Electronic Data Integrity Checking and Validation

• US 20080141372A1
• Filed: 12/12/2006
• Published: 06/12/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Privacy Networks, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Privacy Networks, Inc.
• Inventors: Thorson, William Paul, Massey, David Todd
• Application Number:
  US11/609,791
• Publication Number:
  US 20080141372A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/23
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0442 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply asymmetric encryption, i.e. different keys for encryption and decryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for public-key encryption H04L9/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/123 received data contents, e.g. message integrity
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/145 the attack involving the propagation of malware through the network, e.g. viruses, trojans or worms

Abstract

An integrated electronic data communications system enforces a data integrity policy to validate the electronic data (e.g., determine whether the electronic data is a corporate asset or an unwanted threat). Upon validation, data is archived in real time in a searchable repository, encrypted/decrypted automatically, and forwarded to a mobile device, if appropriate. Example electronic data that may be communicated through such a system may include without limitation email, VOIP data, FTP data, Web traffic, data communicated through a corporation'"'"'s Virtual Private Network (VPN), etc.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining a security identifier based on a received message;

selecting a data integrity policy from a plurality of data integrity policies based on the security identifier;

determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy;

passing the received message to quarantine if the received message is not validated in the operation of determining whether the received message is validated.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the operation of determining a security identifier comprises:

determining the security identifier based on a destination address of the received message.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the operation of determining a security identifier comprises:

determining the security identifier based on a source address of the received message.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the data integrity policy associates the received message with a public key used to encrypt the received message for an intended recipient of the received message.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the data integrity policy associates the received message with a private key used to decrypt the received message for an intended recipient of the received message.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

decrypting the received message prior to the operation of determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

encrypting the received message after the operation of determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

recording the validated received message in a searchable archive after the operation of determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the received message is received in an encrypted form and further comprising:

decrypting the received message prior to validating the received message;

indexing the decrypted validated received message for a search index of the searchable archive, wherein the recording operation records the encrypted received message in the searchable archive.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising:

searching the search index of the searchable archive, based on a search condition, to identify the encrypted validated received message satisfying the search condition.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

forwarding the received message to a remote communications device in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

allowing a user to access the received message in the searchable archive if an access list of the user includes an entry associated with the security identifier of the received message.

13. A tangible computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a computer process, the computer process comprising:

selecting a data integrity policy from a plurality of data integrity policies based on a security identifier associated with a received message;

determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy;

passing the received message to quarantine if the received message is not validated in the determining operation.

14. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the determining operation comprises:

determining the security identifier based on a destination address of the received message.

15. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the determining operation comprises:

determining the security identifier based on a source address of the received message.

16. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the data integrity policy associates the received message with a public key used to encrypt the received message for an intended recipient of the received message.

17. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the data integrity policy associates the received message with a private key used to decrypt the received message for an intended recipient of the received message.

18. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the computer process further comprises:

decrypting the received message prior to the operation of determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

19. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the computer process further comprises:

encrypting the received message after the operation of determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

20. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the computer process further comprises:

recording the validated received message in a searchable archive after the operation of determining whether the received message is validated in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

21. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the received message is received in an encrypted form and the computer process further comprises:

decrypting the received message prior to validating the received message;

indexing the decrypted validated received message for a search index of the searchable archive, wherein the recording operation records the encrypted received message in the searchable archive.

22. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 21, wherein the computer process further comprises:

searching the search index of the searchable archive, based on a search condition, to identify the encrypted validated received message satisfying the search condition.

23. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the computer process further comprises:

forwarding the received message to a remote communications device in accordance with the selected data integrity policy.

24. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 13 wherein the computer process further comprises:

allowing a user to access the received message in the searchable archive if an access list of the user includes an entry associated with the security identifier of the received message.

25. A tangible computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a computer process, the computer process comprising:

identifying a data integrity policy based on a security identifier associated with the received message;

validating the received message based on the identified data integrity policy;

recording the validated received message in a searchable archive;

transmitting the validated and recorded received message via a communications network.

26. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 25 wherein the computer process further comprises:

encrypting the validated and recorded received message based on the identified data integrity policy, subsequent to transmitting the validated and recorded received message.

27. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 25 wherein the computer process further comprises:

decrypting the received message based on the identified data integrity policy, prior to validating and recording the received message.

28. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 25 wherein the recording operation comprises:

recording the validated received message in a searchable archive based on a security identifier associated with the received message.

29. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 25 wherein the computer process further comprises:

searching for the validated and recorded received message in the searchable archive.

30. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 25 wherein the received message is received in an encrypted form and the computer process further comprises:

decrypting the received message prior to validating the received message;

indexing the decrypted validated received message for a search index of the searchable archive, wherein the recording operation records the encrypted received message in the searchable archive.

31. The tangible computer-readable medium of claim 30, wherein the computer process further comprises:

searching the search index of the searchable archive, based on a search condition, to identify the encrypted validated received message satisfying the search condition.

32. A method comprising:

identifying a data integrity policy associated with a received message;

validating the received message based on the identified data integrity policy;

recording the validated received message in a searchable archive;

transmitting the validated and recorded received message via a communications network.

33. The method of claim 32 further comprising:

encrypting the validated and recorded received message based on the identified data integrity policy, subsequent to transmitting the validated and recorded received message.

34. The method of claim 32 further comprising:

decrypting the received message based on the identified data integrity policy, prior to validating and recording the received message.

35. The method of claim 32 wherein the recording operation comprises:

recording the validated received message in a searchable archive based on a security identifier associated with the received message.

36. The method of claim 32 further comprising:

searching for the validated and recorded received message in the searchable archive.

37. The method of claim 32 wherein the received message is received in an encrypted form and further comprising:

decrypting the received message prior to validating the received message;

indexing the decrypted validated received message for a search index of the searchable archive, wherein the recording operation records the encrypted received message in the searchable archive.

38. The method of claim 37 further comprising:

searching the search index of the searchable archive, based on a search condition, to identify the encrypted validated received message satisfying the search condition.