US 8806638

Patent Overview: US8806638B1

Title: Systems and methods for protecting networks from infected computing devices

Patent number: US8806638B1
Application number: US12/965,075
Inventor: SivaShakthivel Mani
Original assignee: Symantec Corporation (later reassigned to CA, Inc. per the source listing; current assignee listed as CA Inc)
Priority/filing date: 2010-12-10
Publication (grant) date: 2014-08-12
Status listed: Active, with an adjusted expiration of 2033-01-15

Purpose: The patent addresses the problem that malware-infected computers threaten other machines on a network, since an infection can spread via email or other electronic communication. Conventional protection systems may simply quarantine a device by disabling its network card, cutting off all connectivity. The disclosed approach instead seeks to quarantine the device while still letting it reach network nodes that can help neutralize the malware.

Plain-language scope (from the supplied excerpt): A computing system is given a first level of access to a network and is managed by an endpoint management system that controls that access. The system determines that the computing device is infected with malware and cannot autonomously neutralize it—for example, anti-malware software runs, fails, and a flag is set that the endpoint management system reads. In response, the endpoint management system modifies a network access control policy to reduce the device to a second, more limited level of access. This may be implemented by transmitting a firewall policy that denies all incoming and outgoing connections except to the endpoint management system (e.g., permitting downloads of updated anti-malware definitions and health reporting), blocks application access to system files, and blocks local removable devices and local or remote printers/scanners. Enforcement continues until the malware is neutralized. A corresponding system includes an access-control module and a determining module.

Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/[US8806638](/patent/US8806638)/en

What the excerpt does not establish: It provides no claims text, no detailed description, no drawings, and no prior-art references. It does not establish claim scope or validity, and per instructions it does not cover litigation, ownership transfers, or prior art. Details such as dependent claims, embodiments, and figures are not available in the excerpt.