Relationship and security in online social and professional networks and communities

摘要

A method is provided for evolving a defined online existing relationship between a first member and a second member, the online existing relationship defined by a plurality of existing relationship features for use in managing network interaction on a communications network between the first member and the second member. The method comprising: receiving a new online relationship having new relationship features such that the new features are different from the existing relationship features, the new relationship features being characteristic of the new relationship; aggregating the existing relationship features and the new relationship features as aggregate relationship features a combination of the existing relationship features and the new relationship features in order to define an aggregate relationship; storing the aggregate relationship features in a storage as relationship data; and accessing the relationship data in order to determine whether a selected network interaction from one of the members is permitted.