Patent ID: 7840542

Claim:
A method of controlling access to semantic web statements, comprising the steps of: providing a set of semantic web statements in a defined format, and storing said set of statements in one or more first tables, the first tables including at least one subject, at least one object, at least one URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) within the first tables; constructing a set of access control lists in said defined format, and storing said set of lists in one or more second tables wherein said access control lists are linked to reified web statements; connecting the second tables to the first tables via a set of third tables storing the uniform resource identifier, wherein the first tables, the second tables and the third tables are connected through the URI, the URI for performing mandatory reification of said semantic web statements, said mandatory reification expressing in said third tables characteristic connections between the subject in the first tables and the object in the first tables, said characteristic connections represented by sentences; using the second tables to enforce access rules to said semantic web statements; filtering out semantic web statements that a user does not have permission to read according to said access control lists, wherein the filtering is performed by adding a condition to each relational query sent to a relational database; and returning errors when users attempt to make changes to said semantic web statements that said users do not have permission to change according to said access control lists, using a pre-existing storage subsystem implementing a query mechanism for any one of querying, inserting, updating or deletion of said semantic web statements, wherein the step of using said second tables includes a step of extending said query mechanism to use said access control lists to filter out statements from queries that a user has no privilege to read, wherein a program causes a computer system to perform said providing, said constructing, said connecting, said using the second tables, said filtering, said returning, and said using the pre-existing storage subsystem.