as an additional authenticating datum, and if said
datum matches what is stored in the relevant authorization system
for the applicable card account number, and authorizing parameters
are satisfied, authorization proceeds. If not, authorization is
denied. Such systems and methods do not protect against card theft
or hacking (should such CVV2/CVC2/CID data flow from the consumer
to the merchant or card processor electronically, or are stored on
an intermediate system), because they authenticate only that
certain data from the physical card match data stored in the
authorization system, without authenticating the identity of the
card holder/user, and without verifying the intentions of the true
card owner or other co-authorizing party (if different). Further,
they do not provide the advantage of notification of the true card
owner or other co-authorizing or auditing parties of the occurrence
of a transaction, and in particular a high-risk transaction.
Finally, such systems and methods also fail to provide for any
additional automated data gathering, authentication, and
verification for and by the party regarding the opening, closing,
or modification of an account remotely.
[0021] U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,163 to Flews describes a system and
method for concluding a transaction by telephone that was initiated
over the Internet. The purchaser dials a special telephone number
associated with the transaction and provides his/her credit card
number in full by dialing it on his/her touch-tone keypad (that is,
using DTMT tones). Such a system and method have the advantage of
partially isolating private payment information across two
different communication links, but do not address the problem of
notification or authentication of the legitimate account holders or
other parties having a potential interest in the transaction, nor
verification of the intent and approval of said legitimate account
holders or other parties having approval authority for the
transaction. Instead, they provide assurance solely to the
purchaser that his/her private financial information need not be
communicated in full through a network perceived to be insecure
(that is, through the Internet). Such a system and method, which
require purchasers to take additional proactive steps to complete
remote transactions, have had limited adoption by consumers and
merchants due to the complexity they add to all affected
transactions. This system and method are further limited to
collecting payment data, such as a credit card number, for
processing by the merchant's point-of-sale or ordering system,
under the purchasing party's control. They do not provide for any
additional data gathering, authentication, and verification for and
by the party attempting to collect payment or open, close, or
modify an account remotely, nor for and by any third party whose
approval is normally required to conclude the transaction.
[0022] U.S. Pat. No. 6,324,526 to D'Agostino describes a system and
method for providing a transaction code, supplied case by case by
the purchaser's financial institution, in lieu of a credit card
number for a purchase transaction. As has been noted, systems and
methods based on dummy transaction or account number codes have had
limited consumer acceptance because of the complexity to set up and
use them. Such systems and methods attempt to address only the
security of the purchaser's account information, by eliminating
exposure thereof to a third party over a network perceived to be
insecure (that is, over the Internet). Nor do such systems and
methods provide for any additional data gathering, authentication,
and verification for and by the party attempting to collect payment
or open, close, or modify an account remotely, nor for and by any
third party whose approval is normally required to conclude the
transaction.
[0023] U.S. Pat. No. 6,270,011 to Gottfried describes a system and
method for coupling a fingerprint recognition device to a credit
card scanner. As has been noted, systems and methods of this type
have extremely narrow application because of the need for the
affected parties' physical presence, the associated cost of
implementation and on-going support, and general public concerns
over personal privacy when biometric devices are employed. Systems
and methods of this type attempt to address only authentication of
a purchaser's identity, and ignore notification of a party or
parties who may be subject to identity fraud or fraudulent
transactions.
[0024] U.S. Pat. No. 6,341,724 to Campisano describes a system and
method for using the telephone number of a credit card owner, plus
a PIN code, as an alias for the actual card number in a credit card
transaction. This system and method replace the account number with
another sequence of digits which is not printed or encoded on the
credit card itself. Systems and methods of this type are a
variation on the concept of a dummy account number, per U.S. Pat.
No. 6,324,526 to D'Agostino, and provide the benefit of allowing a
purchaser to make a credit card purchase without having to remember
his/her card number. However, such systems and methods do not
provide protection against the use of stolen account information,
nor against the use of stolen dummy account information such as
said telephone number and PIN. They further require credit card
users to learn a new process for making credit card purchases, and
require system and rule changes by merchants to allow the
purchaser's telephone number and PIN to be used in lieu of a card
account number. For debit card transactions, the purchasers would
further have to supply two PIN values, one for the debit card
account, the other for encryption purposes. Nor do such systems and
methods provide for any additional data gathering, authentication,
and verification for and by the party attempting to collect payment
or open, close, or modify an account remotely; nor for and by any
third party whose approval is normally required to conclude the
transaction.
[0025] U.S. Pat. No. 6,023,682 to Checchio describes a system and
method for communicating a credit card number to a
payment-authorizing computer system from a point-of-sale credit
card terminal, using encryption where the key is a personal
identification code ("PIC") belonging to the card owner, and then
verifying that the personal identification code matches that stored
in the payment-authorizing computer system's memory. This system
and method introduce the advantage of using personal information
(such as a PIN code) to verify a card-user's identity, but also
require changes to payment authorization systems and merchant's
order-taking or payment-processing systems to implement, further
require the purchaser to supply his/her personal identification
code to the merchant, and have utility only at a physical
point-of-sale, that is, in a non-remote transaction. Because the
PIC is communicated through the same process and media as the
transaction itself, said personal identification code, particularly
for e-commerce transactions, is vulnerable to theft via hacking of
the merchant's systems or interception of the merchant's
communications to the payment-processing bank or applicable credit
card processing network. Such systems and methods also fail to
provide for any additional data gathering, authentication, and
verification for and by any third party whose approval is normally
required to conclude the transaction.
[0026] U.S. Pat. No. 6,088,683 to Jalili describes a method for
customers to order goods from merchants on one network, such as the
Internet, and then complete the purchase via a second network, such
as the telephone network, using "Caller ID" service or a call-back
to check the customer's telephone number as a form of proof of the
customer's identity, and involving an independent processing center
that receives the customer's financial information over the second
network in advance and stores it for future reference, The merchant
uses the second network to deliver transaction details and the
customer's ID to the processing center, which then uses the second
network to receive or initiate contact from/to to the customer to
check his/her identity and his/her purchase intentions. Said method
revises the method described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,163 to Bezos,
by moving responsibility for the exchange of the customer's
financial information from between the customer and merchant over a
second network at the time of the transaction, as per Bezos, to
between the customer and processing center over a second network in
advance of the transaction. In Jalili, the processing center also
performs the step of debiting and crediting the accounts of the
customer and merchant, respectively. Therefore, the utility of this
method is limited to cases wherein both a purchaser and a merchant
are independently willing and able to establish an advance
relationship with, exchange private information (such as account
information for the purchaser and merchant processing information
for the merchant) with, and allow debiting/crediting of their
accounts by, such a processing center prior to entering into a
purchase transaction between themselves. The method is also limited
to purchases, and particularly to purchases involving a single
customer and a single merchant. The need for a preparatory process
occurring over the second network, the need to use the second
network to perform all steps to prepare and conclude a transaction
other than the step of the customer's placing of his/her order, and
the need to establish a processing center, also limit the utility
of this method. Because the purchaser does not actually supply
his/her payment information to the merchant, the method further
creates an opportunity for fraud perpetrated within processing
center, stemming from its unique position of trust between the two
other parties. If, however, the processing center is not
independent of the merchant, then any utility derived from the
separation of the processing center from the merchant, such as the
assurance to the customer that his/her private account information
need never be transmitted directly to the merchant, is lost. The
method also adds the complication of the merchant having to provide
a new and additional or alternative form of customer identification
information to the processing center in order to receive a
customer's payment. The method also fails to provide for any
additional automated data gathering, authentication, and
verification for and by a party regarding non-purchase
transactions, such as the opening, closing, or modification of an
account remotely; nor for and by any third party whose approval is
normally required to conclude a purchase transaction. The method
also fails to address purchases or non-purchase transactions
initiated other than via a network. Lastly, the method requires a
new sort of account to be established, namely, the customer's
registration with the processing center.
[0027] Additional weaknesses and limitations of the prior art in
general include:
[0028] Systems and methods of physical recognition: Such systems
and methods require deployment, training, and support of a new
purchaser and/or merchant transaction-processing infrastructure on
a wide scale (such as deployment of biometric scanners and related
interfaces to payment systems) and require the physical presence of
purchaser to interact with that infrastructure to complete a
transaction. This solution is therefore highly limited in the scope
of its application.
[0029] Systems and methods using passwords and ID codes: Generally
effective for ATM and debit card transactions, such systems and
methods are not used widely for credit card transactions. Passwords
and codes (such as PIN codes) remain subject to theft (as by
Internet hacking, card "skimming", identity theft, etc.). Once a
password or ID code is compromised, no further safeguards are
possible, and entirely new customer accounts must be created.
Passwords and ID codes are not commonly used, supported and
enforced by merchants for credit card purchases.
[0030] Systems and methods using CVV2/CVC2/CID codes: Systems and
methods utilizing such codes are presently limited to credit card
accounts only, do not protect against the loss or theft, such as by
hacking, of credit or debit-and-credit cards or card account
numbers along with such codes, and do not prevent the fraudulent
creation or subsequent modification of an account.
[0031] Systems and methods using verification of private knowledge:
Such systems and methods are vulnerable to theft of private
information via hacking, and identity theft. This is particularly
troublesome internationally, where the most common type of private
knowledge checking in the U.S. for credit card transactions,
namely, an account's billing addresses, is rarely possible today
abroad.
[0032] Systems and methods using smart cards: While smart cards add
password (PIN) features and can also create dummy credit card
numbers usable for one transaction only, systems and methods
utilizing smart cards require the installation and use of a smart
card reader by the user, and have thus had limited adoption by
consumers. These special features are further available only when
purchases are made via the computing device where the smart card
reader is installed.
[0033] Systems and methods using digital signature information
("E-Wallets"): As with smart cards, systems and methods for
e-wallets require specialized software to be installed on the
computing device of the e-wallet's owner, and therefore have not
been widely adopted by consumers. Their features are likewise only
available for purchases made via the computing device where such
software is installed.
[0034] Other limitations and weaknesses in the prior art:
Notification of a transaction, and any interaction with the actual
party or parties who are truly authorized to conclude and approve
it, as opposed to interaction with parties who are perpetrating
fraud by representing themselves as said actual, authorized
parties, is generally left unaddressed by the prior art.
Notification or interaction which does occur in the prior art is
typically after the fact, either by the actual, authorized party's
reviewing his/her billing or account statements, by consulting
his/her credit report via a credit reporting agency, or, if the
payment processor (for example, the relevant credit card processor
or bank) so determines, through a follow-up telephone call from a
customer service representative of such credit card processor or
bank, or through other messages delivered after the fact through a
variety of basic communications media. These inherently
after-the-fact processes do not interrupt or halt a fraudulent
remote transaction before it is completed, nor can they halt
additional fraudulent transactions (which may fit within a
purchaser's normal risk profile) made quickly thereafter using the
same account number or other identifying information. Prior art
which attempts to address the objective of verification of a
transaction before it is concluded adds prohibitive requirements
for the establishment, registration with, and use of intermediaries
such as processing centers between customers and merchants, fails
to address the objectives of notification and approval of or by
third-parties, and fails to address the class of transactions
comprising the opening, closing, and modification of accounts.
[0035] It is desirable to verify and authenticate a transaction,
and in particular a potentially risky transaction, without relying
on the installation and use of new equipment by one or more of the
parties having an interest in, involved in, or represented to be
involved in, said transaction, nor requiring substantial
alterations to existing processes or additional education and
training for conducting such transactions, nor requiring new
intermediary entities to be established. It is further desirable to
do so in a manner that thwarts any potential party to such a
transaction who attempts to authorize or enter into it
fraudulently. It is further desirable for such verification and
authentication to work even when the mechanisms, systems and
methods described in the prior art may already be in use but still
fail to protect fully against fraud, especially when fraud is
perpetrated as a result of the theft of private information. This
is especially important in the area of transactions conducted
remotely, and in particular electronically. It is also desirable to
notify automatically the actual party or parties having legitimate
authority to approve or audit a transaction, whether directly
engaged in such transaction or not, of the occurrence and/or
details of said transaction. It is also desirable to be determine
the behavior of any embodiment of a system and method for such
notification, verification and authentication, through the use of
stored profiles of parties and transaction types and other
parameters, and also through profile information and other
parameters which may be provided with and as part of an individual
transaction.
[0036] The invention described herein provides a method and system
for verifying, authenticating, and providing notification-of a
transaction such as a commercial or financial transaction, with
and/or to at least one party represented or identified as engaging
in said transaction or having a potential interest in said
transaction or type of transaction, in particular a remote or
electronic transaction, while it occurs and/or after it occurs, via
one or more of a plurality of communication links and communication
addresses associated with said at least one party, so as to create
a higher degree of certainty that the transaction is non-fraudulent
than is possible using any of the prior art, without introducing
significant delay in the completion of legitimate transactions, and
without requiring implementation of new equipment or software, or
learning of unfamiliar processes or technologies, or establishment
and use of separate processing centers or other intermediaries.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0037] It is an object of the invention to provide a means of
verifying and authenticating the identities and intentions of one,
some or all parties represented or identified as engaging in a
transaction or having a potential interest in said transaction or
type of transaction while it is in progress, and/or soon
thereafter;
[0038] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
accepting or obtaining information and parameters about said
transaction, including information about one or more parties
represented or identified as engaging in or having a potential
interest in said transaction, from a transaction-processing system
or device, such as a banking transaction system or credit card
authorization or risk assessment system, as it is processing the
transaction;
[0039] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
communications with and/or to one or more parties having a
potential interest in the transaction, some of whom may be
represented as engaged in the transaction through the use of
identity-related data, such as an account number or numbers;
[0040] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
defining, at the time of the transaction or in advance of the
transaction, or both, which specific parties have a potential
interest in a given transaction, and the nature of such
interest;
[0041] It is also an object of the invention to allow said
communications to occur over a plurality of communications media
and/or communications links, to increase the likelihood of
successful and secure communication with and/or to said one or more
parties;
[0042] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
defining, initiating and controlling said interactions and their
content;
[0043] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
obtaining and/or storing information about the nature,
communication addresses, and other parameters of said one or more
parties' communications devices used for said communications, to
enable additional verification and authentication of the identity
or identities of said one or more parties;
[0044] It is also an object of the invention, in its preferred
embodiment, to allow the behavior of said preferred embodiment to
be controlled and managed under varying conditions and
circumstances in accordance with stored profiles and, additionally
or alternatively, in accordance with information provided along
with the transaction information;
[0045] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means, in
its preferred embodiment, for the adapting the inventive systems'
behavior based on prevailing conditions and circumstances regarding
said transaction, which conditions and circumstances may change
during or because of the utilization of the invention;
[0046] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
recording and remembering the details of said transaction and the
result or results of any subsequent communications for later review
and use by the user of the invention;
[0047] It is also an object of the invention to provide a means of
reporting and/or transmitting and/or forwarding a result or results
regarding said transaction and said result or results of said
subsequent communications.
[0048] Accordingly, the invention, to address the above and other
objects, provides a system and method for verifying,
authenticating, and providing notification of a transaction, such
as a commercial or financial transaction, with and/or to at least
one party represented or identified as engaging in said transaction
or having a potential interest in said transaction or type of
transaction, in particular a remote or electronic transaction,
while it occurs and/or after it occurs, and in accordance with any
parameters which may be supplied in or with information about the
transaction, additionally or alternatively with any profile or
profiles which may be associated with the transaction.
[0049] In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the occurrence
of communications with said at least one party and at least one of
a plurality of communications devices and associated predetermined
communications addresses known to belong to said at least one
party, using at least one communications link other than the
communications link used to initiate the transaction itself,
isolates the transaction medium or environment from the
notification and/or verification medium or environment, such that a
very high degree of accuracy and completeness of authentication and
verification can be achieved with a minimum of delay, and without
requiring any new authentication/verification technologies to be
implemented or learned by the transacting party or parties.
[0050] The invention goes beyond current practices by providing a
highly automated means and a method for, individually and in
combination: [0051] 1. Notification, verification and
authentication of any or all of the party or parties involved in,
identified as involved in, and/or predetermined to have a potential
interest in, a transaction while it is still in progress, and/or
afterward; [0052] 2. Verifying and authenticating using a plurality
of communications links which may operate on networks having
near-universal, worldwide availability and high reliability; [0053]
3. Separating and isolating the communications link and/or medium
of the initial transaction (for example, the World Wide Web) from
the communications link(s) and/or medium or media used to verify
and authenticate it (for example, the public switched telephone
network, wireless networks, Instant Messaging services), in such
cases as the transaction's primary medium is deemed insufficiently
secure or insufficiently able to verify and authenticate a party or
parties; [0054] 4. Utilizing a plurality of concurrent and/or
sequential communications with and/or to a plurality of
communications devices and addresses, using a plurality of
communications links and communications media; [0055] 5. Attempting
communications with and/or to any or all of the party or parties
involved in, identified as involved in, and/or predetermined to
have a potential interest in transaction using alternate
communications links or media in the event that attempted
interaction or interactions using the preferred associated
communications link or medium fails; [0056] 6. Predefining and
dynamically determining a plurality of sequences of actions and
communications to be taken under differing conditions for differing
transactions and differing pluralities of parties thereto, based on
information and parameters regarding the transaction and/or
user-definable profiles regarding transactions, types of
transactions, and/or parties and potential parties involved in,
identified as involved in, and/or predetermined to have a potential
interest in such transactions; [0057] 7. Communicating with a third
party or parties involved in, identified as involved in, and/or
predetermined to have a potential interest in, who are not
initially part of such a transaction (such as an employer, parent,
or law enforcement official in performance of his/her duty), for
purposes such as seeking such third party or parties' approval
thereof, or to notify same; [0058] 8. Assigning one or more roles
to one or more parties involved in, identified as involved in,
and/or predetermined to have a potential interest in a transaction;
[0059] 9. Interacting differently with each of said one or more
parties based upon his/her ascribed role; [0060] 10. Avoiding
intrusiveness in the consummation of the transaction, by
eliminating the need to install and proactively use any new or
unfamiliar equipment, software, processes, or purchasing methods by
the party or parties having an interest in, involved in, or
represented to be involved in the transaction; [0061] 11.
Intermingling of parameter-based non-transactional information,
such as sales, marketing, product or support information, with
transaction and confirmation information in said communications,
and [0062] 12. Predetermining and/or dynamically determining the
format and content of said communications, such as via user-defined
templates and/or scripts.
[0063] The preferred embodiment of the invention associates one or
more predetermined communications devices and addresses, such as
telephone numbers or wireless SIP addresses, with a plurality of
parties who may have an interest in, be involved in, or be
identified as involved in, a transaction, and related identifying
information, which may include an account number or credit card
number. Such identity, device and address information are
preferably defined and stored in advance in a non-volatile storage
or database in the form of a profile associated with each such
party, or are additionally or alternatively provided to the
inventive system within or along with information about a specific
transaction.
[0064] When a transaction is initiated with reference to such party
or parties, such as via identifiers such as credit card account
number(s), bank account numbers, or Social Security Numbers (SSNs)
or tax identification numbers, a central system then attempts to
communicate via a plurality of communications links with and/or to
one or more of said plurality of parties via at least one of each
such party's known, predetermined communications device(s), to
notify the party or parties of the transaction and, additionally or
alternatively, to interact with the party or parties to
authenticate and verify their identities, intentions and/or
approvals in regard to the transaction. The invention further
provides several alternative means and methods for establishing
such communications with and/or to each such party, either in
parallel or serially, in the event that the primary means and/or
method associated with each such party is not successful. Each
communication or set of communications is preferably governed by
logic rules, which may be predefined or dynamically determined, and
which may be encoded as a script to be executed in or by the
central system, said rules being determined in part based upon a
categorization of the transaction, the identities or a
categorization of one or more of said plurality of parties, and/or
other parameters obtained along with the information describing the
transaction.
[0065] Because each such interaction occurs with the actual
owner/user of the communication device at a known and predefined
communications address (such as his/her pre-verified wireless SIP
address), if any party engaged in the transaction is not the
owner/user of said predefined communications address, then 1) the
interaction by definition alerts the actual owner/user to a
fraudulent transaction in progress, and 2) the fraudulent
owner/user is thwarted, because he/she will be physically unable to
authenticate him/herself using the communications device found at
said communications address. Further, even if the fraudulent party
is able to obtain such a communications device belonging to the
true owning/using party, the fraudulent party must still supply
further authenticating information presumed to be known only to the
actual owning using party. Preferably, the communications linkage
employed for such interaction is different from the communications
linkage used to initiate the transaction, thereby further limiting
the potential for fraud and for the theft of private
information.
[0066] Additional utility may be derived when the user of the
invention is in the role of a financial services organization, such
as a credit card issuer, payments-processing network, merchant
processor or acquirer, employing the invention alongside or within
its transaction-authorization and/or account-management processes
and systems to reduce transactional risk for its merchant and/or
consumer customers. Such financial services organizations already
have, in the normal course of their business, advance knowledge of
potential parties to transactions, including identifying
information and other parameters about such parties which may
include their account numbers and their contact information, such
as home telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, and wireless device
addresses; knowledge of transactions relating to their customers as
they occur; and a presumed relationship of trust with said
potential parties to transactions. Their advance knowledge and
existing trust relationships minimize their effort to implement and
widely deploy the invention for maximum utility. In addition to the
fraud-reducing and fraud "early warning" benefit of the invention,
financial services organizations may also benefit from improved
customer relationships through increased value-adding contacts
occurring as a result of the use of the invention, and from the
resulting higher level of service provided, Financial service
organizations that employ the invention may also benefit from the
utility of a reduced perception by their consumer and merchant
customers of the risks of conducting transactions electronically or
remotely. Note that the additional utility to entities in the role
of financial services organizations is not inherently limited to
such entities, nor is it the only additional utility they may
obtain. This and other additional utility may be also be obtained
by other users, whether utilizing a similar or alternative
embodiment of the invention.
[0067] In the preferred embodiment of the invention, when a
transaction message is received by the central system from a second
system or device, the central system parses the received message,
authenticates said second system or device, and then may use the
parsed data values to determine or derive a set of corresponding
rules that inform or define the central system's subsequent actions
and subsequent communications with or to a relevant party or
parties over a plurality of communication links. Such rules may be
predefined, and if predefined are stored in advance in the central
system's volatile and/or nonvolatile storage memory or database(s).
The central system takes a plurality of actions according to said
rules.
[0068] In the preferred embodiment, the central system may
establish a plurality of communications links, which may include
but are not limited to wireless and landline telephony, SMS and
wireless text messaging, instant messaging, and electronic mail and
other Internet Protocol (IP) transmissions, in a sequence defined
by said rules, to reach a plurality of parties having a potential
interest in, involved in, or represented to be involved in, said
transaction. The central system attempts to communicate with and/or
to each of said plurality of parties via at least one predefined
communications device specifically associated with that party.
[0069] As each of said communication links is successfully
established, the central system preferably delivers information to
the corresponding party regarding the transaction, which
information may include 1) the transaction details, which may
include the nature or purpose of the transaction and/or a total
price or amount, 2) additional information of potential value to
said party, such as product-, sales-, service- and/or
marketing-related information provided by the other party/parties
or a third party or parties, and 3) other parameters, which may
include identifying information regarding one or more of said
parties. Said delivery of information is preferably composed and
formatted by the central system per a predefined message template
or script that may be related to the transaction or the type of
transaction, the communications medium employed, and the language
in which the party is known to be conversant. For example, in a
telephone call, said delivery of information may be comprised of
concatenated segments of prerecorded audio and/or text-to-speech
synthesis.
[0070] Each such party may then be prompted to confirm his/her
identity and intentions, which may include providing a PIN code,
CVV2/CVC2/CID code (for a credit card), or other unique and private
identifier(s), such as the initial letters of his/her mother's
maiden name, which datum or data may be predefined to the central
system, or may be supplied within or derived from the initiating
transaction message. A confirming action or actions may be
performed by said party via said communications link, using a means
appropriate to his/her corresponding communications device. For
example, on a telephone, DTMF digits may be pressed to convey the
information prompted for by the central system.
[0071] Based on the results of said interaction(s) with said
plurality of parties, the central system preferably computes or
otherwise derives a result, which it then preferably transmits to
said second system or device from which the transaction message
originated, and/or to an associated third system. Further, based on
said retrieved stored rules and/or said dynamically derived rules,
the central system also preferably transmits one or more of a
plurality of notification messages about said transaction and said
result to one or more of said plurality of parties, over a
plurality of communication links, and may also log said results in
a nonvolatile memory or other storage or database for later
retrieval, action, and for analysis, and/or for billing
purposes.
[0072] The central system communicates through a plurality of
communications links using a plurality of communications protocols,
configured according to such rules as are to be supported and
implemented in any specific embodiment of the invention. These
communication links and protocols may include but are not limited
to wireless and wireline telephony (which may include
text-to-speech processing, recorded speech, DTMF tones, and
combinations thereof), electronic mail, instant messaging fax,
paging, Short Message Service (SMS) and other wireless text
messaging, and other existing widely used services and protocols,
as described more fully hereafter. In the preferred embodiment of
the invention, the central system also provides a means to add and
delete a plurality of types of communication links and protocols,
as such types of communication links and protocols become available
and desirable or cease to be available or desirable; and a means of
receiving, translating, and acting upon a plurality of
informational codes and formats of transaction message as may be
provided by differing types of second system or device originating
such transaction message under differing conditions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0073] FIG. 1. System Diagram--Preferred Embodiment
[0074] FIG. 2. Application Programming Interface Generalized
Schema
[0075] FIG. 3. Networking Configuration
[0076] FIG. 4. Remote Transaction Engine Communications
Interfaces--Data Messaging Layer
[0077] FIG. 5. Rules Database View
[0078] FIG. 6. Profiles Database Views
[0079] FIG. 7. Party-Transaction Group Profiles Database View
[0080] FIG. 8. Communications Sequence Patterns Database View
[0081] FIG. 9. Scripts Database View
[0082] FIG. 10. Message Templates Database View
[0083] FIG. 11. Communications Subsystems: Telephony
[0084] FIG. 12. Communications Subsystems: E-mail
[0085] FIG. 13. Communications Subsystems: Instant Messaging
[0086] FIG. 14. Communications Subsystems: Fax
[0087] FIG. 15. Communications Subsystems: Paging
[0088] FIG. 16. Communications Subsystems: Wireless Text
Messaging/Short Message Service
[0089] FIG. 17. Communications Subsystems: Wireless Telephony
[0090] FIG. 18. Communications Subsystems: IP Telephony
[0091] FIG. 19. Communications Subsystems: Internet Data
Protocols--HTTP/HTTPS using HTML/XML
[0092] FIG. 20. Communications Subsystems: WAP
[0093] FIG. 21. Communications Subsystems: Telex
[0094] FIG. 22. Communications Subsystems: FTP
[0095] FIG. 23. Communications Subsystems: SNAJRJE Datasets
[0096] FIG. 24. Communications Subsystems: EDI/EDIFACT/EDI-INT
[0097] FIG. 25. Generalized Process Diagram
[0098] FIG. 26. Communication Scripting Language Statements, Object
Methods, Properties, and Environment Variables
[0099] FIG. 11-FIG. 24 are schematics of the links between a
preferred embodiment of a system according to the invention and a
range of potential communications devices used or usable by
potential parties to a transaction,
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0100] The invention achieves a very high degree of accuracy and
completeness of authentication, notification and verification of a
transaction and the identity and intentions of one or more of the
plurality of parties represented as entering into or conducting the
transaction, with a minimum of delay, and without requiring new
authentication/verification technologies to be implemented or
learned by such parties, by: [0101] a) Automatically communicating
with and/or to the relevant party or parties represented as
conducting a transaction, such as an electronic or remote
transaction, using at least one communications link which is
typically and preferably other than the one used to initiate the
transaction itself, if any; [0102] b) Communicating with and/or to
said party or parties only on communications devices having
specific predetermined communications addresses known to belong to
them, as a mechanism of additional authentication and verification;
[0103] c) Additionally or alternatively, further verifying said
party or parties' stated identities by cross-checking physical
information known or discernable about their communications devices
(e.g., telephone Automatic Number Identifier value) with other,
external sources of identity information (e.g., a telephone number
billing address database); [0104] d) Notifying said party or
parties of the transaction's details, such as a merchant's
identity, purchase amount, etc., through said communications
devices; [0105] e) Additionally or alternatively, providing
supplemental information of potential utility to said party or
parties, such as sales, marketing, product and support-related
information, through said communications devices; [0106] f)
Additionally or alternatively, interrogating said party or parties
to further authenticate their identities and/or verify their
intentions regarding the transaction using said at least one
communications link; [0107] g) Additionally or alternatively,
further verifying said party or parties' stated identities and
intentions by obtaining confirming input from said party or
parties, through said communications devices, which may include
passwords or other private knowledge (such as a predefined PIN
code, predefined CVC2/CVV2/CID code, or several initial letters of
a predefined security word such as a mother's maiden name) through
said communications devices; [0108] h) Enabling communication with
and/or to one or more of a plurality of parties related directly or
indirectly to the transaction, some of whom may not have been
identified or were not known to either the initiating parties or to
the system or entity (remote to the inventive system) responsible
for processing the transaction, and [0109] i) Supporting stored,
user-definable profiles, rules, and parameters regarding such
transactions and such parties, which profiles, rules, and
parameters, in a preferred embodiment, are used to vary the
behavior of the inventive system and thereby the sequence of steps
followed in the inventive method. [0110] outside the transaction
environment itself. The above advantages apply whether the
transaction is still in progress, or after the fact.
[0111] FIG. 1 presents a potential embodiment of a system
consistent with the invention. FIG. 25 shows a generalized process
flow for authenticating and verifying a typical transaction using
said embodiment of a system, consistent with the invention.
[0112] In FIG. 1, a Remote Transaction Engine [1], such as a web
e-commerce server or a credit card authorization system or device,
processes a transaction initiated by one or more parties. The RTE
[1] may, for example, be operated by a merchant conducting remote
transactions (as by Internet or by telephone) with its customers;
by two or more parties seeking to exchange goods, services, or
funds; by a financial institution conducting a financial
transaction with a customer (as via Automated Teller Machine); by a
payment processor organization in behalf of a merchant; by a
payments clearing network in behalf of a payment processor
organization; by a payment-account issuer in behalf of the payments
clearing network and the customer; by a financial institution or
merchant establishing or modifying an account such as a credit
account for a customer or prospective customer, or by a service
bureau in behalf of any of these. The sole requirement of the RTE
[1] is to be able to provide a data message via an application
programming interface [11] ("API") means, predefined specification
means, or other equivalent means to the Central System [2] ("CS")
of the embodiment of the invention, via any one of several standard
communications protocols over a communication link or network [31].
This transaction-describing message shall hereafter be called the
Transaction Message.
[0113] FIG. 4 presents a plurality of communication links which may
be utilized in an embodiment of the inventive system for receipt of
said Transaction Message from the RTE [1]. A plurality of preferred
data communication link types [411-420] is shown, plus a
voice-based communication link based on DTMF signaling [421]. The
inventive system preferably further accommodates adding other and
future protocols [425] as interfaces for them become desirable and
available, and removing existing protocols as they cease to be
desirable or available. Different embodiments of the invention may
support varying sets of such communication links from system to
system, or on the same system over time.
[0114] The Transaction Message is received by the CS's [2] Data
Messaging Layer [FIG. 1, 201]. The Data Messaging Layer [201] is
comprised of various hardware and software modules and interfaces
for receipt, queuing and interpretation of messages from a
plurality of networks [FIG. 4], and may be implemented, for
example, using technologies such as message queuing middleware for
data communications, and an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) unit
for DMTF-based telephony messages.
[0115] The Transaction Message, if communicated over a public data
network or other potentially insecure network, such as the
Internet, may be further encoded or encrypted either in whole or in
part by the RTE [1] for added security, such as with PM encryption
or a similar standard encrypting protocol, such as the Internet's
TLS.
[0116] The preferred CS [2] in general is further comprised of one
or more processors; memories and data storage; software and
software libraries, such as may be written in and accompany the C++
and Java programming languages, for handling and manipulating said
message as described hereafter; an operating system for managing
low-level elements of the system; security elements, such as
firewall and/or encryption software, for limiting external access
to the system, encrypting content, and defending against various
forms of electronic attack upon it; and, database or other
data-managing software, to store, manage, and perform searches and
retrievals on information about parties, transactions, transaction
processing rules, communication methods, and the like, as more
fully described hereafter. The CS [2] is additionally comprised of
a range of communications hardware and software, collectively
referred to as the "Communications Subsystems," which are used to
notify or interact with one or more of a plurality of parties
represented or identified as engaging in a transaction or having a
potential interest in a transaction. Said Communications Subsystems
[211-218.ff.] are described further hereafter.
[0117] The minimum necessary contents of said Transaction Message
are shown in FIG. 2. The choice of minimum necessary contents may
vary from embodiment to embodiment of the inventive system. These
data fields and values 1) identify the transaction-originating
entity [2a], 2) provide a mechanism to authenticate it [21b], 3)
identify one or more parties having a potential interest in,
involved in, and/or represented to be involved in, the transaction
[22a, ff. 22b, ff], 4) identify the type of transaction [22c], such
as a credit card purchase with card-not-present, and 5) identify
the price or amount of the transaction [22d] if applicable.
Preferably, the types of transactions known to the system are all
user-definable in advance through the User Web Client [FIG. 1, 251]
(see below) or via a bulk or automated load to the CS's [2]
databases.
[0118] Additional data fields and values may be supplied in the
Transaction Message to further define the party or parties'
communication addresses to be used in authenticating this
transaction [23c,f, ff., 23d, ff.]; a specific stored Rule Set (see
below) to be invoked [23i]; a specific stored message content
template to be used either for this transaction in general [23j,k]
or for each party [231, ff.]; additional information to transmit to
the relevant party or parties during the communications sessions
which follow [23o,p], and the like, as enumerated more fully in
FIG. 2. There is also specific provision for a mechanism to include
user-defined fields and data values within said Transaction Message
[23p]. These additional data in the Transaction Message, if
present, preferably supersede such values as may be stored in
advance in the CS's [2] databases about a given type of
transaction, parties, Rule Sets, and so on.
[0119] The message protocol and format of the Transaction Message
is defined according to the physical or logical port and/or
communication service through which it arrives at the CS's [2] Data
Messaging Layer [201], and additionally (for certain types of
Internet messages) according to meta-tags and/or content-descriptor
codes found at the start of the message which further define the
formatting and content of the message. The message is parsed by the
Data Messaging Layer [201] according to said format and protocol,
and thereby decomposed into a series of name-value pairs which
correspond to the data fields shown in FIG. 2. The incoming data
are thus normalized into a standard and internal format for
subsequent processing, independent of their originating format.
[0120] If the minimum required information as identified in FIG. 2
is not present, or if the RTE [1, 21a-b] cannot be authenticated,
the CS's [2] Data Messaging Layer [201] rejects the Transaction
Message and sends a corresponding rejection message back to the RTE
[1]; in a typical embodiment, the rejection message is composed and
transmitted via the same protocol used for receipt of the incoming
message [FIG. 4, 421-431].
[0121] Where any name-value pair is not defined in the message,
default values are looked up in the CS's [2] primary database
tables and views [FIG. 5-FIG. 8] using the RTE ID [21a],
transaction type [22a] and party identifiers(s) [22a ff.], as the
index values, via, for example, an SQL query or a stored (database)
procedure. Note that the CS enforces that any variable-length lists
of required name-value pairs, such as the list of parties, require
at least one name-value pair be explicitly defined in the incoming
Transaction Message for said message to be deemed valid.
[0122] If any of the parties is a member of a Party Group, either
by prior association therewith through the CS's [2] Parties
database view, shown in FIG. 6 [6d], or as superseded by data in
the Transaction Message, per FIG. 2 [23f], the Data Messaging Layer
[201] adds the identities (FIG. 7, 7c] and roles [7e] of the
parties belonging to the corresponding Group to the list of parties
to be contacted for the transaction. Relevant SQL statements to
determine all additional parties and their roles for a given
transaction, based on an initial set of parties: [0123] SELECT
DISTINCT [Party ID], [Party Role] FROM [Groups] INNER JOIN
[Transaction Parties] ON [Groups].[Party Group ID]=[Transaction
Parties].[Party Group ID] WHERE [RTE ID]=$PartyID[0]$; [0124]
(where $xxx$ indicates substitution of the value of environment
variable `xxx`, per FIG. 26, and [Transaction Parties] comprises
the IDs of the parties who were specified in the original
transaction message received from the RTE [1]).
[0125] In this way, certain transaction types for a given party may
automatically spawn communications with additional parties, such as
an employee's work supervisors or auditors, a minor's parents, or
law enforcement personnel, without requiring explicit mention of
such additional parties in the incoming Transaction Message. Such
Groups are preferably user-definable in advance, via the mechanism
of the Profile databases [FIG. 6] and the User Web Client [FIG. 1,
251]. This feature of the invention creates significant advantages
over the prior art, by allowing automatic inclusion of a variety of
additional parties in approval, notification and auditing
roles.
[0126] Each party is given a Role in accordance with its Profile
[FIG. 6, 6k], if any; its inclusion via the Party Group mechanism
[FIG. 7, 7e]; or, as superseded by data in the Transaction Message,
per FIG. 2 [23]. Another important advantage of the invention is
the automatic assignment of Roles to the party or parties of the
transaction, such that different actions may be taken in regard to
each party based upon not only the party's identity but also the
Role of the party in the transaction. One embodiment of the
invention uses roles such as "Confirm" for a party that is to
provide input to the inventive system, once contact has been
established therewith, for example to further authenticate his/her
identity and re-approve the transaction; "Notify" for a party that
is only to be made aware of the transaction by the inventive
system, and "Present" for a party with whom contact is not to be
established, but whose related data and parameters are to be
consulted and validated by the inventive system as part of the
computation and delivery of a result message to the RTE [1].
[0127] Once the incoming Transaction Message's contents are
validated, the full list of target parties and their roles is
defined, and all relevant name-value pairs that enable subsequent
processing are established, then a software-based object or other
data structure (the "Transaction Object") containing these data is
created in the CS's [2] volatile and/or nonvolatile memory or
storage. The Transaction Object is then queued for subsequent
processing by the Rules and Script Processing Layer [202] ("RSP")
of the CS (2).
[0128] The RSP [202], in addition to sharing the basic elements of
the CS [2] as described above, is comprised of programming and
database logic for the execution of both stored and
dynamically-defined Action Scripts, where such Action Scripts
define generalized, parameterized processes for communicating with
and/or to one or more parties. The basic functions and components
of such Scripts are shown and described in detail in FIG. 26. The
concept of fully user-programmable, adaptive, dynamic logic to
control both the processing of individual transactions and the
execution of the related communications with one or more of its
parties is an important innovation introduced in and enhancing the
value of the invention, by allowing the inventive system to perform
a variety of distinct actions and sequences of actions based on
each transaction's type, parties and roles, and prevailing
conditions and parameters, and on the real-time progress of the
transaction through the inventive system.
[0129] The RSP [202] draws on the queue of work created in the CS's
[2] memory or other storage by the Data Messaging Layer [201], each
work item being one Transaction Object comprised of 1) name-value
pairs describing the transaction, as manipulated by the Data
Messaging Layer [201] and available to scripts as Environment
Variables (see FIG. 26), 2) an associated Script, designated as
described below, and 3) an evolving set of pending and actual
communications link sessions and the results thereof, further
described below.
[0130] Transaction Objects may be drawn from this queue in
sequential order, unless there is an overlap among the identified
parties of two or more such Transaction Objects. In such a case,
the following logic is preferably applied: 1) If the parties' roles
are all, for example, "Notify" [per FIG. 6], the Transaction
Objects may be merged, such that multiple notifications of multiple
transactions may be sent to the same parties using the same
communications sessions. 2) If any of the parties' roles are, for
example, "Confirm", then the second Transaction Object is not drawn
from the queue by the RSP [202] until the RSP [202] has completely
finished working on any prior overlapping Transaction Object(s).
This gatekeeping logic creates a unique advantage by prohibiting
conflicting (and potentially confusing, or inherently
failure-prone) communications link attempts to the same party or
parties at the same time.
[0131] The Script associated with a given Transaction Object may
preferably be determined as follows. First, the Rule Set [FIG. 2,
23i] for the transaction, if identified in the incoming Transaction
Message, is found in the Rules database view [FIG. 5] using, for
example, an SQL query or stored (database) procedure. If it was not
so identified, a corresponding default Rule Set matching the
transaction type and party is found in the CS's [2] Profiles
database view [FIG. 6, 6e] using, for example, an SQL query or
stored (database) procedure. If the corresponding Rule Set returned
by the query is null, a System Default Rule Set may be used in its
place.
[0132] Once the Rule Set is known and associated with the
Transaction Object, its record in the Rule Set database view may be
used to provide the following information, which may be used to
control the further processing the transaction, per FIG. 5: [0133]
Message Template ID [5b], along with the Transaction Language [5d],
defines what message template (per FIG. 10) will be used to
generate the contents of the actual communications with the party
(or parties) for this transaction. This value becomes an
Environment Variable (see FIG. 26) for the transaction. [0134]
Message templates consist of free-form text with embedded field
substitution codes and file insertion codes, which may be of a form
such as "$xxx$", where `xxx` is the name of an Environment Variable
(see FIG. 26), $file://yyyyy$ where `yyyyy` is a filepath on the
Central System [2], and $=zzzz(xxx1, xxx2, . . . )$, where `zzzz`
is a script function name and `xxx1`, `xxx2`, etc. are Environment
Variables passed to the function identified by `zzzz`. In the
"file" case, the contents of said file are inserted in the message
template in place of the "$file:// . . . $" marker. In the other
two cases, the variable or function is evaluated and the results
thereof are inserted in place of the substitution marker. [0135] A
message template is defined by an ID and by a language, such as
"English". Therefore, a single message template may have multiple
instances across multiple languages, distinguished by the values in
the "Language" field from record to record. [0136] Message Template
Stylesheet URL [5c] alternatively or additionally allows a
web-based stylesheet, such as an XML-based (i.e., XSL) document, to
be retrieved and used to format the aforesaid message to the party
(or parties), via reference to a Universal Resource Locator (URL).
This provides the advantage of allowing the operator or user of the
RTE [1] to dynamically redefine the presentation of information to
the relevant parties merely by updating an accessible web site with
a new presentation format applicable to one or more of the
transactions said RTE [1] may originate. [0137] As such, this
aspect of the inventive system is an important innovation, by
providing its users with a programmable message content and
formatting mechanism that need not be maintained in or supplied to
the inventive system, but may instead be incorporated dynamically,
by reference, at the time the transaction is processed. [0138]
Transaction Language [5d] is used along with the Message Template
ID [5b] to define the message template. [0139] Transaction Currency
[5e] is used when financial amounts are referenced in the
communication to or with the party or parties. [0140] Confirming
Value Type [5f] defines what form and format of datum is required
as input from the party to successfully authenticate and verify the
transaction and the party's identity. It may be a value such as
"PIN" for a PIN code, or "CVV2," "CVC2," or "CID" for a credit card
confirmation code, for example. [0141] External Media Address
Reference Flag [5g], if True, indicates that an external database
call shall be made to a service provider [FIG. 1, 12, "Remote Data
Sources"] or other external data source which can provide
additional information about the party's communication address or
identity, such as the billing telephone address for the party's
home telephone number, for cross-referencing and/or logging
purposes and/or for later use in computing the result for the
party. [0142] Allowed Media [5h] encodes, such as in a text string
or binary value, the types of communications links and/or media
applicable to this type of transaction for this party. This media
list acts as a filter on the party's communication profile records
[FIG. 6], limiting the communication link alternatives for the
party to only those link and/or media which are coded for in the
Allowed Media [5h] field. For example, the party may have e-mail as
one communication preference, but for a certain transaction type,
the Allowed Media [5h] filter value keeps e-mail from being used to
authenticate and verify the party and his/her intentions for the
transaction, for example to avoid the time-delay and relatively low
level of security associated with e-mail-based communications,
while for other transaction types, e-mail is still used, in
accordance with the Profile. The RSA [202] insures that in no case
are fewer than one communication link alternative in force under
any circumstances, even if the use of that one alternative would
otherwise violate the Allowed Media [5h] filter. [0143] Script ID
[5i] defines which Action Script [FIG. 9 and FIG. 26] is to be
employed for the transaction. (The Script defines how the CS [2]
will interact with the party or parties hereafter.) [0144] Default
Communications Sequence Pattern ID [5j] identifies the default
communication strategy to be used when attempting to reach the
party or parties. This value may be overridden by any Communication
Sequence Pattern [FIG. 6, 6n] defined in the CS's [2] databases, or
in the Transaction Message, for any specific party or parties for
this transaction type.
[0145] Once the above data have been gathered and stored in the
system's memory or other storage along with the other transaction
information aggregated into the Transaction Object, the RSP [202]
executes the aforesaid Script. In general, Scripts preferably 1)
attempt to establish communication link sessions simultaneously
with all relevant parties associated with the transaction, and
where possible, 2) deliver messages to the parties over such
communication link sessions, 3) prompt for and accept input from
the party of parties defined as having, for example, "Confirm"
Roles [FIG. 6, 6k; FIG. 7, 7e], 4) compute an overall result
summarizing the outcomes of all such communications and
communication attempts, 5) optionally log the transaction,
communication attempt results, and said outcomes and overall
result, and 6) communicate the result back to the RTE [1].
[0146] An important advantage of the invention is the adaptive
logic represented by such Scripts, in lieu of a static process
logic mechanism that executes a single statically-defined sequence
of instructions in every case and under every condition.
[0147] In general, for each party, the preferred embodiment's RSP
[202] will perform the following standard actions under the control
of the Script [5i]. Note that communications to multiple patties
will occur simultaneously (unless directed otherwise by said
Script) via concurrently executing, asynchronous system processes
in the CS's [2] Communications Control Layer [203] ("CCL"). The
process flow for the preferred embodiment of the invention, with
the RSP [202] executing a Script, is diagrammed in FIG. 25, in
which the RSP [202] will perform in accordance with a method
comprising the steps of: [0148] 1. Perform an external database or
data service query or reference [B], as of, for example, a
telephone number billing address database, using relevant data
about the party as a key (for example, his/her telephone number),
to gather external data about the party for use in computing the
result for the party and the overall result message to the RTE [1],
provided the External Media Address Reference Flag [FIG. 5, 5g]
(see above) for the transaction's Rule Set is True [A]. [0149] 2.
Consult the party's Communication Profile record [FIG. 6, 6a-c,
6i-o] for this transaction type and account number (if applicable),
using an SQL query or stored (database) procedure, and then: [0150]
a. Group all the corresponding communication devices, addresses,
and media for the party by their Communications Sequence Group [61]
("CSG") number, if applicable; [0151] b. Where no CSG number is
assigned to a communication device, a distinct temporary CSG is
assigned by the RSP [202] to each such device; [0152] c. Order the
CSGs by the associated Communications Priority [6m] number; this
step defines the order in which the party's communication devices
will be tried, with the Group mechanism of step (a) collecting
multiple devices to be tried together simultaneously; [0153] d.
Identify i) the party's Role [6k] for this device, address, and
media type (noting that not all supported devices and media types
necessarily support two-way interactive communications), ii) the
expected Confirmation Value [6o] if any, for "Confirm"-type parties
(noting that this value may have been additionally or alternatively
supplied in the incoming Transaction Message from the RTE [1] and
the confirming value may be stored in this field if the CS [2] is
securely operated by the financial organization which supplied this
value for the party's account [6c], and may be omitted in other
cases, or at the financial organization's discretion. When omitted,
any Confirming Value [6o] must be supplied by the RTE [1] in the
Transaction Message received from the RTE [1]--ideally with
encryption applied), and iii) the Communications Sequence Pattern
ID [6n]. The above steps (a)-(d) are aggregated in FIG. 25 as
process box [C], "Select Party's next device Group (CSG)". [0154]
3. For each Communications Sequence Group [6i] for the party, in
ascending order of Communications Priority [6m], initiate
simultaneous, multithreaded communications sessions to all devices
within said CSG [61] via the Communications Control Layer [203]
("CCL") [FIG. 25, D]. The CCL [203] initiates such sessions via
commands it issues to the Communications Subsystems [FIG. 1,
212-218 ff.] A Communications Sequence Group [61] with more than
one communications device and address in it causes the CCL [203] to
attempt to reach a single party simultaneously on a plurality of
his/her devices and addresses. The first such contact attempt to
succeed [E] becomes the sole active communication session to the
party, and all other sessions are immediately, automatically
terminated [F]. This is accomplished through the CCL's [203]
monitoring and analyzing session-progress events [per FIG. 8, 8k:
"Generate Event on Connection Flag"] generated via the various
Communications Subsystems [FIG. 1, 211-218 ff.]. In practice, most
Communications Sequence Groups [61] will contain just one device
and addresses, and thus just one communication session at a time
will be attempted for each party. Once a communication session is
successfully initiated with a party on a given device and at a
given communication address (such as a telephone with a particular
telephone number) in a "Confirm" Role [FIG. 6, 6k; FIG. 7, 7e], as
per FIG. 25 [1], no further attempts to interact with that party in
its "Confirm" Role for the current transaction are preferably made.
However, further communications may preferably continue to occur in
a "Notify" role. This may be accomplished by the CCL [203] setting
a flag or semaphore (FIG. 25, 1] for the party (such as the
PartyConfirmed[n] Environment Variable per FIG. 26) once one
"Confirm" contact has occurred, such that further "Confirm" devices
are ignored by the CCL [203] for the current party in the current
transaction [FIG. 25, M]. This feature contributes a special
advantage of the invention, by allowing a given party to engage in
contact with the inventive system in multiple Roles for the same
transaction, such as, for example, a "Confirm" Role on his/her
mobile Instant Messaging device and a "Notify" Role to his/her
e-mail system. [0155] 4. Each communications device for the party
has an associated user-defined Communications Sequence Pattern
[FIG. 8, 8a] that is used to manage the attempts to reach and
establish a communication link session with the device; for each
such Pattern, consult Communication Sequence Pattern (8a] database
record, via SQL query or stored (database) procedure, to obtain the
following parameters, or the equivalent, in a preferred embodiment
of the inventive system: [0156] Interactivity Flag [8b], which
specifies whether input from the party is possible from said
device; [0157] Outbound Inbound [8c], which specifies whether the
communication link is to be initiated by the CCL [203] or by the
party communicating inbound to the CCL [203]; [0158] Attempt
Timeout Value [8d], which sets the time before an attempt is deemed
to have failed (for example, for a phonecall with multiple rings
and no answer); [0159] Sequence Timeout Value [8e], which sets the
total time before an entire Sequence is deemed to have failed if no
successful connection occurs; [0160] First Attempt Delay [8f] which
postpones the first attempt at communication link session by a
fixed amount of time (for example, to allow a party to switch
his/her line from data to voice mode on a dual-purpose
communication device); [0161] Smart Retry Flag [8g], which, if
True, instructs the CCL [203] to time subsequent communication
attempts based on the outcome of the prior attempt (for example,
retrying a phone number sooner if the last result was busy, vs.
ring-without-answer); [0162] Maximum Number of Attempts [8h], which
defines a total number of attempts allowed before conceding
failure; [0163] Attempts Spacing [8i], which defines the timing
between subsequent attempts, and alternatively or additionally,
between specific attempts in the Sequence; [0164] Action on Final
Failure [8j], which defines whether upon the ultimate failure of
the sequence, a new sequence should begin (e.g., a Sequence Pattern
in which the system waits for the party to call it), or not, and
[0165] Generate Event on Connection Flag [8k], which, if True,
instructs the communication process executing the connection
attempt to send an alert event to the CCL [203] upon success. This
event is used in conjunction with Communication Sequence Groups
[61] to identify which of a series of simultaneous communication
link attempts to a party's several devices has succeeded first, and
is thus to be continued, the rest being terminated. [0166] 5.
Dispatch these data, via the Transaction Object's Script, to the
CCL [203], which creates individual software processes and/or
threads of execution for each potential communication link session
based on the aforesaid parameters. (See FIG. 25, "Script Execution"
process block.) These processes record in the CS's [2] memory
and/or databases or other storage the results of all sessions and
session attempts for each party for each transaction for later
computation [L,R]. The design and processes of said communication
sessions is described hereafter.
[0167] Once each party's communication session a) occurs
successfully and, if in a "Confirm" Role, obtains the required
input from the contacted party [FIG. 1, 5f; FIG. 25, H,I], such as
a PIN, password, or CVV2/CVC2/CID value; b) occurs but fails to
gather such required input from the party [FIG. 25, J,K], or, c)
fails to occur after all attempt Schedule Patterns are exhausted
[FIG. 25, N,Q], the RSP [202] is notified by the CCL [203] that all
necessary sessions and contact attempts are complete [FIG. 25, S]
The RSP [202] computes a result message [T] back to the RTE [1],
said message being transmitted via the Data Messaging Layer [201],
preferably using the same format and protocol as the received
Transaction Message. Upon transmission of the result message, the
Transaction Object is removed from the CS's [2] work queues and
memory, and new Transaction Objects (if any) may then be
processed.
[0168] Note that in a large-scale embodiment, the inventive system
is likely to process a large volume of Transaction Messages and
Transaction Objects concurrently, via multithreaded processing and
load-balancing among multiple processors and subsystems, and its
design should not be construed as requiring serial processing of
Transaction Messages and Transaction Objects.
Communications Control Layer and Communications Subsystems
[0169] The Communications Control Layer [203] of the preferred
embodiment of the inventive system coordinates and manages the
activity of the Communications Subsystems. The CCL [203], in
addition to sharing the basic elements of the CS [2] as described
above, is comprised of software specific to the establishment and
management of simultaneous communications link sessions across a
plurality of media. Said software may be implemented using such
software frameworks and with such application development tools and
platforms as CallXML (an open-source mark-up language for creating
server-based interactive telecommunications applications) or the
Adaptive Communications Environment (an open-source software
framework and library for managing signaling, events, dynamic
reconfiguration of services, and concurrent process synchronization
for multithreaded real-time communications).
[0170] The Communications Subsystems are of three general types: 1)
telephony-related for voice and audio communications, 2) Internet-
and data-related for data and text messaging, and 3) specialty
data-network related, for certain other types of data transfer such
as EDI and SNA/RJE. The Communications Subsystems are each
comprised of hardware and software for transmitting and receiving
signals to and from a specific class of devices (terminals) over a
particular communications link or links or communications network
or networks using a specific protocol or family of protocols. Each
is further comprised of a collection of logical and physical ports,
or other equivalent interfaces, each capable of sustaining
concurrent communications with one, or more where applicable,
individual device(s) and/or terminal(s) across a corresponding
communications link or network. (Said devices and networks are
presumed to be external to the inventive system, but in other
embodiments need not be.)
[0171] A high-level representation of a subset of the
communications links and media supported by a preferred embodiment
of the inventive system is shown in FIG. 1. A complete, low-level
representation of the communications media, interfaces, links, and
potentially supported devices for each Communications Subsystem for
an embodiment of the inventive system is presented individually
from FIG. 11 to FIG. 24 inclusive.
[0172] The Communications Subsystems provide a layer of abstraction
to the CCL [203], which is then able to interact with the various
communication media and devices of the party or parties to a
transaction in terms of generic communication sessions.
[0173] The following tables relate the communications devices and
media and the networks which support them, per the aforesaid
Figures. The first table identifies the media explicitly shown in
FIG. 1.
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Profiled Communication Media, Related
Networks, and Devices per FIG. 1 Communications Medium [Interface,
Link] Associated Network Possible Device(s) Telephony [211, 511]
Public Switched Telephone Telephone, Key system, PBX Network [231]
with extentions, PBX with direct-dial, IVR, automated attendant
[611] Electronic mail [212, 512] Internet Protocol networks
Electronic mail software, e- (such as the Internet) [233], mail
appliance, mobile e-mail private data networks (such as device
(such as a PDA), e- frame relay networks), public mail capable cell
phone or data networks (such as the pager [612] MCI Mail network)
and services such America Online) [232] Instant Messaging [213,
513] Internet Protcol networks Instant messaging software, (such as
the Internet) [233] mobile IM device, IM-cable and IM-capable
services (such cell phone or pager [613] as America Online) [232]
Facsimile [214, 514] Public Switched Telephone Fax machine, fax
server, fax Network [231] or an IP fax modem, virtual fax inbox
service or network (such as by system [614] Easylink Services
Corp.) Paging [215, 515] Paging network (such as by Pager,
paging-capable cell SkyTel) [234] phone [216] Short Message
Wireless data/telephony Mobile text messaging device,
Service/Wireless Text network, PCS network [235] text-capable cell
phone, Messaging [216, 516] iMode phone [616] Wireless Telephony
[217, Wireless telephone network, Cellular telephone [617] 517] PCS
network [235]
[0174] The following table shows media, networks, and devices are
covered indirectly in FIG. 1 under [218+], [236+], and [625+], but
which are explicitly described in FIG. 18-FIG. 24, inclusive. (Note
that it is the intent of 1 [218+], [236+] and [625+] additionally
to define the ability of the inventive system to be expanded to
accommodate additional or alternative communications media,
networks, and/or devices over time as they become desirable and/or
available, and/or as implemented communication media, networks,
and/or devices cease to be available and/or desirable.)
TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Additional Profiled Communication Media,
Related Networks, and Devices per FIG. 18-FIG. 24 Communications
Medium [Interface, Link] Associated Network Possible Device(s)
Additional or alternative Additional or existing Additional or
existing devices media, as become networks as they come to as they
come to support said desirable/available [FIG. 1, support said
additional/alternative media 218+] additional/alternative media
[FIG. 1, 625+] [FIG. 1, 236+] IP Telephony [FIG. 18, 218, Public
and private Internet Telephone, Key system, PBX 518] Protocol
networks (such as the or IP PBX with extentions, Internet)
supporting IP PBX or IP PBX with direct- telephone standards such
as dial, IP telephone, IVR, H.323 [233], and the PSTN by automated
attendant [618] using an IP telephony gateway [231] Internet Data
Protocols Public and private Internet Web server, or browser-based
including HTTP/HTTPS using Protocol networks (such as the system or
device [619] HTML/XML [FIG. 19, 219, Internet) [233] 519] Wireless
Access Protocol Wirelss Internet Protcol WAP-capable mobile device
(WAP) [FIG. 20, 220, 520] networks [233] and wireless or cellular
phone [620] networks supporting Internet access through a wireless-
Internet gateway [235] Telex [FIG. 21, 221, 521] Telex network
[236] Telex terminal or Telex mailbox service [621] File Transfer
(FTP) [FIG. Internet Protocol networks FTP server [622] 22, 222,
522] (such as the Internet) [233], private data networks (such as
frame relay networks) and public data services (such as America
Online) [232] SNA/RJE [FIG. 23, 223, SNA network [237] or an RJE
capable system or device 523] SNA-tunneling or emulating (such as
an IBM S/390 data network [232] mainframe computer with IBM 3770
RJE terminal or equivalent) [623] EDI/EDIFACT/EDI-INT EDI
Value-Added-Network EDI capable server (such as [FIG. 24, 224, 524]
(such as the Sterling by Sterling Commerce, a unit Commerce VAN) or
an EDI- of SBC Corp.) capable IP network or service (such as by
Internet Commerce Corp.) [238]
[0175] The CCL [203] initiates one or more concurrent,
multithreaded processes which queue requests to obtain
communication ports from one or more of the Communications
Subsystems [FIG. 11-FIG. 24] and then direct the Communications
Subsystems in establishing communication with and/or to the party
or parties to the transaction according to the Script and
Environment Variables of the Transaction Object. The Script and
Environment Variables, based on the data obtained from the
Profiles, Groups, Rule Set and Communications Sequence Patterns
database views [FIG. 5-FIG. 8], identify the parties and their
communication devices for the given transaction, define a sequence
for the occurrence of communications with and/or to each applicable
party, and specify which communications links, networks, and
protocols/media to use at various points within said sequence.
[0176] The preferred embodiment of the inventive system provides
for three generalized sequences for contacting a party: 1)
attempting to reach each device associated with that party
sequentially, 2) attempting to reach each device associated with
that party in parallel, and 3) combinations thereof. Further, each
device may be tried several times in succession until contact is
established with it, as defined in its associated Communications
Sequence Pattern [FIG. 8]. The Environment Variables include
information for the CCL [203] and Communications Subsystems to use
for timing out on an individual attempt and on a sequence of
attempts. The CCL [203] coordinates these patterns of communication
attempts through to their logical conclusion.
[0177] The inventive system also provides, through a corresponding
Communications Sequence Pattern definition, a mechanism to allow a
party to initiate contact with the system within an allowed time
interval, using the Environment Variable "Inbound/Outbound" [FIG.
8, 8c] in conjunction with "Attempt Timeout Value" [8d] and
"Sequence Timeout Value" [8e]. For this to occur, the communication
address (such as a telephone number or Instant Messaging ID) of the
device used by the party must be universally and securely
detectable by the appropriate Communication Subsystem interface,
such as with Automatic Number Identification (ANI) service for
devices using the Public Switched Telephone Network [FIG. 11, 231]
by the Telephony Interface [211].
[0178] When attempting to establish contact with a party's device,
the appropriate Communications Subsystem executes a cycle of
attempts, the timing of which is defined by the values for the
corresponding Communications Sequence Pattern's fields, shown in
FIG. 8, specifically the values for First Attempt Delay [8f], Smart
Retry Flag [8g], Maximum Number of Attempts [8h], and Attempts
Spacing [8i]. The use of these party- and device-specific,
user-predefined parameters to guide the inventive system in its
interaction attempts with a party provides the invention with the
advantage of a high degree of flexibility and effectiveness in
getting through to a party with a minimum of difficulty. [0179]
First Attempt Delay [8f], if specified, provides for a user-defined
time to elapse prior to the first contact attempt, so that, for
example, the party may change a dual-use line from data mode to
telephone mode for the purpose of receiving a telephony-based
contact. [0180] Smart Retry Flag [8g], if True, indicates that the
Communications Sequence Pattern for the device shall be
self-modifying (under the control of the CCL [2031] based on the
outcome of each successive contact attempt. Particularly for
telephony-based communications, this mechanism allows the inventive
system to change the timing and quantity of future attempts based
on the condition of the device (or network) being reached, as
reported by such network to the respective Communications Subsystem
interface. For example, Instant Messaging services provide a status
indicator which may include values such as "Active", "Busy" or "Off
line"; telephony networks respond with, among others,
answer-supervision (i.e., signaling that the call has been
answered), busy signals, or repeated rings without answer. Smart
Retry provides, for example, for increasing the frequency and
number of attempts in "busy" cases, decreasing in "off line"/"ring
no answer" cases. [0181] Maximum Number of Attempts [8h] defines
the total number of attempts the inventive system should make to
reach a device before the respective Communication Sequence Pattern
is deemed exhausted. This value may be modified dynamically by the
CCL [203] if the Smart Retry Flag [8g] is set. [0182] Attempts
Spacing [8i] defines the time intervals between successive
attempts, either as a general value, or as specific values for each
attempt in the Sequence. This value may be modified dynamically by
the CCL [203] if the Smart Retry Flag [8g] is set.
[0183] As shown in FIG. 25, in the "Communication Session" process
block, an active communication session with a party's device is
comprised of the following generic cycle of functional execution of
elements of the preferred embodiment of the inventive system and
corresponding process steps:
[0184] For the first successful "Confirm" Role session and for all
"Notify" sessions, as such Roles [FIG. 6, 6k; FIG. 7, 7e] and
associated Scripts [FIG. 9, FIG. 26] may be defined in a given
embodiment of the invention, an associated message template, per
FIG. 10, is defined in the Environment Variables [FIG. 26:
"MessageTemplate[n]"] accessible to said Script. In a typical
embodiment of such a Script, as soon as a communication link
session is reported as open and active by the corresponding
Communications Subsystem, the Script execution process/thread
begins composing and transmitting the various segments of said
message template to the communication device [FIG. 25, G],
formatted according to the capabilities and limitations of the
communication device. For example, in a telephony communication
link session, the message may be reformulated by the use of a
text-to-speech processor [FIG. 11, 711a], and prerecorded audio may
be interpolated by the Telephony Interface [211] or related IVR
processor [711b], whereas for an Internet HTFP session using XML,
the message may be reformatted using a referenced XMI, stylesheet
(XLS), and text- or image-based components may be substituted for
audio components of the message.
[0185] Particularly in the case of communications sessions
requiring input from the reached party, the message may consist of
multiple segments that are composed and delivered to the party's
communication device serially by the appropriate Communications
Subsystem.
[0186] If an input is indeed required [FIG. 25, H], and the device
supports it (per the Communication Sequence Pattern [FIG. 8, 8b:
"Interactivity Flag"]), the executing Script process will
preferably prompt for and wait to receive input from the party. The
form of the input depends on the nature of the communication device
and medium; for telephony-class devices, it is typically and
preferably in the form of DTMF tones produced by touch-tone dialing
or, additionally or alternatively, via voice, requiring the use of
a voice recognition processor [FIG. 11, 711c]; while for Internet-
and data-type devices, it is typically and preferably through a
return message (such as HTML <FORM METHOD=''POST''>, e-mail
SMTP reply, Instant Messaging text reply); and, for a specialty
device or terminal, such as an SNA/RJE device, it is typically and
preferably through a specifically formatted data exchange
particular to the protocol being employed.
[0187] The Script may define whether the input must be validated
before proceeding, and if so, may give the party multiple attempts
to enter correct information before abandoning the attempt. Such
attempts at receiving input may further be governed by Timeout
parameters (see FIG. 26, "Transaction/Communication Session Object
Properties"), such that, when the indicated time has elapsed, the
attempt is abandoned [FIG. 25, J]. In an out-of-time case, or in
such case as a predefined number of input attempts is initiated
over the communication link session without successful validation,
the Script delivers a timeout message segment if so defined in the
message template [K].
[0188] If input was prompted for, a corresponding Environment
Variable flag is set (see FIG. 26: "PartyConfirmContact[n]") to
identify that a "Confirm" Role session has attempted to gain input
required from the party.
[0189] At the conclusion of any and all input-gathering and
delivery of message segments, the communication link session is
terminated (by the Communications Subsystem, and optionally by the
party as well if the party reacts more quickly than the
Communications Subsystem). The results may be stored [L] for use by
the system later on.
[0190] If the session was successfully initiated (whether or not
correct input was actually received), and was, for example, a
"Confirm" Role session, as may have been indicated through the use
of the aforesaid PartyConfirmContact[n] Environment Variable,
further attempts to contact the party in a "Confirm" Role (or
equivalent, based on the embodiment of the inventive system) are
preferably disabled for the current transaction.
[0191] For all non-"Confirm" devices, and if a "Confirm" Role
contact has not yet been made successfully on any "Confirm" Role
device, for example, the processes/threads executing the
Communication Sequence Patterns in regard to the corresponding
devices continue.
[0192] After the failure of an attempt, the attempt parameters and
corresponding failure data provided by the appropriate
Communication Subsystem are preferably logged in the system's
databases or other volatile or nonvolatile memory or storage and,
if there are further attempts allowed, per the effective Maximum
Number of Attempts setting [FIG. 8, 8h], the thread of execution
for the applicable Communication Sequence Pattern waits until the
next attempt should be made, per 1) the Attempts Spacing value [8i]
corresponding to the next attempt in the Sequence, and/or 2) the
Smart Retry setting [8g], as described above. This is shown in FIG.
25's "Wait per device's attempt schedule" process box [O].
[0193] If the attempt schedule is exhausted, the executing process
may initiate a new process with a new Communication Sequence
Pattern, if such additional Sequence is defined for use upon the
unsuccessful exhaustion of the current one [FIG. 8, 8j: "Action on
Final Failure].
[0194] This mechanism, an innovative advantage of the inventive
system, allows the chaining of Communication Sequence Patterns to
arbitrary lengths, executing until success occurs or the final
Sequence in the chain of Sequences fails. It is also possible
thereby (if only sometimes desirable) to set up an endless cycle of
communication attempts through self-referencing chains of
Sequences, such that the inventive system will attempt to establish
contact with a party indefinitely, until successful. This is
particularly useful in the case of a transaction which, by its
nature and that of its parties, indicates an emergency situation,
such as an authorization transaction (non-commercial in nature)
regarding the entry by some party to a restricted or secured area
or system, or an extremely urgent and critical commercial
transaction requiring immediate confirmation by a party not
otherwise directly engaged therein at the time.
[0195] It is further possible and desirable, under certain
conditions, to establish an inbound Communication Sequence Pattern
[FIG. 8, 8c], to be initiated by the party, as a follow-on Sequence
to an outbound Sequence. For example, a wireless text message may
be sent to the party's cellular telephone, which text message
includes a callback hyperlink to an embodiment of the inventive
system's Telephony Communications Subsystem Interface [FIG. 1,
211]. Simultaneously, an inbound Communication Sequence Pattern is
established which waits for contact from the party, similar to the
underlying contact mechanism described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,163
to Bezos. The party, by responding to the callback hyperlink in the
wireless text message, then interacts with the Telephony Interface
and is joined to the executing process which has been waiting for
his/her inbound contact.
[0196] The following Table 2 presents component technologies which
may be used by one skilled in the art to construct the
communications interfaces and links shown in FIG. 11-FIG. 24.
TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 Possible Components of Communication
Subsystems Embodiments Additional system FIG. Interface Example
resources Example 11 Telephony [211] Intel .RTM. Dialogic .RTM.
Text to speech Nuance DM/V1200-4E1 processor Communications, and
D/320-PCI [711a] Inc.'s Vocalizer voice cards, Intel .RTM. IVR
[711b] Intel .RTM. CT Media CT Media software Voice Persay Inc.'s
recognition Orpheus Speaker processor Verification [711c] Platform
12 E-mail [212] Sendmail Consortium's Sendmail e-mailing software
13 Instant Messaging Jabber, Inc.'s (PC-based and Jabber wirelsss)
[213] Communications Platform 14 Fax [214] Intel .RTM. Dialogic
.RTM. Text to fax Inso's Outside In DM/F300-E1 fax processor Server
cards, Intel .RTM. CT [714a] Media software 15 Paging [215]
Sendmail Consortium's Sendmail (for initiating SMTP- based
alphanumeric pages) 16 Wireless Text/SMS Simplewire, Inc.'s [216]
Java SMS middleware, or Nokia Corp.'s Multimedia Email Gateway (and
SMTP-to-SMS server) 17 Wireless Telephony As Telephony Text to
speech Nuance [217] above processor Communications, [711a] Inc.'s
Vocalizer IVR [711b] Intel .RTM. CT Media Voice Persay Inc.'s
recognition Orpheus Speaker processor Verification [711c] Platform
18 IP Telephony [218] Intel .RTM. Dialogic .RTM. Text to speech
Nuance DM/IP301-1E1 IP processor Communications, Link boards for
[711a] Inc.'s Vocalizer H.323 and CT IVR [711b] Intel .RTM. CT
Media Media software Voice Persay Inc.'s recognition Orpheus
Speaker processor Verification [711c] Platform 19 Web-based (HTTP,
IBM Websphere HTTPS, etc. using Application Server HTML, XML, etc.)
and HTTP Server; [219] optionally, IBM MQSeries Everyplace 20 WAP
[220] Nokia Corp.'s Activ Server 21 Telex [221] 22 FTP [222] IBM
MQSeries FTP SupportPac 23 SNA/RJE [223] IBM 377x In a non-IBM Sun
Microsystems, Emulator; an system, an Inc.'s SunLink inherent
function in ASCII- SNA 3770/RJE any IBM S/390-or EBCDIC software
Z-class system converter 24 EDI/EDIFACT/ Sterling EDI translator
Sterling EDI-INT [224] Commerce's [724a] Commerce's GENTRAN:Server
GENTRAN:Server and OFTP Plus
[0197] It is increasingly possible and practical for the physical
interfaces and ports, such as those described above, to be
substituted by Internet Protocol connections to service providers
and service bureaus which accept IP-based inputs (such as
SMTP-formatted e-mails) and translate and deliver such inputs to
other types of device, such as fax, telex, and mobile browser-based
devices. The inventive system, per its potential embodiment(s)
described herein, does not purport to specifically require any
particular interface type for the stated communication links or
communication media, nor to require that message conversion occur
within the inventive system, rather than in and by an external
service provider's system(s). The full scope and capability of the
inventive system and method are enumerated in the invention's
claims.
Message Templates
[0198] As shown in FIG. 10, message templates are preferably
comprised of free-form text with embedded field substitution codes
and file insertion codes, which may be of a form such as "$xxx$",
where `xxx` is the name of an Environment Variable (see FIG. 26),
$file:(/yyyyy$ where `yyyyy` is a filepath on the Central System
[2], or a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) accessible to the Central
System [2], and S=zzzz(xxx1, xxx2, . . . )$, where `zzzz` is a
script function name and `xxx1`, `xxx2`, etc. are Environment
Variables passed to the function identified by `zzzz`. In the
"file" case, the contents of said file are inserted in the message
template in place of the "$file:// . . . $" marker. In the other
two cases, the variable or function is evaluated and the results
thereof are inserted in place of the substitution marker.
[0199] The use of a URL to supply some or all message contents is a
powerful innovation, because it allows remote content and even
remote templates to be included dynamically and programmatically on
a transaction-by-transaction basis (that is, without requiring any
user-initiated changes or updates to the inventive system or its
databases' contents whatsoever).
[0200] A message template is defined by an ID and by a language
[10b], such as "English". Therefore, a single message template may
have multiple instances across multiple languages, distinguished by
the values in the "Language" field from record to record. A
corresponding currency name may also be associated for use with
financial content in the message template, as per FIG. 5 [5e].
[0201] In some circumstances, a stylesheet retrieved and referenced
by a Universal Resource Locator (URL) or Universal Resource
Identifier (UDI) may be substituted for a stored message template
or a message template passed to the central system [2] in the
incoming Transaction Message. This powerful innovation allows
mark-up methods of message content definition and formatting
definition to be applied remotely to the inventive system, on a
transaction-by-transaction basis, dynamically and programmatically
(that is, without requiring any user-initiated changes or updates
to the inventive system or its databases' contents whatsoever).
Rule, Profile, Script, Communication Sequence Pattern, and Message
Template Management
[0202] Prior to first use of the preferred embodiment of the
inventive system, at least one entry is required in each of its
various database views [FIG. 5-FIG. 8] (excluding the Group view),
representing a default Rule Set, Party Profile, Communication
Sequence Pattern, Action Script, and Message Template for at least
one type of transaction and at least one party from one RTE W. Such
data entry may be performed by an operator of the CS [2] through a
means such as a web-browser-based interface, as shown in FIG. 1
[25]: "User Web Client"), or by remotely loading values into the
database tables through a database loader utility, or by using a
programmatic interface for performing remote database updates.
Subsequent modifications may be performed in a like manner.
[0203] An authorized user may log into the inventive system and,
upon being granted access thereby, may view data and log records
related to his account and edit his/her Profile and select from
among predefined Communication Sequence Patterns. (If a superuser,
s/he may view and edit the accounts and Profiles, Rules Sets, and
Communication Sequence Patterns of others within his/her proscribed
range of access.)
[0204] In practice, parties having a potential interest in
transactions which may be processed by the inventive system will
tend to updated their own Profiles as may regard their preferred
communication devices. Sequences of contact thereon, preferred
language, and related Roles, for various transaction types which
the operator or other user of the inventive system may provide to
them, per the specific embodiment of the inventive system. The
operator or other user of the inventive system will tend to manage
and update all other information, particularly rule- and
message-oriented information.
[0205] Although the present invention has been described in
relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations
and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those
skilled in the art. Therefore, the present invention is not limited
by the specific disclosure herein.
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