Patent attributes
A method and apparatus for deleting resources are described. In one embodiment, the method comprises: detecting, by a network commerce system, a deletion request in a first message sent over a network as an electronic communication to delete a first resource; identifying one or more additional resources that have a hierarchical relationship to the first resource, including identifying one or more child resources related the first resource, the one or more child resources being in a parent-child relationship with the first resource as the parent; causing a module of the network commerce system to perform a delete action with respect to the first resource, where the delete action deletes the first resource and causes the one or more child resources to be deleted in the future and to appear deleted when receiving access requests prior to deletion of the one or more child resources; detecting, by the network commerce system, an access request in a second message sent over the network as an electronic communication to access one child resource of the one or more child resources after deletion of the first resource but prior to deletion of the one child resource; determining, in response to the access request, if the first resource has been deleted; and denying access to the one child resource if the first resource is determined to have been deleted.
