Patent ID: 7610391

Claim:
A method of managing access by a client device to user-specific information maintained in a memory in connection with a plurality of services offered by a web-services provider and used by a user of said plurality of services, the method comprising: maintaining in the memory a plurality of items of user-specific information in more than one of the plurality of services; obtaining from the client device a plurality of client access requests directed to accessing the plurality of items of user-specific information maintained in the more than one of the plurality of services, said plurality of access requests being translated from a task request that requires the client device to access the plurality of items of user-specific information in order to complete the task request; in response to obtaining the plurality of client access requests, determining a purpose for which the client device desires to access one of the plurality of items of user-specific information, said determining including determining a purpose specifying why the client device seeks to access one of the plurality of items of user-specific information and determining how the client device intends to use one of the plurality of items of user-specific information; selectively obtaining consent from a party having authority to grant consent to the client device to access the one of the plurality of items of user-specific information for which the client device lacked consent to access based on determining why the client device desires to access one of the plurality of items of user-specific information and based on determining how the client device desires to access one of the plurality of items of user-specific information; and in response to selectively obtaining consent for the client device to access the one of the plurality of items of user-specific information based on the determined purpose, filling the plurality of client access requests if the client device has permission to access each of the plurality of items of user-specific information in the more than one of the plurality of services.