Private, trackable URLs for directed document delivery

• US 6,192,407 B1
• Filed: 04/04/1997
• Issued: 02/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Axway Incorporated (Axway Software SA)
• Original Assignee: Tumbleweed Communications Corporation (Axway Software SA)
• Inventors: Bandini, Jean-Christophe, Smith, Jeffrey C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Assistant Examiner(s): Najjar, Saleh
• Application Number:
  US08/832,784
• Time in Patent Office: 1,418 Days
• Field of Search: 395/200.09, 395/200.3, 395/200.47, 395/200.55, 395/200.59, 709/200, 709/217, 709/225, 709/229
• US Class Current: 709/229
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/958 Organisation or management of web site content, e.g. publishing, maintaining pages or automatic linking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/606 by securing the transmission between two devices or processes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2107 File encryption
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2463/101 applying security measures for digital rights management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/066 Format adaptation, e.g. format conversion or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/23 Reliability checks, e.g. acknowledgments or fault reporting
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/42 Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0236 Filtering by address, protocol, port number or service, e.g. IP-address or URL
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/04 for providing a confidential data exchange among entities communicating through data packet networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0435 wherein the sending and receiving network entities apply symmetric encryption, i.e. same key used for encryption and decryption cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for symmetric key encryption H04L9/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/083 using passwords cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using a predetermined code H04L9/3226
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols

Abstract

A document delivery architecture dynamically generates a private Uniform Resource Locator (URL) to distribute information. Each private URL (“PURL”) uniquely identifies an intended recipient of a document, the document or set of documents to be delivered, and (optionally) other parameters specific to the delivery process. The intended recipient of a document uses the PURL to retrieve the document. The server, upon retrieval of the document, customizes the behavior of the retrieval based upon attributes included in the PURL, as well as log information associated with the retrieval in a data base. This architecture and usage of PURLs enables secure document delivery and tracking of document receipt.

Claims

1. A document delivery system for delivering one or more documents between a sender and at least one recipient, said system comprising:

a server that temporarily stores said documents, wherein said server generates a URL for each intended recipient of said documents, the URL unique to each recipient, and sends each of the URLs to each respective intended recipient; and

a database which is associated with said server and which records log data describing which recipients accessed said documents;

wherein said server sends the log data to the sender of said documents.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said server sends the log data to the sender in response to a request received from the sender.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said server is configured to send the log to the sender without requiring receipt from the sender of a request for such log data.

4. A document delivery system for delivering one or more documents between a sender and at least one recipient, said system comprising:

a server that temporarily stores said documents, wherein said server generates a URL for each intended recipient of said documents, the URL unique to each recipient, and sends each of the URLs to each respective intended recipient;

wherein said server can log a list identifying recipients which have accessed said documents using said respective URLs.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein said list identifies said recipients using IP addresses of said recipients.

6. A method for delivering one or more documents from a sender to at least one recipient, comprising:

receiving, at a server, delivery information from said sender, the delivery information identifying one or more documents and one or more recipients;

providing, by said server, a URL to said one or more recipients, the URL unique to each recipient; and

facilitating the delivery of at least one of said one or more documents in response to receiving the URL.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising;

determining, by said server, when said one or more recipients access at least one said document;

recording in a log that said recipient accessed said document; and

making said log available to said server.