| 摘要 |
A system and method for maintaining privacy of a user's telephone number is disclosed. The method provides a means by which a user A may prefer to exchange her contact number with another user B. The contact number is encrypted by user A and passed on to the mobile phone of user B. In the phonebook of user B, the contact number of user A is stored in encrypted format. Further, when user B initiates a call to user A, the encrypted number is sent to the network. At the MSC of user B, the number is decrypted and a call is established with user A. When user A calls user B, user A's number is encrypted at user B's MSC. This is transmitted to user B, where it is compared with the already encrypted number in the phonebook. The matching name of user A is then displayed. |
| 主权项 |
1. A system for providing number privacy in a communication network, said system comprising at least one mobile switching center and at least two users with mobile phones, wherein said mobiles phones belong to the same service provider or different service providers, further said system comprising:
registering, by a first mobile phone, with a service provider for a number privacy service; sending, by a first mobile phone, a name and an encrypted number with a privacy feature indication to a second mobile phone through a connectivity means, whereby the actual number of the first mobile phone is not available to the second mobile phone; initiating a call from said second mobile phone to said first mobile phone using said name and transmitting said encrypted number with said privacy feature indication to said communication network; initiating a call from said first mobile phone to said second mobile phone, by transmitting a privacy feature indication to said communication network, to enable said communication network to encrypt the number of the first mobile phone, before transmitting to said second mobile phone, whereby the actual number of the first mobile phone is not made available to the second mobile phone; and wherein when a user of said second mobile phone passes said encrypted number of said first mobile phone to another user, said encrypted number of said first mobile phone is transferred, but not associated with said privacy feature indication, to a mobile phone of said another user, whereby a call initiated by said another user to the first mobile phone using the encrypted number is not established since said encrypted number of said first mobile phone is not associated with said privacy feature indication. |
