Patent ID: 6950824

Claim:
A virtual data labeling system operative on an Internet communications channel between a client server and a data repository, said labeling system cooperating with a label processor for discriminating communications channel traffic, comprising: a policy manager subsystem for storing policy rules, said policy manager subsystem including; a rules loader for inputting metadata defining data categories and corresponding rules into said policy manager subsystem as explicit rules; and a default manager for establishing implicit rules applying to data categories for which a corresponding rule does not appear in said policy manager subsystem; a front-end subsystem for receiving a search request from a requester at the client server, said front-end subsystem receiving at least some of said policy rules from the policy manager subsystem and generating a modified search request; a back-end subsystem interposed between the front end subsystem and the data repository for reformatting said modified search request to generate an enhanced search request, said back-end subsystem forwarding the enhanced search request to the data repository and receiving the requested data from said data repository as retrieved data, said back-end subsystem forwarding said retrieved data to said front-end subsystem; and a labeling engine subsystem, coupled to said front-end subsystem, for labeling a communication header of said retrieved data; said front end subsystem transferring the labeled retrieved data through said label processor to the requester.