Apparatus and method for detecting characteristics of electronic mail message

• US 8,131,808 B2
• Filed: 08/06/2008
• Issued: 03/06/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Maedera, Masahiko, Aoki, Kazuo, Matoba, Nobumitsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Backer, Firmin
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALGIBHAH, HAMZA N
• Application Number:
  US12/187,033
• Publication Number:
  US 20090043860A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,308 Days
• Field of Search: 709/206
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]

Abstract

The present invention enables accurate detection of risks from an electronic mail message. In a mail inspection unit, an information extraction section extracts text and a mail address from electronic mail accumulated in a journal DB, and a text normalization section normalizes the text. A sort-information saving section generates text sort information according to the score obtained from a sorting engine, and stores it in a mail-management-information storage section. A personal-information saving section extracts personal information from a personal-information storage section according to the mail address, and stores it in the mail-management-information storage section. Finally, a risk-level determination section compares the information stored in the mail-management-information storage section with the information stored in a category-information storage section to determine the risk level of the electronic mail.

Claims

1. A computer program product having computer usable program code for detecting an inspection characteristic in an electronic mail message, the computer program product comprising:

computer usable program code stored in at least one storage medium for acquiring first characteristic information on the content of the electronic mail message according to the text information of the electronic mail message, wherein the first characteristic information categorizes the content of the electronic mail message in accordance with a plurality of different categories, each of the different categories representing a possible breach of legal or corporate rules per a corporate policy, wherein the plurality of different categories comprise at least one of a purchase mail category, and a harassment mail category, wherein a different inspection characteristic is provided for each of the different categories for the electronic mail message;

computer usable program code stored in at least one storage medium for acquiring second characteristic information on at least one corporate electronic mail user that comprises at least one of the sender and the addressee of the electronic mail message according to the address information of the electronic mail message wherein the second characteristic information is acquired from a corporate data store that maintains personnel information about the at least one corporate email user and wherein said second characteristic information is not contained within the electronic mail message itself; and

computer usable program code stored in at least one storage medium for associating the first characteristic information acquired by the first acquisition section and the second characteristic information acquired by the second acquisition section with the electronic mail message to determine whether the corporate policy has been violated or not by the electronic mail message, wherein the determining is based on a combination of the content of the email message and personnel information about the at least one corporate email user, wherein the purchase mail category is for purchasing goods and services, wherein the content of the electronic mail message is used to determine that the goods or services are being purchased, and wherein a purchasing authority of the sender is a factor in determining whether one of the corporate policies has been violated, wherein the harassment mail category is for electronic mail messages containing semantic content considered to be workplace harassment by the corporate policy, wherein both the sender and a recipient of the electronic message are employees of the company, and wherein a severity or existence of harassment is dependent upon a workplace relationship between the sender and the addressee, as specified within the second characteristic information.

2. The computer usable program according to claim 1, further comprising computer usable program code for determining whether the electronic mail message has the inspection characteristic that indicates compliance or non-compliance with the corporate policy by comparing the first characteristic information associated with the electronic mail message by the association with a first condition for determining whether the electronic mail message has the inspection characteristic and by comparing the second characteristic information associated with the electronic mail message by the association with a second condition for determining whether the electronic mail message has the inspection characteristic, wherein content of an electronic email message is evaluated different for purposes of determining the inspection characteristic dependent upon the personnel information utilized.

3. The computer usable program according to claim 2, wherein the determination section determines whether the electronic mail message has the inspection characteristic asynchronously with the association of the first characteristic information and the second characteristic information with the electronic mail message.

4. The computer usable program according to claim 2, wherein one of the different categories is a private mail category for electronic mail messages conducted during business hours using the corporate electronic mail address for non-corporate purposes in violation of the corporate policies, wherein a determination of whether the corporate policy is violated is dependent upon both the personnel information from the corporate datastore and the content.

5. The computer usable program according to claim 2, wherein one of the different categories is the purchase mail category for electronic mail messages for purchasing goods and services, wherein the content of the electronic mail message is used to determine that the goods or services are being purchased, as indicated by the first characteristic information, and wherein a purchasing authority of the sender is indicated within the second characteristic information, wherein the inspection characteristic indicates whether the corporate policy has been violated given the first characteristic information in light of the second characteristic information.

6. The computer usable program according to claim 2 wherein one of the different categories is the harassment mail category.

7. The computer usable program according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of different categories comprise the purchase mail category and the harassment mail category.

8. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the plurality of different categories comprise a private mail category, the purchase mail category, and the harassment mail category.

9. A method for handling electronic mail comprising:

analyzing, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, an outgoing email message from a corporate email account of a company to characterize content of the outgoing email message into one of a plurality of different previously defined categories, wherein the plurality of previously defined categories include a purchase mail category, wherein the purchase mail category is for purchasing goods and services, wherein the content of the electronic mail message is used to determine that the goods or services are being purchased, and wherein a purchasing authority of the sender is a factor in determining whether one of the corporate policies has been violated;

if the outgoing mail message falls into the purchase mail category determining, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, whether the outgoing mail violates a corporate policy of the company, wherein different corporate policies are checked depending on whether the outgoing mail message is in the purchase mail category;

if no corporate policy of the company is violated, sending, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, the outgoing message to the intended recipient and taking no adverse actions related to a sender of the outgoing email message, where the sender is a designated user of the corporate email account;

if one or more corporate policies has been violated by the outgoing email message, determining, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, at least one of a plurality of different measures to be taken in responsive to the violation, wherein the different measures comprise at least one of issuing a warning to the sender and flagging the outgoing message for inspection by a company employee other than the sender, where the company employee is responsible for enforcing the corporate policies; and

taking, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, the determined measure in response to the violation, wherein when a warning is issued, a warning count associated with the sender and the incident is maintained in a corporate data base, wherein harsher measures are taken by the company for infringement of corporate policy once a warning count of the sender exceeds a previously established threshold.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

detecting inspection characteristics when analyzing the outgoing email message; and

sorting, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, the outgoing email message into at least one of the plurality of different previously defined categories which are predetermined for the inspection characteristics.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein one of the different categories is a harassment mail category for electronic mail messages containing semantic content considered to be workplace harassment by the corporate policy, wherein both the sender and a recipient of the electronic message are employees of the company, and wherein a severity or existence of harassment is dependent upon a workplace relationship between the sender and the addressee, as specified within the second characteristic information.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein one of the different categories is a private mail category for electronic mail messages conducted during business hours using the corporate email account for non-corporate purposes in violation of the corporate policies.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of previously defined categories include a harassment mail category, and a private mail category, and wherein in the determining step comprises:

if the outgoing mail message falls into the purchase mail category, the harassment mail category or the private mail category, determining, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, whether the outgoing mail violates a corporate policy of the company, wherein different corporate policies are checked depending on whether the outgoing mail message is in the purchase mail category, the harassment mail category, or the private mail category.

14. A method for handling electronic mail comprising:

analyzing, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, an outgoing email message from a corporate email account of a company to characterize content of the outgoing email message into one of a plurality of different previously defined categories, wherein the plurality of previously defined categories include a harassment mail category, wherein the harassment mail category is for electronic mail messages containing semantic content considered to be workplace harassment by the corporate policy, wherein both the sender and a recipient of the electronic message are employees of the company, and wherein a severity or existence of harassment is dependent upon a workplace relationship between the sender and the addressee, as specified within the second characteristic information;

if the outgoing mail message falls into the harassment mail category, determining, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, whether the outgoing mail violates a corporate policy of the company, wherein different corporate policies are checked depending on whether the outgoing mail message is in the harassment mail category;

if no corporate policy of the company is violated, sending, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, the outgoing message to the intended recipient and taking no adverse actions related to a sender of the outgoing email message, where the sender is a designated user of the corporate email account;

if one or more corporate policies has been violated by the outgoing email message, determining, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, at least one of a plurality of different measures to be taken in responsive to the violation, wherein the different measures comprise at least one of issuing a warning to the sender and flagging the outgoing message for inspection by a company employee other than the sender, where the company employee is responsible for enforcing the corporate policies; and

taking, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, the determined measure in response to the violation, wherein when a warning is issued, a warning count associated with the sender and the incident is maintained in a corporate data base, wherein harsher measures are taken by the company for infringement of corporate policy once a warning count of the sender exceeds a previously established threshold.

15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising:

detecting inspection characteristics when analyzing the outgoing email message; and

sorting, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, the outgoing email message into at least one of the plurality of different previously defined categories which are predetermined for the inspection characteristics.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein one of the different categories is a private mail category for electronic mail messages conducted during business hours using the corporate email account for non-corporate purposes in violation of the corporate policies.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the plurality of previously defined categories include a purchase mail category, and a private mail category, and wherein in the determining step comprises:

if the outgoing mail message falls into the purchase mail category, the harassment mail category or the private mail category, determining, via at least one processor executing computer program code that is stored on at least one storage medium, whether the outgoing mail violates a corporate policy of the company, wherein different corporate policies are checked depending on whether the outgoing mail message is in the purchase mail category, the harassment mail category, or the private mail category.