Method and system for verifying the authenticity of goods over an internet

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and method for authenticating a good and determining if the good is in the seller's possession. It relies on a web-based authentication service that requires the seller to provide photos of key features specific to the item, along with an identification number, specific to the item that must be present in each photo. The present invention applies to goods sold either in person, in a retail store, or over the internet.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for authenticating goods, comprising:
 receiving, at an authentication web server via the internet, a request from a seller of an object to authenticate the object, the authentication web server comprising one or more hardware processors, the request comprising one or more photographs of the object, each photograph showing one or more features of the object, one or more of the photographs further showing an identification number identifying the seller;   accessing, by the authentication web server, a set of images stored by the authentication web server, each image of the set of images showing one or more features of an authentic object;   presenting the received photographs and the accessed set of images by, for each of one or more of the features of the object:
 presenting a received photograph showing the feature of the object in a first interface portion; and 
 presenting an image of the set of images showing the feature of the object in a second interface portion adjacent to the first interface portion; 
   in response to presenting the received photographs and the accessed set of images, determining, by the authentication web server, if the object is authentic; and   in response to determining that the good is authentic, providing, by the authentication web server to the seller, an indication that the object is authentic.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the authentication web server comprises a database storing photographs of an authentic object previously received from one or more other sellers of the object, and wherein the accessed set of images comprises one or more of the stored photographs of the authentic object. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the stored photographs are categorized by object feature, and wherein accessing the set of images comprises querying the database for stored photographs categorized by features corresponding to the one or more features shown by the received photographs. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the stored photographs are categorized by one or more of object brand, serial number, and style number, and wherein accessing the set of images comprises querying the database using one or more of an object brand of the object, a serial number of the object, and a style number of the object. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising:
 in response to determining that the good is authentic, storing the received photographs in the database.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 accessing, by the authentication web server, a second set of images stored by the authentication web server, each image of the second set of images showing one or more features of a counterfeit object; and   presenting the received photographs and the accessed second set of images by, for each of one or more of the features of the object:
 presenting a received photograph showing the feature of the object in the first interface portion; and 
 presenting an image of the second set of images showing the feature of the object in the second interface portion adjacent to the first interface portion; 
   wherein determining if the object is authentic is further in response to presenting the received photographs and the accessed second set of images.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the authentication web server comprises a database storing photographs of a counterfeit object previously received from one or more other sellers of the object, and wherein the accessed second set of images comprises one or more of the stored photographs of the counterfeit object. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising:
 in response to determining that the good is not authentic, storing the received photographs in the database.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining if the object is authentic comprises applying machine learning to the presented received photographs and the presented accessed set of images to determine if the object is authentic. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining if the object is authentic comprises receiving an indication that the object is authentic from a user of the authentication web server. 
     
     
         11 . A system for authenticating goods, comprising:
 an authentication web server comprising one or more processors and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable instructions configured to, when executed by the processor, perform steps comprising:
 receiving, via the internet, a request from a seller of an object to authenticate the object, the request comprising one or more photographs of the object, each photograph showing one or more features of the object, one or more of the photographs further showing an identification number identifying the seller; 
 accessing a set of images, each image of the set of images showing one or more features of an authentic object; 
 presenting the received photographs and the accessed set of images by, for each of one or more of the features of the object:
 presenting a received photograph showing the feature of the object in a first interface portion; and 
 presenting an image of the set of images showing the feature of the object in a second interface portion adjacent to the first interface portion; 
 
 in response to presenting the received photographs and the accessed set of images, determining if the object is authentic; and 
 in response to determining that the good is authentic, providing an indication that the object is authentic. 
   
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 a database storing photographs of an authentic object previously received from one or more other sellers of the object, wherein the accessed set of images comprises one or more of the stored photographs of the authentic object.   
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the stored photographs are categorized by object feature, and wherein accessing the set of images comprises querying the database for stored photographs categorized by features corresponding to the one or more features shown by the received photographs. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the stored photographs are categorized by one or more of object brand, serial number, and style number, and wherein accessing the set of images comprises querying the database using one or more of an object brand of the object, a serial number of the object, and a style number of the object. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 12 , wherein the instructions are configured to perform further steps comprising:
 in response to determining that the good is authentic, storing the received photographs in the database.   
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the instructions are configured to perform further steps comprising:
 accessing a second set of images stored by the authentication web server, each image of the second set of images showing one or more features of a counterfeit object; and   presenting the received photographs and the accessed second set of images by, for each of one or more of the features of the object:
 presenting a received photograph showing the feature of the object in the first interface portion; and 
 presenting an image of the second set of images showing the feature of the object in the second interface portion adjacent to the first interface portion; 
   wherein determining if the object is authentic is further in response to presenting the received photographs and the accessed second set of images.   
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 a database storing photographs of a counterfeit object previously received from one or more other sellers of the object, wherein the accessed second set of images comprises one or more of the stored photographs of the counterfeit object.   
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 17 , wherein the instructions are configured to perform further steps comprising:
 in response to determining that the good is not authentic, storing the received photographs in the database.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein determining if the object is authentic comprises applying machine learning to the presented received photographs and the presented accessed set of images to determine if the object is authentic. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein determining if the object is authentic comprises receiving an indication that the object is authentic from a user of the authentication web server.