Patent · US Expired

Method and system for filtering unauthorized electronic mail messages

US6249805A · kind A · utility

164Cited by
4References
9Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateAug 12, 1997
Grant dateJun 19, 2001
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 12, 2017

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
  • CPC primaryY10S707/99945
  • WIPO fieldDigital communication
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A computer system and method for filtering unauthorized electronic mail messages that are sent by senders to a user. The system includes a list of the identifications of the senders who are authorized to send an electronic mail message to the user. When an electronic mail message is received, the system determines whether the sender of the electronic mail message is authorized by determining whether the identification of sender in the electronic mail message is in the list of the identifications of the senders who are authorized. When the sender of the electronic mail message is determined to be authorized, the system stores the electronic mail message in an Inbox folder. When the sender of the electronic mail message is determined to be not authorized, the system stores the electronic mail message in a Junk Mail folder. In this way, the electronic ail messages are automatically stored in the appropriate folder based on whether the sender is authorized so that the user can view the Inbox folder containing the electronic mail messages sent by authorized senders separately from the Junk Mail folder containing the electronic mail messages sent by unauthorized senders.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.