Patent ID: 9515889
Filing Date: 2016-12-06
CPC Classification: H04L

Claim Text:
1. A method for determining a derived geographic location of a target Internet host, the method including: identifying plural landmark Internet hosts communicatively coupled with each other and with the target Internet host by a packet-switched network; identifying a geographic area of interest that includes the landmark Internet hosts; determining the landmark Internet hosts by searching for one or more entities having the landmark Internet hosts and geographic locations located within the area of interest; verifying that one or more of an Internet Protocol (IP) address or a domain name of a website or an email exchange server for each of the landmark Internet hosts is associated with one or more computers disposed at the landmark geographic location of the landmark Internet host; sending first probe packets to the target Internet host and to each of the landmark Internet hosts from plural vantage points; measuring first network latencies of the first probe packets transmitted to the target Internet host and to each of the landmark Internet hosts along different network pathways in the network; calculating relative distances between the target Internet host and one or more of the landmark Internet hosts based on the first network latencies; comparing the relative distances; determining the landmark Internet host that has a smallest relative distance from the target Internet host; obtaining a geographic location of the landmark Internet host that has the smallest relative distance from the target Internet host; and wherein measuring the first network latencies includes: