Patent ID: 8224622

Claim:
A computer-implemented distribution-independent method for iteratively detecting outliers in streamed data comprising the data sequence X w , being sequentially assigned to adaptive bins having expanding range, the method comprising the steps: reading each item x of X w ; assigning each item x to a bin having a range that comprises item x; for every N'th read item, wherein N is a predetermined value selected as a function of available memory, merging all bins with overlapping or adjoining ranges; assessing a bin for insider preclusion; extracting outlier information when X w has been processed; and delivering output; wherein the step of assigning comprises the steps of: matching x against existing bins' range and, if there is a match, incrementing a bin weight counter C of the matching bin, wherein: if x lies within a predefined margin |M| from an expanding bound of the bin to which it has been assigned, the expanding bound is expanded to x+M; and, if there is no match, a new bin is created, having a fix bound=x and an expanding bound=x+M, and an associated bin weight counter C is set to one.