Method for creating a whitelist for processing e-mails

• US 7,366,761 B2
• Filed: 10/09/2003
• Issued: 04/29/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Proofpoint Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Abaca Technology Corp. (Proofpoint Incorporated)
• Inventors: Murray, David J., Kirsch, Steven T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu; Viet D.
• Application Number:
  US10/682,941
• Publication Number:
  US 20050080855A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,664 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206, 709/219, 709/223, 709/224, 709/250
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/00 User-to-user messaging in packet-switching networks, transmitted according to store-and-forward or real-time protocols, e.g. e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking

Abstract

A method of creating a whitelist for processing received e-mail messages. A whitelist is created by software running at an e-mail recipient'"'"'s computer. The whitelist is constructed using e-mail addresses stored by the recipient (for instance, in an “address book”) as well as using the To:, Cc:, and Bcc: information of e-mails sent by the recipient. The subject line of a received message is also checked to see if it matches the subject line of a message recently sent by the user. If so, the sender is added to the whitelist.

Claims

1. A computerized method for creating a whitelist of approved senders of e-mail messages comprising:

a) adding to the whitelist any e-mail addresses stored by a user of an e-mail program;

b) scanning messages the user has sent and adding to the whitelist any e-mail address in an outgoing message; and

c) adding to the whitelist any e-mail address of a sender of a message having the same subject line as another message previously sent by the user;

wherein the adding and scanning steps are performed by software executing program instructions.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising updating the whitelist when one of the following occurs:

a) a first new e-mail address is stored;

b) the user sends a first new e-mail message containing a second new e-mail address;

or

c) the user receives a second new e-mail message containing a third new e-mail address.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein scanning messages the user has sent includes checking e-mail addresses in one of the following fields of each message'"'"'s header:

a) the To;

field;

b) the Cc;

field; and

c) the Bcc;

field.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

a) scanning messages received by the user; and

b) determining if a sender of a received message is on the whitelist, wherein if the sender is on the whitelist;

i) identifying information about the sender of the message based on data in the message, the identified information about the sender including at least one of the following;

A) an actual sender of the message;

B) a final IP address used by the sender;

C) a final domain name used by the sender;

or

D) an IP path used by the sender; and

ii) sending the identified information to at least one of the following;

A) a central database;

B) at least two centrally-maintained databases;

or

C) a local database.