Method and software for precluding unsolicited email messages

• US 20040122847A1
• Filed: 12/20/2002
• Published: 06/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: John B. Rodgers
• Original Assignee: John B. Rodgers
• Inventors: Rodgers, John B.
• Application Number:
  US10/324,909
• Publication Number:
  US 20040122847A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/102
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking

Abstract

A method and associated computer software product for minimizing the receipt of unsolicited email messages. The method comprises the steps of receiving an email message from a sender, identifying the email message as comprising an unsolicited email message, and generating at least one reply email message, wherein the reply email message comprises a “bounce back” email message, to, in turn, facilitate an identification of the email address to which the unsolicited email was sent as being an invalid email address.

Claims

1. A computer program product for minimizing the receipt of unsolicited email messages comprising:

a computer data storage device; and

computer program instructions, recorded on the computer data storage device, executable by a computer processor, for performing the steps of;

receiving an email message from a sender;

identifying the email message as comprising an unsolicited email message; and

generating at least one reply email message, wherein the reply email message comprises a “

bounce back”

email message, to, in turn, facilitate an identification of the email address to which the unsolicited email was sent as being an invalid email address.

2. The computer program product of claim 1 wherein the step of identifying comprises the step of requiring user identification of the email message as comprising an unsolicited email message.

3. The computer program product of claim 2 wherein the step of requiring further comprises the step of adding the sender to a database of senders of unsolicited email messages.

4. The computer program product of claim 3 wherein the step of requiring further comprises the step of requiring user identification only if the sender is not one of the senders of unsolicited email messages identified in the database of senders of unsolicited email messages.

5. The computer program product of claim 1 wherein the step of identifying comprises the steps of:

comparing the sender of the email message with a database of senders of unsolicited email; and

determining if the sender of the email message corresponds to one of the senders on the database of senders of unsolicited email.

6. The computer program product of claim 5 wherein the database used in the step of comparing is maintained at a second computing device.

7. The computer program product of claim 1 wherein the step of generating comprises the step of generating a plurality of “

bounce back”

email messages.

8. The computer program product of claim 1 wherein the computer program instruction comprises a plug-in to an email receiving software product.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of identifying comprises the step of requiring user identification of the email message as comprising an unsolicited email message.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the step of requiring further comprises the step of adding the sender to a database of senders of unsolicited email messages.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the step of requiring further comprises the step of requiring user identification only if the sender is not one of the senders of unsolicited email messages identified in the database of senders of unsolicited email messages.

9. A method for minimizing the receipt of unsolicited email messages comprising the steps of:

receiving an email message from a sender;

identifying the email message as comprising an unsolicited email message; and

generating at least one reply email message, wherein the reply email message comprises a “

bounce back”

email message, to, in turn, facilitate an identification of the email address to which the unsolicited email was sent as being an invalid email address.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of identifying comprises the steps of:

comparing the sender of the email message with a database of senders of unsolicited email; and

determining if the sender of the email message corresponds to one of the senders on the database of senders of unsolicited email.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the database used in the step of comparing is maintained at a second computing device.

15. The method of claim 9 wherein the step of generating comprises the step of generating a plurality of “

bounce back”

email messages.