Declassifying of suspicious messages

• US 7,925,707 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2007
• Issued: 04/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Quest Software, Inc.
• Original Assignee: SonicWALL, Inc. (SonicWall Holdings Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ng, Kwok H., Wilson, Brian K., Eikenberry, Scott D., Koblas, David A., Uyeda, Damon K.
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, PHUOC H
• Application Number:
  US11/927,514
• Publication Number:
  US 20080133686A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,261 Days
• Field of Search: 709202-206
• US Class Current: 709/206
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/212 using filtering or selective blocking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/214 using selective forwarding
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/224 providing notification on incoming messages, e.g. pushed notifications of received messages

Abstract

Handling a message comprises: classifying an incoming message for a recipient, storing the classified message and providing a notification to the recipient, wherein the notification includes summary information about the classified message and an interface that allows the recipient to operate on the classified message.

Claims

1. A method for declassifying a suspicious message, the method comprising:

receiving a message at a computing device, the computing device including a message filter application executable by the computing device;

classifying the message as suspicious in response to a determination made through execution of the message filter application, the message intended for multiple recipients;

generating a notification upon classification of the message as suspicious, the notification delivered to the multiple intended recipients of the message;

receiving input from a recipient from the multiple intended recipients to declassify the suspicious message;

selecting between the received input to declassify the message and the initial classification of the message as suspicious with respect to ultimate classification of the message, wherein the selection includes a determination as to whether the recipient providing the input is authorized to declassify the message; and

processing the message in accordance with the ultimate classification of the message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification includes a link corresponding to declassification of the message as suspicious and wherein the input to declassify the message as suspicious is received via the link.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying the recipient providing the input to declassify the message upon receiving the input to declassify the message.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the recipient providing the input is a delegate of the intended multiple recipients.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the message include sending the message to each of the intended multiple recipients.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the message in a quarantine upon classifying the message as suspicious.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining whether the recipient providing the input is authorized includes processing an indicia of authentication to provide the input, the authentication provided by the recipient being authorized.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising adding a sender associated with the message to a whitelist.

9. A computer-readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program, the program being executable by a computer to perform a method for declassifying a suspicious message, the method comprising:

classifying a message as suspicious in response to a determination made through execution of a message filter application, the message intended for multiple recipients;

generating a notification upon classification of the message as suspicious, the notification delivered to the multiple intended recipients of the message;

receiving input from a recipient from the multiple intended recipients to declassify the suspicious message;

selecting between the received input to declassify the message and the initial classification of the message as suspicious with respect to ultimate classification of the message, wherein the selection includes a determination as to whether the recipient providing the input is authorized to declassify the message; and

processing the message in accordance with the ultimate classification of the message.