Patent ID: 8800030

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for generating an individualized time-to-live (TTL) for a reputation score of a file, comprising: receiving, at a security system, a request from a client system, the request comprising an identifier of a file identified by the client system; generating a reputation score of the file based on reputation information of the file received from a plurality of client systems, the reputation score representing an assessment of a trustworthiness of the file; determining a confidence score for the reputation score based on the reputation information received from the plurality of client systems, the confidence score measuring a likelihood of the reputation score reflecting actual trustworthiness of the file, wherein determining the confidence score comprises at least one of: determining an age of the file, wherein the confidence score for a reputation score associated with an old file is higher than the confidence score for a reputation score associated with a young file; and determining a prevalence of the file among client systems, wherein the confidence score for a reputation score associated with a prevalent file is higher than the confidence score for a reputation score associated with a less prevalent file; computing, by the security system, a TTL for the reputation score based on the reputation information received from the plurality of client systems and the confidence score, the TTL describing a validity period for the reputation score, wherein a validity period described by a TTL for a reputation score associated with a high confidence score is longer than a validity period described by a TTL for a reputation score associated with a low confidence score; and transmitting the reputation score and the TTL to the client system in response to the request.