System and method for secure file transfer

• US 20090037520A1
• Filed: 07/30/2007
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Caterpillar Incorporated
• Inventors: Loffredo, Jeremy Michael
• Application Number:
  US11/881,956
• Publication Number:
  US 20090037520A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/203
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security

Abstract

A method for transferring files between a client system and a file server includes receiving a location associated with at least one data file to be uploaded to a file server and a recipient list that includes an electronic address associated with at least one intended recipient of the at least one data file. A communication channel is established between the client system and the file server, and the at least one data file is uploaded to a file transfer account associated with one or more of a sender or the at least one intended recipient. An electronic message is provided to the electronic address, the electronic message including an interactive link to the uploaded file. The user interface modifies the recipient list associated with the at least one data file after the at least one data file has been uploaded to the file transfer server.

Claims

1. A method for transferring files between a client system and a file server comprising:

receiving, by a user interface of the client system, a location associated with at least one data file to be uploaded to a file server;

receiving, by the user interface, a recipient list that includes an electronic address associated with at least one intended recipient of the at least one data file;

establishing a communication channel between the client system and the file server;

uploading the at least one data file to a file transfer account associated with one or more of a sender or the at least one intended recipient of the at least one data file;

providing an electronic message to the electronic address associated with the at least one intended recipient, the electronic message including an interactive link to the uploaded file; and

modifying, by the user interface, the recipient list associated with the at least one data file after the at least one data file has been uploaded to the file transfer server, in response to a sender modification request.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the recipient list may be modified without requiring the sender to re-upload the at least one data file.

3. The method of claim 1, further including:

determining whether the at least one intended recipient has downloaded the at least one data file; and

providing a download notification to the sender if the at least one intended recipient has downloaded the at least one data file.

4. The method of claim 3, further including providing an error notification to the sender if the at least one intended recipient has failed to download the at least one data file within a predetermined time period.

5. The method of claim 3, further including providing an error notification to the sender if the at least one intended recipient receives an error while attempting to download the at least one data file.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein uploading the at least one data file includes transmitting a second electronic message to the electronic address associated with the at least one intended recipient, the electronic message including an indication that the at least one data file has been uploaded to the file transfer server.

7. The method of claim 1, further including receiving a user-defined confidentiality level associated with the at least one data file, the method further comprising:

determining, based on the user-defined confidentiality level, whether the at least one intended recipient is authorized to access the at least one data file;

removing the at least one intended recipient from the recipient list if the at least one intended recipient is not authorized to access the at least one data file; and

providing a removal notification to one or more of the sender and the at least one intended recipient, in response to the removing of the at least one intended recipient from the recipient list.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the interactive link to the uploaded data file is accessible only by the sender and the at least one intended recipient.

9. The method of claim 1, further including:

receiving, by the file transfer server, a download request associated with the at least one data file;

authenticating an identity of a requester of the file;

granting access to the at least one data file to the requester if the requester of the file is listed on the intended recipient list; and

denying access to the at least one data file to the requester if the requester of the file is not listed on the intended recipient list.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying the recipient list includes:

adding an additional intended recipient of the at least one data file after the at least one data file has been uploaded to the file transfer server; and

transmitting a second electronic message to the additional intended recipient, the second electronic message including the interactive link to the uploaded file.

11. A computer-readable medium for use on a computer system, the computer-readable medium including computer-executable instructions for performing the method of claim 1.

12. A file transfer interface comprising:

a file selection portion communicatively coupled to a file database associated with a user computing system and configured to allow a user to select at least one data file to be uploaded to a file transfer server;

a recipient selection portion communicatively coupled to an electronic messaging directory and configured to allow the user to create, from the electronic messaging directory, a recipient list that includes at least one intended recipient of the at least one data file;

an access portion communicatively coupled to the file transfer server and configured to;

display files uploaded by the user to the file transfer server;

modify the recipient list associated with one or more files after the one or more files have been uploaded to the file transfer server, in response to a user command; and

display a status of each of the files uploaded by the user.

13. The interface of claim 12, wherein the recipient selection portion, the file selection portion, and the access portion are provided in a single window of the file transfer interface.

14. The interface of claim 12, wherein the file transfer interface is configured to:

initiate a secure file transfer process whereby the at least one data file selected by the file selection portion is transferred from the user computing system to the file transfer server;

monitor progress of the secure file transfer process; and

transmit a file transfer notification to an electronic address associated with at least one of the user and the intended recipient of the at least one data file, upon successful completion of the secure file transfer process.

15. The interface of claim 14, wherein the file transfer notification includes an interactive link to the uploaded file.

16. The interface of claim 15, wherein modifying the recipient list includes:

adding an additional intended recipient of the at least one data file after the file has been uploaded to the file transfer server, in response to a recipient modification request from the user; and

transmitting an electronic message to the at least one additional recipient, the electronic message including the interactive link to the uploaded file.

17. The interface of claim 14, wherein displaying the status of the files posted to the file transfer server includes determining whether the files posted to the file transfer server have been downloaded by one or more of the intended recipients.

18. The interface of claim 17, wherein monitoring the status of the files posted to the file transfer server further includes:

displaying the list of files posted by the user;

displaying a list of intended recipients associated with each file; and

displaying an indication of whether each intended recipient has downloaded a respective file.

19. The interface of claim 12, wherein the file selection portion includes a file transfer progress indicator, the file transfer progress indicator configured to:

monitor an amount of data transferred from the user computing system to the file transfer server during a file transfer session; and

display a progress bar indicative of the amount of data transferred from the user computing system to the file transfer server.

20. The interface of claim 12, wherein the file transfer portion further includes a confidentiality level selector configured to:

provide a plurality of user-selectable file confidentiality levels associated with the selected files to be posted to the file transfer server; and

modify the recipient list based on the file confidentially level selected by the user.

21. The interface of claim 20, wherein modifying the recipient list includes:

comparing the file confidentiality level selected by the user with a confidentiality level associated with the at least one intended recipient; and

removing the at least one intended recipient if the confidentiality level associated with the at least one intended recipient is incompatible with the file confidentiality level.