CATEGORIZING ELECTRONIC MESSAGES BASED ON TRUST BETWEEN ELECTRONIC MESSAGING ENTITIES
First Claim
1. In a messaging server that is network connectable to one or more other messaging servers and a plurality of messaging clients, the messaging server including an information manager for collecting electronic message statistical data associated with electronic messages and storing the electronic message statistical data in an activity store, the messaging server also including a trust list indicating levels of trust between messaging entities, a method for categorizing an electronic message based on a determined level of trust between a sending entity and a recipient entity, the method comprising:
- an act of accessing an electronic message, the electronic message including electronic message data that was sent from the sending entity to the recipient entity;
an act of identifying a sending messaging address from the accessed electronic message, the sending messaging address corresponding to the sending entity;
an act of calculating a reliability index for the sending messaging address based at least in part on trust list information in the trust list, the trust list information indicating a level of trust between the sending entity and the recipient entity determined at least in part based on previously established trust relationships between any one or more of the sending entity and the recipient entity, the sending entity and the messaging server or the recipient entity and the messaging server such that messaging entities that have not previously exchanged messages can do so with some level of trust; and
an act of categorizing the accessed electronic message based at least in part on the calculated reliability index.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The principles of the present invention provide for categorizing electronic messages based on trust between electronic messaging entities. Messaging servers maintain trust lists indicating levels of trust between electronic messaging entities. Trust lists can be generated from existing trust information, such as, for example, address book entries. Messaging servers also maintain activity stores that indicate messaging activity between messaging entities. Based on information in a trust list and, when appropriate, information in an activity store, a messaging server can categorize an accessed electronic message, such as, for example, as unwanted and/or unsolicited. Messaging servers can securely exchange trust list information to increase the possibility of identifying a level of trust between messaging entities, even between messaging entities that have not previously exchanged electronic messages. Exchanged trust list information increases the possibility that a messaging server will be able to appropriately categorize an accessed electronic message.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. In a messaging server that is network connectable to one or more other messaging servers and a plurality of messaging clients, the messaging server including an information manager for collecting electronic message statistical data associated with electronic messages and storing the electronic message statistical data in an activity store, the messaging server also including a trust list indicating levels of trust between messaging entities, a method for categorizing an electronic message based on a determined level of trust between a sending entity and a recipient entity, the method comprising:
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an act of accessing an electronic message, the electronic message including electronic message data that was sent from the sending entity to the recipient entity;
an act of identifying a sending messaging address from the accessed electronic message, the sending messaging address corresponding to the sending entity;
an act of calculating a reliability index for the sending messaging address based at least in part on trust list information in the trust list, the trust list information indicating a level of trust between the sending entity and the recipient entity determined at least in part based on previously established trust relationships between any one or more of the sending entity and the recipient entity, the sending entity and the messaging server or the recipient entity and the messaging server such that messaging entities that have not previously exchanged messages can do so with some level of trust; and
an act of categorizing the accessed electronic message based at least in part on the calculated reliability index. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15)
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11. In a requesting messaging server that is network connectable to one or more other messaging servers, the requesting messaging server including an information manager for collecting electronic message statistical data associated with electronic messages and storing the electronic message statistical data in an activity store, the electronic messaging server also including a trust list indicating a determined levels of trust between messaging entities, a method for securely receiving trust information from a providing messaging server from among the one or more other messaging servers, the method comprising:
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an act of accessing a received messaging address, the received messaging address corresponding to an entity that accesses electronic messages at one of the one or more other messaging servers;
an act of generating a received address hash value from the received messaging address;
a step for securely exchanging messaging addresses with the providing messaging server so as to reduce the likelihood of revealing relationships between messaging entities were the messaging addresses to be intercepted;
an act of decrypting at least one encrypted remote address hash value with a corresponding private key to reveal a corresponding at least one decrypted remote address hash value; and
an act of assimilating the at least one decrypted remote address hash value in the trusted list, the level of trust in the trusted list determined at least in part based on previously established trust relationships between any one or more of the messaging server and a sending entity, the messaging server and a recipient entity or the recipient entity and the sending entity such that messaging entities that have not previously exchanged messages can do so with some level of trust. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
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12. A local messaging server with one or more computer-readable media having stored thereon a trust list entry data structure for representing the degree of separation between a remote messaging entity and a local messaging entity, the trust list entry data structure including a determined level of trust between the remote messaging entity and the local messaging entity, the data structure comprising the following:
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a remote address hash field representing a remote address hash value that identifies a remote messaging address of an remote messaging entity that can send electronic messages to the local messaging server;
a local address hash field representing a local address hash value that identifies a local messaging address of a local messaging entity that accesses electronic messages at the local messaging server, including electronic messages sent from remote messaging address identified in the remote address hash field; and
a separation field representing the degrees of separation between the local messaging address identified in the local address hash field and the remote messaging address identified in the remote address hash field and representing the determined level of trust determined at least in part based on previously established trust relationships between any one or more of the local messaging server and the remote messaging entity, the local messaging server and the local messaging entity or the remote messaging entity and the local messaging entity such that messaging entities that have not previously exchanged messages can do so with some level of trust. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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Specification