SECURE SENT MESSAGE IDENTIFIER

• US 20150113077A1
• Filed: 12/23/2013
• Published: 04/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Dropbox, Inc.
• Inventors: Roeder, Michael, Kabbes, Steven, Dubie, Jack
• Granted Patent: US 10,666,590 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/206
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/12 Applying verification of the received information cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for data integrity or data verification H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/126 the source of the received data
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3239 involving non-keyed hash functions, e.g. modification detection codes [MDCs], MD5, SHA or RIPEMD

Abstract

A message management service allows a user to access and manage messages from various message services. The user can access the message management service using a message management client application executing on a client device and can draft messages using the message management client application and send the messages through the different message services. The message management service can add information to messages sent using the message management client application that can be used to identify and organize the messages. A secure sent-message identifier can be added to messages sent by the message management service to reliably indicate that the messages were sent by the message management service.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a request, at a server of a message management service, to send a message drafted in a client application executing on a client device, wherein the request includes a copy of the message;

generating, by the server, a sent-message identifier for the message, wherein the sent-message identifier indicates that the message was sent using the message management service, and wherein the sent-message identifier includes a hash value generated using an item of message-specific information and a private key;

adding, by the server, the sent-message identifier to the message; and

sending, by the server, the message, including the sent-message identifier, to a message provider to be sent to one or more recipients.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating, by the server, a thread identifier for the message; and

adding the thread identifier to the message before sending the message to the message provider.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the message is an email message.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the hash value is generated using a secure hash algorithm.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the item of message-specific information and the private key are concatenated and used as an input to the secure hash algorithm.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the item of message-specific information includes an account identifier.

7. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

after the message has been sent by the message provider, retrieving the message, by the message management service, from the message provider;

analyzing the message to determine a thread identifier and the sent-message identifier;

generating a second sent-message identifier for the message, wherein the second sent-message identifier for the message includes a hash value generated using the item of message-specific information and the private key; and

determining whether the thread identifier is valid by comparing the sent-message identifier to the second sent-message identifier, wherein the thread identifier is valid if the sent-message identifier matches the second sent-message identifier.

8. A method, comprising:

receiving a message, at a message management service, for a recipient user from a message provider;

analyzing the message to determine a thread identifier and a first sent-message identifier;

generating a second sent-message identifier for the message, wherein the second sent-message identifier includes a hash value generated using a private key and an item of message-specific information; and

determining whether the thread identifier is valid by comparing the first sent-message identifier to the second sent-message identifier, wherein the thread identifier is valid if the first sent-message identifier matches the second sent-message identifier.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the message is an email message.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the hash value is generated using a secure hash algorithm.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the item of message-specific information and the private key are concatenated and used as an input to the secure hash algorithm.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the input to the secure hash algorithm further includes an account identifier associated with the recipient user that is concatenated with the item of message-specific information and the private key.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the item of message-specific information is based on a header of the reply message.

14. The method of claim 11 wherein the item of message-specific information is an account identifier associated with the recipient user.

15. A server system, comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memory devices including instructions stored thereon which, when executed, cause the one or more processors to execute operations including;

receiving a request, at a message management service, to send a message drafted in a client application executing on a client device, wherein the request includes a copy of the message;

generating a sent-message identifier for the message, wherein the sent-message identifier indicates that the message was sent using the message management service;

adding the sent-message identifier to the message; and

sending the message, including the sent-message identifier, to a message provider to be sent to one or more recipients.

16. The server system of claim 15, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the one or more processors to execute operations including:

generating a thread identifier for the message; and

adding the thread identifier to the message before sending the message to the message provider.

17. The server system of claim 15, wherein the sent-message identifier is a secure identifier based on an item of message specific information and a private key.

18. The server system of claim 17, wherein the item of message-specific information and the private key are concatenated and used as an input to a secure hash algorithm to generate the sent-message identifier.

19. The server system of claim 18, wherein the item of message-specific information includes an account identifier.

20. The server system of claim 16, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the one or more processors to execute operations including:

after the message has been sent by the message provider, retrieving the message, by the message management service, from the message provider;

analyzing the message to determine a thread identifier and the sent-message identifier;

generating a second sent-message identifier for the message, wherein the second sent-message identifier for the message includes a hash value generated using the item of message-specific information and the private key; and

determining whether the thread identifier is valid by comparing the sent-message identifier to the second sent-message identifier, wherein the thread identifier is valid if the sent-message identifier equals the second sent-message identifier.