Inventors:
Raymond E. Ozzie - Manchester MA, US
George P. Moromisato - Cambridge MA, US
Nimisha Asthagiri - Pasadena CA, US
Wei Dai - St. Bellevue WA, US
Alexei Evdokimov - Swampscott MA, US
Mark Cote - Amesbury MA, US
Adam Weiss - Somerville MA, US
Assignee:
Microsoft Corporation - Redmond WA
International Classification:
H04L 29/00, H04L 29/02, H04L 29/06, H04L 29/12
US Classification:
726 1, 726 2, 726 3, 726 4, 726 8, 726 21, 709201, 709203, 709205, 709217, 709218, 709219, 709223, 709224, 709225, 709245, 713168, 713169
Abstract:
Proper user-to-data associations are maintained in shared spaces created in a peer-to-peer collaborative system by means of a simplified and minimal user interface that permits users to easily authenticate other members of a shared space. In particular, support is provided for automatically building authenticated relationships even if users do not take the time to authenticate other users. When a user enters a shared space and views the contacts in that space, the display names of each contact are accompanied by distinctive icons that identify that authentication status of that contact. A mechanism is provided for resolving conflicts between contacts with the same display names to prevent confusion and contact “spoofing. ” Security policies can be established to provide a uniform approach to authentication. These policies can be set by a user or, alternatively, the policies can be set by an administrator.