System and method of dynamic management of spam

• US 7,849,143 B2
• Filed: 12/29/2005
• Issued: 12/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Vuong, Thanh
• Primary Examiner(s): Dharia; Rupal D
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Van Kim T
• Application Number:
  US11/319,407
• Publication Number:
  US 20070156895A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,804 Days
• Field of Search: 709/201, 709/206, 709/207, 709/225, 709/232
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management

Abstract

There is disclosed a system and method of dynamically managing spam directed to a communications device. In an embodiment, a contact for each incoming message item is compared to contacts on a whitelist. If the contact is not found on the whitelist, the contact is added to a blacklist based on predetermined criteria. At a selected time, a summary of each message item corresponding to a contact on the blacklist is made available to the communications device. Based on this summary, a user selects contacts to transfer from the blacklist to the whitelist. The user selection is received, and any message items corresponding to a contact on the whitelist are transmitted to the communications device.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method to manage messages directed to a mobile communications device, the computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving from a blacklist/whitelist server module of a host system, at a blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communications device, summary information corresponding to message items received from contacts not found on a whitelist at the blacklist/whitelist server module of the host system, wherein the blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communications device is to detect selection of a message item from the summary information and to determine at the blacklist/whitelist client module that a contact of the selected message item should be moved to the whitelist at the host system; and

sending to the host system an identification of the contact to transfer to the whitelist;

receiving, at the blacklist/whitelist server module, the selected message item;

comparing, at the blacklist/whitelist server module, the contact of the selected message item to the whitelist;

when the contact is not found on the whitelist, adding the contact to a blacklist;

after adding the contact to the blacklist, storing in a temporary blacklist buffer the message item;

after receiving the identification of the contact to transfer from the whitelist, transmitting to the mobile communications device the selected message item;

adding non-selected contact to a persistent blacklist; and

rejecting further incoming message items with a contact corresponding to a contact on the persistent blacklist.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising, at a selected time, deleting from the temporary blacklist buffer any message items corresponding to a contact not selected by the user for transfer to the whitelist.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising, at a selected time, deleting from the temporary blacklist buffer any message items corresponding to a contact selected for deletion from the contacts blacklist.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the summary information is pushed to the mobile communications device by the host system and wherein the blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communication device is operable to detect a selection of two or more messages from the summary and, after selection of the two or more messages, to transmit a communication to the host system identifying the two or more messages.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving at the blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communication device, an identification of contacts stored in the contacts blacklist; and

receiving selection to transfer one of the contacts from the contacts blacklist to the whitelist.

6. A computer-implemented method as defined in claim 1, wherein the blacklist/whitelist client module detects selection of a second selected message item from the summary information and the blacklist/whitelist client module is to send an identification of the contact of the selected message item and a second contact of the second selected message item to the host system using a single communication.

7. A mobile communications device comprising:

(a) a main processor that controls the operation of the mobile communications device;

(b) a communication subsystem connected to the main processor, the communication subsystem configured to send data to and receive data from a host system;

(c) a blacklist/whitelist client module executable by the main processor for managing messages directed to the communications device by;

receiving from the host system a pushed list of summary information corresponding to blacklist message items received from contacts in a blacklist, wherein contacts of the blacklist message items are added to a blacklist at the host system when the contacts are not found on a whitelist at the host system and the blacklist message items are added to a temporary blacklist buffer at the host system;

providing with a display of the summary information pushed from the host system, for a blacklist message item, an action field to enable selection of a contact for transfer from the blacklist to the whitelist;

receiving a selection of two or more contacts;

determining that the two or more contacts should be moved to the whitelist at the host system; and

sending one communication indicating that the two or more contacts should be moved to the whitelist, wherein the host system transmits message items corresponding to the two or more contacts to the mobile communications device in response to the communication and the host system adds non-selected contacts to a persistent blacklist and rejects further incoming messages items with the non-selected contacts on the persistent blacklist.

8. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the action field comprises an action field associated with each message item summary, the action field being selectable.

9. The communications device of claim 8, wherein the action field provides a visual indication of selection.

10. The communications device of claim 7, wherein the action field comprises an action field associated with the message item summary, the action field having a plurality of selectable options.

11. The communications device of claim 10, wherein the plurality of selectable options includes selection of a contact for transfer to the whitelist, deletion of a contact from the blacklist, and maintaining a contact on the blacklist pending further review.

12. A system comprising:

a mobile communications device comprising;

code to receive from a blacklist/whitelist server module of a host system, at a blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communications device, summary information corresponding to message items received from contacts not found on a whitelist at the blacklist/whitelist server module of the host system, wherein the blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communications device is to detect selection of a message item from the summary information and to determine at the blacklist/whitelist client module that a contact of the selected message item should be moved to the whitelist at the host system; and

code to send to the host system an identification of the contact to transfer to the whitelist; and

a host system comprising;

code to compare, at the blacklist/whitelist server module of the host system, the message item to the whitelist;

code to add the contact for the message item to a blacklist when the contact is not found on the whitelist;

code to forward to the blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communications device, summary information corresponding to the message items received from the contacts in the blacklist;

code to receive, at the host system from the blacklist/whitelist client module on the mobile communications device, the selection of the message item and to transfer the contact of the selected message item from the blacklist to the whitelist;

code to, after adding the contact to the contacts blacklist, store in a temporary blacklist buffer message items corresponding to the contact added to the blacklist;

code to, after receiving the selection of the selected contact to transfer from the contacts blacklist to the whitelist, transmit to the mobile communications device message items corresponding to contacts on the whitelist;

code to add a non-selected contact to a persistent blacklist; and

code to reject further incoming message items with a contact corresponding to a contact on the persistent blacklist.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the host system further includes code to delete from the temporary blacklist buffer, message items corresponding to a contact not selected for transfer to the whitelist.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the host system further includes code to delete from the temporary blacklist buffer, message items corresponding to a contact selected for deletion from the blacklist.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the host system further includes:

code to automatically add the contact for the incoming message to a whitelist based on a predetermined criteria.