Patent Document ID: 8347381
Application ID: 12414005

Base Claim:
1. A computer-implemented method for detecting a malicious social networking profile, the method comprising: detecting, by a computer system, access of a social networking profile on a social networking website; selecting, by the computer system, based on a type of the social networking profile, at least one fingerprint from a plurality of fingerprints, each of the plurality of fingerprints specifying characteristics for evaluating one or more types of social networking profiles, the selected fingerprint comprising a legitimate fingerprint that specifies characteristics of legitimate social networking profiles of the type; evaluating, by the computer system, whether the social networking profile includes characteristics specified by the selected fingerprint; determining, by the computer system, whether the social networking profile is suspicious based on the evaluation; responsive to a determination that the social networking profile is suspicious, identifying, by the computer system, a malicious fingerprint, the malicious fingerprint specifying characteristics of malicious social networking profiles; evaluating, by the computer system, whether the social networking profile includes the characteristics specified by the malicious fingerprint; determining, by the computer system, whether the social networking profile is malicious based on the evaluation of whether the social networking profile includes the characteristics specified by the malicious fingerprint; and responsive to determining that the social networking profile is malicious, reporting, by the computer system, the social networking profile as being malicious.

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Claim 16:
16. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining whether the social networking profile is suspicious further comprises: determining whether the social networking profile has at least a specified number of legitimate characteristics specified by the legitimate fingerprint; and responsive to the social networking profile not having the specified number of legitimate characteristics, determining that the social networking profile is suspicious.