WO2021119780A1

WO2021119780A1 - Method of collecting and aggregating numerical data for benchmarking

Info

Publication number: WO2021119780A1
Application number: PCT/BR2020/050530
Authority: WO
Inventors: Roland Veras SALDANHA JUNIOR
Original assignee: Saldanha Junior Roland Veras
Priority date: 2019-12-20
Filing date: 2020-12-10
Publication date: 2021-06-24
Also published as: BR102019027548A2

Abstract

The present invention patent relates to a method for collecting and aggregating numerical data for benchmarking applied to the collection of numerical data involving groups of companies or reporting agents, for obtaining aggregated information for all of the reporting agents in order to benchmark, which is intended to enable the aggregation of private and confidential numerical information as sums, averages or indices without having to disclose individual confidential information, providing the advantages of an efficient search that eliminates the risk of information disclosure, preventing disclosure of group associations, removing difficulties in finding reliable companies or consultants for collecting and aggregating data, ensuring the precision of the data for reporting agents, streamlining the collection, organization and aggregation of data, and ensuring the reliability of the aggregated data.

Description

"PROCESS OF COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF NUMERICAL DATA FOR FIXING REFERENCES"

This patent of invention refers to a process of collection and aggregation of numerical data for fixing references, applied to the collection of numerical data involving groups of companies or informing agents, providing for the collection of aggregated information for the set of informants with the purpose of setting references (benchmarking), objective dialogue with public bodies or entities, as well as with society in general, through the publication, if desired, of the referred references, for example, in the comparison of indices of a certain business segment involving sensitive data, which aims to allow the aggregation into sums, averages or indexes of private and confidential numerical information without the need for any exposure of the individual open confidential data (decrypted) of different informants, bringing advantages of effective search for the elimination of risks of exposure of private, managerial or sensitive information to others, private data outside its owner's exclusive control environment is not known to third parties, elimination of exposure of trade associations, unions and prosecution groups or investigations of cartel practices elimination of difficulties in finding trustworthy consultants or companies for the collection and aggregation of individual private data, accuracy of data by informants, agility in carrying out data collection, organization and aggregation, and reliability of aggregated data.

As you are aware of the technical means linked to the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data involving groups of companies or informing agents that are carried out by public or private research entities, through the distribution and collection of questionnaires and spreadsheets or census collection, there are consultants independents and associations or unions or groups of companies or individuals that can perform data collection and aggregation services, but there are no known solutions in which those responsible for the services do not have direct contact with open individual data, knowing private data before aggregating. them.

Searching the Brazilian and international patent databases, we found the following revelations of numerical data collection and aggregation processes involving groups of companies or informing agents:

Brazilian patent PI 9710694-1 “Process and apparatus for data processing”. The invention relates to a method and apparatus for processing data to be protected. Data is stored in the form of encrypted data element values in records in a first database, each data element value being bound to a corresponding data element type. In a second database, a data element protection catalog is stored, containing for each individual data element type one or more protection attributes establishing processing rules for data element values, which in the first database. data are linked to the individual data element type. In each user-initiated measure aimed at processing a data element data in the first database, a mandatory call is initially sent to the data element protection catalog to collect the attributes/protection attribute associated with the element types of corresponding data. User processing of the given data element value is controlled obligatorily in accordance with the collected attributes/protection attribute.

This patent application discloses a method of protecting data in encrypted form in records where the data element values are stored in a first database and the data element type in a second database, unlike the present method. patent that protects individual data pre-encrypted by informants, never known by system operators, which aggregates information without decrypting individual information, but allowing to know the open values of a certain variable in sums or averages.

US Patent US2006036708 "Method and System for Collecting Information from Computer Systems Based on a Trusted Relationship". A method and system is provided for recovering data from devices in a manner that seeks to preserve privacy and ensure the integrity of the recovered data. A recovery system is implemented in a network of devices that communicate with each other over a secure communication link. Each device is directly connected to one or more "friendly" devices that it trusts. The recovery system works by forwarding a data request from a friendly device to another friendly device. Each friendly device can optionally add data to the request until all requested data is added. The request with the retrieved data is returned to the device that initiated the request.

This patent application discloses a data recovery method that seeks to preserve privacy and ensure the integrity of data recovered using a secure communication link, unlike the method in this patent that protects the individual, never decrypted, data that generate the average of a given variable aggregated among several informants.

Japanese patent JP2018170741 “Information processor, information processing system and information processing method”. It provides an information processor, an information processing system and an information processing method capable of collecting, in a short period of time, data including values of the statistical object to be hidden from other people and the statistical driver. SOLUTION: A forward route generation part is configured to generate a forward route, and an initial list generation part is configured to generate a data list (initial list) storing random values. The forwarding route generation part is configured to notify the forwarding destination to multiple statistical object people (customers), and each statistical object person can add their own data values to the data list and make a request to forward the list of data in the forwarding route.

This patent application discloses a method of hiding data from other people and the statistical driver by storing random values, unlike the method in the present patent which protects individual data that averages a given variable.

The disadvantages, limitations and inconveniences of current processes are as follows:

1) As it always involves someone's access to private data before aggregation, there are risks of exposing private, managerial or sensitive information to others since with the interference of third parties in the aggregation such contingencies are unlikely, making information that should be vulnerable secretive;

2) Exposure of private data outside its owner's exclusive control environment, a fact that cannot be solved by the simple aggregation automation, since sensitive data known by third parties is potentially data that may no longer be private;

3) Vulnerability of trade associations, unions and groups of companies that try to obtain aggregated or common average data by conventional means are very exposed to accusations or investigations of cartel practices, using common data to control Market shares, prices charged or production levels , sales and idleness. There are several cases, in Brazil and in other jurisdictions, in which such class entities are convicted of cartel practices. If such entities depend on information from their member base to defend their interests with public entities or provide information to society, taking on directly or through external consultants their collection is an inconvenient task with high competitive exposure;

4) Difficulties in finding trustworthy consultants or companies for the collection and aggregation of individual private data; and

5) Inaccuracies in the provision of data by informants, difficult to measure when the collection is made by third parties who know and directly manipulate the private data.

"PROCESS OF COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF NUMERICAL DATA FOR FIXING REFERENCES", object of this patent of invention was developed to overcome the disadvantages, inconveniences and limitations of current processes of collection and aggregation of numerical data involving groups of companies or informing agents as it presents a solution that allows the aggregation of private and confidential numerical information into sums, averages or indexes without the need for any exposure of individual open (decrypted) data of different informants, bringing advantages of effective search to eliminate the risks of exposure of private, managerial or sensitive information to others, private data outside the exclusive control environment of its owner are not known to third parties, elimination of exposure of trade associations, unions and groups of accusations or investigations of cartel practices elimination of difficulties in finding reliable consultants or companies for the collection and aggregation of individual private data, accuracy of data by informants, speed in realization of data collection, organization and aggregation, and reliability of aggregated data.

In addition, the process is extremely agile and simple to implement, all definitions of the data to be organized occur by consensus of the informants, without the need to open any individual data and the options for internal or external validation, if in that the informant's trusted external auditors and current process drivers can ensure the quality of the entries. Such external auditors, in this case, can be chosen from the referential list by the informants, not needing to have any relationship with the conductors of the current process, that is, it is, in this case, a mere and quick external accounting audit.

The present patent uses an algorithm that allows for encryption made by the informant, ensuring the secrecy of information that should not be made public. The use of a redundant protection mechanism guarantees and enforces the unassailability of sensitive data. The use of measurement and validation method of data provided by informants, reliability and guarantees more accurate results. The use of billing methods to expedite the delivery of information so as not to compromise the end of the service. The use of a contractual method encourages the offer or collaboration of the supply/production of the aggregated data.

The technical problems presented by the current state of the art, and that this patent has solved, are as follows:

I. The fear of exposing managerial information or private data to third parties or competitors, a possible contingency whenever third parties know and manipulate proprietary data;

II. The risks of competition compliance (antitrust), since the sharing of private data between competitors can facilitate or facilitate collusion or cartel practices;

III. The risks of a fiscal or regulatory nature, of making public individual data that may diverge from other records presented to public or private entities;

IV. The unreliability of the data presented individually, since it is not simple to check or audit the individual data of third parties without serious risk of leakage, for example, a measurement unit error or deliberate insertion of false data or for competitively illegal use;

V. The costs and delay in obtaining aggregated data, dependent on the preparation and execution of multiple terms of confidentiality and the identification of aggregating agents with reliability accepted by all informants;

Through the process of data collection and aggregation the first three problems I. II. and III., are jointly overcome, it being understood that the private and proprietary data of each informant never leaves their exclusive control or are opened “extra walls”. In fact, what each informant offers to the pool is a set of characters unintelligible to third parties, encrypted before being sent with a proven key that is generated and stored by the informant, unknown to third parties. If a competitor were to gain access to this 128-Bit encrypted series, it would take years of intense effort to break the series using brute force, which gives great security to the data.

To control the reliability of item (IV) of the information presented by the different informants, the invention provides for the possibility of verification by a trusted third party of each informant or external auditors or conductors of the current process, trusted by the informants and data collection, as additional constraints already incorporated into the solution and adjusted before the start of collection through verification by check or double check.

To solve the technical problems presented in item (V), the structuring of a data collection project takes place very quickly, if the desired data planning stages are overcome and the pool of informants who, by consensus and voluntarily, wish to participate is identified. After obtaining the aggregated data, its property becomes the condominium of the informants who, as joint owners, decide the limits of its use or publication, so the individual data are protected without the need for confidentiality agreements of each of the participants.

For a better understanding of this patent, we have attached the following figures:

FIGURE 1., which shows the block diagram of the flow of operations and interconnections with the stages of the process considering the collection with the person in charge and with certification, the object of this present document;

FIGURE 2., which shows the block diagram of the flow of operations and interconnections with the stages of the process considering the option of collection with responsible and without certification, object of the present;

FIGURE 3., which shows the block diagram of the flow of operations and interconnections with the stages of the process considering the option of collection without a responsible person and with certification, the object of this present document;

FIGURE 4., which shows the block diagram of the flow of operations and interconnections with the stages of the process considering the option of collection without responsible and without certification, object of the present document;

According to Figure 1, the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for setting references, collection with those responsible and with certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains with the status: inactive;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

Dd) Selection of certifying users;

E) The project has status: pending;

F) Project analysis: Period of analysis of the series and project questions and their terms of acceptance;

G) After the analysis and approval of the terms, the project has the active status;

H) Informing users must select certifying users and assign them to the designated series;

I) Informant users select responsible users who will respond to the designated series;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

Ja) Internal Project Keys: The administrator generates an internal project security key;

Jb) Master key: The master user generates a private key, and all responses are encrypted with the public key that was generated;

Jbl) Certification key: The certifying users generate the keys for certification; and the encryption key allows the user to decrypt series responses to perform certification;

Jc) Personal Encryption Key: Users generate their personal keys, which allow them to continue answering their series of questions at any time during the term of the project;

K) Creation of keys;

L) After creating the keys, the series of questions and answers begins; and the selected guardians respond according to the grades to which they were assigned;

La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Series responses: The series answered are encrypted with the public key of the master, with the public key of the respective Certifier and with the personal public key of the respective responsible; and all answers are stored and saved in the cryptographed database;

lb) Answers to questions;

M) The series and questions were answered;

N) After the series of questions and answers are completed and encrypted, the certifying users are required to validate the encrypted responses;

Na) The certifier informs its key in the system, decrypts and validates the series;

nal) Verification of response. If correct, go to step (O), otherwise return to (L);

O) After the series of questions and answers are completed and encrypted, the administrator user asks the master user to complete the project;

P) Finalize project: To complete the project, the master user informs his private key;

Pa) With the master user's private key, the system aggregates and generates an average of all encrypted series; the project status changes to completed, thus preventing new responses from being added or modified;

Q) The project has completed status; and

R) Analysis of results: the administrator visualizes the graphs and exports the resulting sum information for each respective series.

According to Figure 2, the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for setting references, in the option collection with persons in charge and without certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains in inactive status;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

E) The project has status: pending;

G) After the analysis and approval of the terms, the project starts to have the active status;

I) Reporting users must select responsible users who will respond to the designated series;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

Ja) Project internal keys: the administrator generates an internal project security key; Jb) Master key: The master user generates a private key, and all responses are encrypted with the public key that was generated;

Jc) Personal Encryption Key: Users generate their personal keys, which allow them to continue answering their series of questions at any time during the project term;

K) Creation of keys;

La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Answers to series: The series answered are encrypted with the public key of the master and the personal public key of the respective responsible; and all responses are stored and saved in the encrypted database;

lb) Answers to questions;

M) The series and questions have been answered;

O) After the series of questions and answers answered, the administrator user asks the master user to complete the project;

Pa) With the master user's private key the system aggregates and generates a sum of all encrypted series; and the project status changes to completed, thus preventing new responses from being added or modified;

Q) The project has completed status; and

According to Figure 3, the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for setting references, in the option collection without persons responsible and with certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains in inactive status;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

Dd) Selection of certifying users;

E) The project has a pending status;

H) Reporting users must select certifying users and assign them to the designated series;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

Ja) Internal Project Keys: The administrator receives an internal project security key;

Jb) Master key: The master user generates a private key, and all responses are encrypted with the public key that has been generated;

Jbl) Certification key: The certifying users receive the keys for certification; and the encryption key allows the user to decrypt series responses to perform certification;

Jc) Personal Encryption Key: Users receive their personal keys, which allow them to continue answering their series of questions at any time during the project term;

K) Creation of keys;

L) After creating the keys, the series of questions and answers begins; and the selected informants answer the grades to which they were assigned;

La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Serial answers: The answered series are encrypted with the public key of the master, with the public key of the respective certifier and with the personal public key of the respective informer; and all answers are stored and saved in the cryptographed database;

lb) Answers to questions;

M) The series and questions have been answered;

N) After the series of questions and answers is completed and encrypted, certifying users are required to validate the encrypted responses;

nal) Verification of the answer. If correct, go to step (O), otherwise return to (L);

O) After the series of questions and answers is completed and encrypted, the administrator user asks the master user to complete the project;

Pa) With the master user's private key the system aggregates and generates an average of all encrypted series; and the project status changes to completed, thus preventing new responses from being added or modified;

Q) The project has completed status; and

R) Analysis of results: the administrator views the graphs and exports the resulting average information for each respective series.

According to Figure 4, the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for setting references, in the option collection without persons responsible and without certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains with the status: inactive;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

E) The project has status: pending;

F) Project analysis: period of analysis of the series and project questions and their terms of acceptance; G) After the analysis and approval of the terms, the project has the status: active;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

Ja) Project internal keys: the administrator receives an internal project security key;

Jb) Master key: The master user receives a private key, and all responses are encrypted with the public key that was generated;

K) Creation of keys;

L) After creating the keys, the series of questions and answers begins. Selected informants answer questions and grades to which they were assigned;

La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Serial Answers: The answered series are encrypted with the public key of the master and the personal public key of the respective informant; and all responses are stored and saved in the encrypted database;

lb) Answers to questions; M) The series and questions have been answered;

Q) The project has completed status; and

R) Analysis of results: the administrator visualizes the graphs and exports the resulting average information for each respective series.

Claims

1. "PROCESS OF COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF NUMERICAL DATA FOR FIXING REFERENCES", characterized by the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains with the status: inactive;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

Dd) Selection of certifying users;

E) The project has status: pending;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

K) Creation of keys;

La) Responses to groups;

lb) Answers to questions;

M) The series and questions were answered;

Na) The certifier informs its key in the system, decrypts and validates the series; nal) Verification of the answer; If correct, go to step (O), otherwise return to (L);

Q) The project has completed status; and

2. "PROCESS OF COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF NUMERICAL DATA FOR FIXING REFERENCES", according to claim 1, characterized in that the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for fixing references, in the option collection with persons in charge and without certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains in inactive status;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

E) The project has status: pending;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

Ja) Project internal keys: the administrator generates an internal project security key;

K) Creation of keys;

La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Answers to series: The series answered are encrypted with the public key of the master and the personal public key of the respective responsible; and all answers are stored and saved in the cryptographed database;

lb) Answers to questions;

M) The series and questions have been answered; O) After the series of questions and answers answered, the administrator user asks the master user to complete the project;

Q) The project has completed status; and

3. "PROCESS OF COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF NUMERICAL DATA FOR FIXING REFERENCES", according to claim 1, characterized in that the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for fixing references, in the option collection without responsible and with certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Be) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains in inactive status;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

De) Selection of informing users;

Dd) Selection of certifying users;

E) The project has a pending status;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

K) Creation of keys;

La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Serial answers: The answered series are encrypted with the public key of the master, with the public key of the respective certifier and with the personal public key of the respective informer; and all answers are stored and saved. in the cryptographic database written;

lb) Answers to questions;

M) The series and questions have been answered;

nal) Verification of the answer; If correct, go to step (O), otherwise return to (L);

Q) The project has completed status; and

4. "PROCESS OF COLLECTION AND AGGREGATION OF NUMERICAL DATA FOR FIXING REFERENCES", according to claim 1, characterized in that the process of collecting and aggregating numerical data for fixing references, in the option collection without responsible and without certification, takes place in the following sequence:

A) The administrator starts creating the project;

B) Impute the project information;

Ba) Groups;

Bal) Series;

Bb) Questions;

Bc) Term of acceptance;

C) After creation, the project remains with the status: inactive;

D) The administrator makes the selection of participating users;

Da) Selection of master user;

Db) Definition of the response period;

Dc) Selection of informing users;

E) The project has status: pending;

G) After the analysis and approval of the terms, the project has the status: active;

J) The creation of cryptographic keys begins;

K) Creation of keys;

L) After the creation of the keys, the series of questions and answers begins, the selected informants answer questions and series to which they were assigned; La) Responses to groups;

Lai) Serial Answers: The answered series are encrypted with the public key of the master and the personal public key of the respective informant; and all answers are stored and saved in the cryptographed database;

lb) Answers to questions; M) The series and questions have been answered;

Q) The project has completed status; and