Spam avenger
First Claim
1. A method for filtering SPAM, comprising:
- receiving a message associated with a sender;
determining when the sender is an approved sender by determining when the sender is included in an inclusion list for a user, and when, delivering the message to the user;
otherwise, handling the message.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method and system for filtering spam is disclosed. The present invention is directed at filtering spam. Generally, whenever a message is first received from an unapproved sender, a confirmation request email is sent to the sender'"'"'s email address requesting the sender to confirm its existence and identity. Spammers typically don'"'"'t receive, and can'"'"'t handle reply emails. Therefore, until the unapproved sender replies to the confirmation request email, electronic messages received by the unapproved sender are treated as spam. An inclusion list of senders is maintained by the spam filter that includes a list of approved senders. Electronic messages from approved senders are not treated as spam, and are immediately delivered to the user. Generally, a database of valid source addresses for a user is maintained either on the user'"'"'s computing device or on a mail server, depending upon the specific application.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method for filtering SPAM, comprising:
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receiving a message associated with a sender;
determining when the sender is an approved sender by determining when the sender is included in an inclusion list for a user, and when, delivering the message to the user;
otherwise, handling the message. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A computer readable medium, having computer-executable instructions for filtering spam, comprising:
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receiving a message associated with a sender;
checking an inclusion list for the sender;
determining when the sender is an approved sender; and
when, delivering the message to the user;
otherwise, handling the message to determine if the message is spam. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19)
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16. A system for filtering spam, comprising:
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a network interface unit arranged to receive a message from a sender on a network;
a storage device for storing data;
an operating system; and
a program configured to perform the following functionality;
checking an inclusion list for the sender;
determining when the sender is an approved sender; and
when, delivering the message to the user;
otherwise, handling the message to determine if the message is spam.
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20. A modulated data signal having computer instructions encoded thereon, comprising:
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a means for receiving a message associated with a sender;
a means for sending a confirmation request message to an unapproved sender;
a means for determining when the sender is an approved sender; and
a means for delivering the message to a user who is an approved sender.
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Specification