Abstract: Employment role data, trust data, and special permissions data, associated with a party is automatically obtained and/or monitored. The employment role data associated with the party, the trust data associated with the party, and the special permissions data associated with the party, is then analyzed to determine a set of allowed access permissions data to be associated with the party, the set of allowed access permissions data providing the party access to one or more resources. It is then either recommended that the set of allowed access permissions data be provided to the party, or the set of allowed access permissions data is automatically provided to the party.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments relate to a tax-information assembly technique, which extracts tax information and associated context information from income-tax documents, where these income-tax documents are associated with an income-tax agency, and some of the income-tax documents include the same tax information in different document formats. During this technique, semantic and structural heuristics are used to identify tax phrases in the extracted tax information. Moreover, additional tax phrases in the extracted tax information are identified using a statistical identification technique. Next, relationships between the tax phrases and the additional tax phrases are determined, and the context information is used to consolidate the tax phrases and the additional tax phrases into a tax-information data structure.

Abstract: A secure secrets proxy is instantiated in a first computing environment and includes secure secrets proxy authentication data for identifying itself to a secrets distribution management system in a second computing environment as a trusted virtual asset to receive and cache secrets data in a secure secrets cache outside the second computing environment. A virtual asset requests one or more secrets, triggering a process to authenticate the requesting virtual asset, gathering authorized secrets data representing secrets the virtual asset is allowed to have. The secure secrets proxy is provided data representing the requested secrets and stores that secrets data in the secure secrets cache of the proxy.

Abstract: Systems, computer-implemented methods and computer program products for directing a consumer to a source offering for sale a specific item previously purchased by the consumer. Electronic receipt data generated for a consumer purchase of a specifically identified item is generated by a merchant transaction processing device, and an electronic representation of a receipt is generated based on that data. The electronic representation identifies the specific item and includes an input element or button that can be selected, clicked on, executed or activated by a consumer to allow the consumer to be directed to a website of a merchant who offers the same item for sale and from which the consumer can buy the same item again.

Abstract: A computing device acquires a video of a tax document utilizing a video camera such as a webcam. The video is analyzed to detect a first motion of the tax document, such as sufficient shaking or movement of the tax document, satisfying first pre-determined criteria that results in the computing device being prompted or requested by the user to take an image of the tax document. After the first pre-determined criteria has been satisfied, the user is instructed to hold the tax document steady. Subsequent video frames are analyzed to detect a second motion or the tax document being sufficiently still or steady, in response to which an image of the tax document is acquired and processed to extract data of the tax document from the acquired image and populate corresponding fields of the electronic tax return.

Abstract: Controlling access to customer data. A customer service agent is provided with indirect access to customer data through an intermediate computer such that it is not necessary for the customer service agent to ask questions about the received customer data or receive such data from the customer directly. Secure data access can be used to validate customers and streamline customer interaction and discussions with customer service agents since many questions a customer service agent may ask a customer directly during a discussion are already answered and known to the customer service agent before the customer speaks with the customer service agent. The customer can select which merchants receive customer data, and customer data can be entered manually or acquired by processing images of customer documents or cards such as personal identification or account cards containing information to be used during customer service discussions.

Abstract: Methods, systems and computer program products for processing video of tax documents and associated verbal input provided by a user and populating at least a portion of an electronic tax return with processing results. A video/voice processor associated with a tax return preparation application executed by a computing apparatus such as mobile communication device receives a video of a tax document and voice data. The document type is determined using video and/or voice data. Voice to text conversion can be used to determine what a user said about the document to determine the document type. Tax data determined from the video is used to populate a field of the electronic tax return. A front facing camera may be used to take a video of a tax document while a rear facing camera is used to detect a facial expression, which may result in certain dialogue with the user.

Abstract: User satisfaction with answers that may be provided through a question and answer based customer support system is predicted by pre-submission analysis of the attributes of the question itself before the answer is generated. Questions being entered into the question and answer based customer support system that are not likely to satisfy either an asking user submitting a question, or subsequent searching users accessing the resulting question and answer pair, are labeled improperly formatted questions, or low quality format questions. The question data representing improperly formatted questions is then either filtered out, avoided completely, or, proactively corrected by providing the user with a set of personalized question format transformation instructions to transform improperly formatted questions into a re-phrased/re-formatted properly formatted questions having a question format predicted to provide a significantly higher probability of user satisfaction with any answer eventually provided.

Abstract: A method and system gathers user tax data for a user, from one or more sources of tax information, to prepare the user's tax return within a tax return preparation system, in one embodiment. The method and system populate a database with relationships between existing user metadata and one or more sources of tax information, in one embodiment. The method and system analyze new user metadata for the user to identify which of the one or more sources of tax information are relevant to the user, in one embodiment. The method and system retrieve new user tax data from the identified ones of the one or more sources of tax information that are relevant to the new user metadata of the user, in one embodiment. The method and system populate the user's tax return with the new user data, within the tax return preparation system, in one embodiment.

Abstract: A method and system for providing a tax return preparation system with an analytics modules includes matching a user to one or more common user profiles. The analytics module generates a plurality of common profiles by applying an alternating least squares algorithm to a large matrix including data from a large number of previously prepared tax returns. The analytics module matches the user to one or more of the common profiles by comparing data received from the user with the common profiles. The analytics module customizes a tax return preparation process of the user based on the one or more profiles to which the user is matched.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments provide a system that facilitates use of a native application for a portable electronic device. During operation, the system obtains one or more custom views for a user interface of the native application. The one or more custom views may include a set of user-interface components, a layout of the user-interface components, and/or a configuration of a user-interface component from the set of user-interface components. Next, the system enables use of the one or more custom views with the native application independently of a platform of the native application.

Abstract: A secure secrets proxy is instantiated in a first computing environment and includes secure secrets proxy authentication data for identifying itself to a secrets distribution management system in a second computing environment as a trusted virtual asset to receive and cache secrets data in a secure secrets cache outside the second computing environment. The secure secrets proxy requests one or more secrets to be cached and is then provided data representing the requested secrets in the secure secrets cache. The secure secrets proxy then receives secrets application request data from a second virtual asset instantiated in the first computing environment requesting one or more secrets be applied to second virtual asset data. The secure secrets proxy then obtains the required secrets from the secure secrets cache and coordinates the application of the secrets to the second virtual asset data.

Abstract: A method for displaying personalization functionality includes sending information for a user to a server, receiving personalization data from the server with number(s) of entities similar to the user and a personalization action, displaying a number of entities similar to the user, displaying another number of entities similar to the user, displaying the personalization action, and performing the personalization action.

Abstract: Virtual asset creation data used to create a virtual asset is generated through a virtual asset creation system that includes primary virtual asset data. Secondary authentication data is also generated. When the virtual asset is launched, the secondary authentication data is passed to the virtual asset from the virtual asset creation system. The primary virtual asset data and secondary authentication data from the virtual asset creation system and the virtual asset, and/or one or more other sources associated with the virtual asset, are then sent to a virtual asset validation system through different communication channels. If the primary virtual asset data and secondary authentication data from the two sources match, or have a defined threshold level of similarity, the status of the virtual asset is transformed to the status of validated virtual asset eligible to receive sensitive data.

Abstract: The disclosed embodiments relate to electronic devices with optical head-mounted displays (OHMDs). Each electronic device includes an OHMD that provides a heads-up display (HUD) and one or more sensors. The electronic device also includes a pairing apparatus that uses the OHMD to generate a first signal that is detectable by the other electronic device. The pairing apparatus also uses the OHMD to detect a second signal from a second OHMD at the other electronic device. Next, the pairing apparatus generates a shared secret with the second electronic device using data associated with the first and second signals and uses the shared secret to establish a secure connection with the second electronic device.

Abstract: An analysis trigger monitoring system is provided in one or more virtual assets. One or more analysis trigger parameters, including security threat patterns, are defined and analysis trigger data is generated. The one or more analysis trigger monitoring systems are used to monitor at least a portion of the message traffic sent to, or sent from, the one or more virtual assets to detect any message including one or more of the one or more analysis trigger parameters. Any detected message is identified as a potential security threat and is assigned a threat score, which is provided to the virtual asset. A copy of at least a portion of any detected message including one or more of the one or more analysis trigger parameters is then transferred to one or more analysis systems for further analysis using a second communication channel.

Abstract: Secrets data representing one or more secrets required to access associated resources is provided along with secrets distribution policy data representing one or more secrets distribution factors used to control the distribution of the secrets. When a requesting virtual asset submits secrets request data, virtual asset profile data associated with the requesting virtual asset is obtained. The requesting virtual asset profile data is then analyzed using at least one of the secrets distribution factors to authenticate the requesting virtual asset. The requesting virtual asset profile data is then analyzed using one or more of secrets distribution factors to determine what secrets the requesting virtual asset legitimately needs. Authorized secrets data for the requesting virtual asset representing one or more authorized secrets is then generated. The requesting virtual asset is then provided access to the authorized secrets data.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system for dynamically forming the content of a message to a user based on a perceived emotion state of the user. During operation, the system determines a geo-location of a user. Next, the system analyzes a news feed associated with the geo-location of the user to determine a perceived emotion state of the user. The system then forms a content for a message to the user based on the perceived emotional state of the user. Finally, the system delivers the message.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that provides data associated with a financial instrument through real-time virtual animation anchored to the financial instrument in a video stream. During operation, the system receives at a computer system a video stream, wherein the video stream includes an image of a financial instrument, and wherein a financial instrument is a physical object that is associated with at least one of a financial account and financial data. Next, the system identifies the financial instrument in the video stream. The system then retrieves data associated with the financial instrument from a data source. Next, the system creates an animation which displays the data. Once the animation is created, the system anchors the animation to the financial instrument in the video stream. Finally, the system displays the video stream which includes the animation to a user.