SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VERIFYING DELIVERY AND INTEGRITY OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGES

US 20110106897A1
Filed: 11/22/2010
Published: 05/05/2011
Est. Priority Date: 07/28/1999
Status: Active Grant

First Claim

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1-28. -28. (canceled)

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Abstract

A server transmits a message from a sender to a destination address. During transmission, the server and the destination address have a dialog constituting an attachment, via a particular one of SMTP and ESMTP protocols, concerning the message, the server and the destination address. The message passes through servers between the server and the destination address. This passage is included in the attachment. Verifiers are provided for the message and for the attachments. The verifiers may constitute encrypted hashes of the message and of the attachment. The sender receives the message, the attachments and the verifications from the server before authentication and transmits the message, the attachments and the verifiers to the server to obtain authentication by the server. The server operates on the message and the message verifier to authenticate the message and operates on the attachments and the attachments'"'"' verifier to verify the attachments.

21 Citations

61 Claims

1-28. -28. (canceled)

29. A method of transmitting a message from a sender to a recipient through a server acting as a Mail Transport Agent, including the steps at the server of:
- transmitting the message to the recipient'"'"'s Mail Transport Agent in a protocol dialog selected from a group consisting of the selected one of the SMTP and ESMTP protocols, and recording at the transmitter some portion of the selected one of the SMTP and ESMTP protocol dialog between the sender and the recipient through the server including those portions in which the receiving server accepts or declines delivery of the transmitted message.
- View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34)
- - 30. A method as set forth in claim 29, including the step of:
    - storing the recorded dialog in some form in which it may be associated with the message and the sender and the recipient of the message in such a way that it may be used to document the delivery history of the message from the sender to the recipient.
  - 31. A method as set forth in claim 29 including the step of:
    - returning to the sender an e-mail message including a copy of the recorded dialog as proof of the successful delivery or failure to deliver the message to the recipient'"'"'s mail server.
  - 32. A method as set forth in claim 29, including the step of:
    - returning to the sender an e-mail message that has been digitally signed by an operator of the server and which includes the recorded dialog as evidence of the Successful delivery or failure to deliver the message to the recipient'"'"'s mail server.
  - 33. A method, as set forth in claim 29, including the step of:
    - returning to the sender an e-mail message which includes;
      
      the recorded dialog, andan encrypted copy of dialog recorded by an encrypted key where the encryption key is not known by the sender of the message.
  - 34. A method as set forth in claim 29, including the step of:
    - transmitting to the sender a message which includes;
      
      the recorded dialog, andan encrypted copy of a digital digest of the dialog recorded by an encrypted key where the encryption key is not known by the sender of the message.

35. A method of transmitting an e-mail message from a sender to a recipient through a server acting as a Mail Transport Agent, including the steps at the server of transmitting to the sender a copy of the e-mail message which has been digitally signed by the operator of the server.

36. A method of transmitting an e-mail message from a sender to a recipient through a server acting as a Mail Transport Agent, including the steps at the server of:
- computing a digital digest of the message, andtransmitting the message to the recipient, andsaving the digital digest in some manner in which it may be associated with the message and the message sender and the recipient.
- View Dependent Claims (37, 38)
- - 37. A method as set forth in claim 36, including the step of:
    - returning to the sender an e-mail message which includes an encrypted copy of the original message, where the encryption key is not known by the sender of the message.
  - 38. A method as set forth in claim 36, including the step of:
    - returning to the sender an e-mail message which includes an encrypted copy of the digital digest of the original message where the encryption key is not known by the sender of the message.

39. A method of transmitting an e-mail message from a sender through a server functioning as a Mail Transport Agent to a recipient, including the steps at the server of:
- connecting to the mail exchange (MX) server of the recipient'"'"'s domain,initiating an SMTP or ESMTP dialog with the receiving server,transmitting, as the MAIL-FROM address, an e-mail address controlled by the operator of the server and not the return address of the sender of the message, and receiving at this e-mail address any Delivery Status Notifications, Failure of Delivery of messages that may be transmitted by the receiving mail server as a consequence of attempting to deliver the message to the recipient address.
- View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43, 44)
- - 40. A method as set forth in claim 39, including the step, at the server, of:
    - generating for each transmitted message a string of characters which are unique to the message that may serve as a message identifier, andfor each addressee of the message, generating a string of characters which is unique to that addressee among all others addressed by the message and which may serve as a recipient identifier, andincorporating the message identifier and the recipient identifier in the MAIL-FROM address transmitted to the receiving mail server.
  - 41. A method as set forth in claim 39, including the steps of:
    - storing Delivery Status Notifications, Failure or Delay of messages received at the MAIL-FROM address in a way that allows them to be associated with the message and the instance of transmission of the message that prompted the message.
  - 42. A method as set forth in claim 39, including the steps of:
    - transmitting Delivery Status Notifications, Failure or Delay of messages received at the MAIL-FROM address to the sender of the message that prompted them.
  - 43. A method as set forth in claim 39, including the steps of:
    - transmitting Delivery Status Notifications, Failure or Delay of messages received at the MAIL-FROM address to the sender of the message that prompted them in an e-mail message that is digitally signed by the operator of the server.
  - 44. A method as set forth in claim 39, including the steps of:
    - calculating a digital digest for each Delivery Status Notification, Failure or Delay notification received at the MAIL-FROM address,encrypting the digital digest with an encryption key not known by the sender of the message,sending the notification to the sender of the message which prompted it together with the encrypted digital digest.

45. A method of digitally signing file attachments of an e-mail message including the steps by the signer of:
- calculating the digital digest of the attachment,encrypting the digital digest with an encryption key known only to the signer,writing the encrypted digital digest to a file which is attached to the message and,transmitting the message to a recipient.
- View Dependent Claims (46)
- - 46. In a method as set forth in claim 45, the step by the signer of:
    - receiving a copy of the message, anddecrypting the encrypted digital digest,computing a digital digest of the original attachment,authenticating the attachment if and only if the values of the digital digests are equivalent.

47. A method of transmitting an e-mail message from a sender through a server functioning as a Mail Transport Agent to a recipient, including the steps at the server of:
- adding to the message, in formats recognized by various e-mail client programs, message headers eliciting delivery notifications from recipients email clients, wherethe e-mail address in the headers to which the notification is requested to be sent is an e-mail address controlled by the operator of the server and not the return address of the sender of the message.
- View Dependent Claims (48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
- - 48. In a method as set forth in claim 47, including the step of:
    - generating for each transmitted message a string of characters which are unique to the message that may serve as a message identifier, andfor each addressee of the message, generating a string of characters which is unique to that addressee among all others addressed by the message and which may serve as a recipient identifier, andincorporating the message identifier and the recipient identifier into the address written in the headers as the address to which delivery receipts or opening notifications should be sent.
  - 49. A method as set forth in claim 47, including the steps of:
    - storing received notifications in a manner that allows them to be associated with the message and the instance of transmission of the message that prompted the message.
  - 50. A method as set forth in claim 47, including the steps of:
    - transmitting copies of received notifications to the sender of the message that prompted them.
  - 51. A method as set forth in claim 47, including the steps of:
    - transmitting copies of received notifications to the sender of the message that prompted them in an e-mail message that is digitally signed by the operators of the server.
  - 52. A method as set forth in claim 47, including the steps of:
    - calculating a digital digest for each received notification, andencrypting the digital digest with an encryption key not known by the sender of the message, andsending the notification to the sender of the message which prompted it together with the encrypted digital digest.

53. A method of directing the delivery of e-mail messages passing through servers acting as Mail Transport Agents wherein a software program examines the subject lines of queued outbound messages looking for specific strings of characters, andupon finding the characters, re-directs the message to a specific e-mail address.

54. A method of directing the routing of e-mail messages passing through servers acting as Mail Transport Agents wherein a software program examines the subject lines of queued outbound messages looking for specific strings of characters, andupon finding the characters, routes the message to be delivered to a specific mail transport agent.

55. A method of transmitting an e-mail message from a sender through a server functioning as a Mail Transport Agent to a recipient, including the steps at the server of:
- generating for each transmitted message a string of characters which are unique to the message that may serve as a message identifier, andfor each addressee of the message, generating a string of characters which is unique to that addressee among all others addressed by the message and which may serve as a recipient identifier, andrendering the message, at least in part, in html format, andincorporating within the html message text a reference to an HTTP URL controlled by the operators of the server so that an HTML enabled mail reader will attempt to connect to the URL when the message is displayed, andincorporating within the reference to the external URL the message identifier and the recipient identifier in such a manner that these identifiers will be conveyed to the HTTP server at the referenced URL, andtransmitting the message to the recipient address, andat the HTTP server detecting the IP address, message identifier and recipient identifier transmitted by an HTML enabled mail reader displaying the message,
- View Dependent Claims (56, 57)
- - 56. A method as set forth in claim 55, including the steps of:
    - transmitting the detected opening information to the sender of the message.
  - 57. A method as set forth in claim 55, including the steps of:
    - transmitting the detected opening information to the sender of the message in an e-mail message that is digitally signed by the operator of the server.

58. A method of receiving messages on behalf of a recipient at a server including the steps at the server of:
- appending the date and time of receipt to the message, andforwarding the message to the recipient'"'"'s electronic mailbox.
- View Dependent Claims (59, 60, 61)
- - 59. A method as set forth in claim 58, including the steps of:
    - digitally signing the message, including the server'"'"'s date and time stamp, before forwarding the message to the recipient'"'"'s electronic mailbox.
  - 60. A method as set forth in claim 58, including the steps of:
    - appending to the message an encrypted copy of the server'"'"'s time and date stamp where the encryption key is not known to the message sender or recipient.
  - 61. A method as set forth in claim 58, including the steps of:
    - computing a digital digest of the contents of the message, andencrypting the digest using an encryption key not known to the message sender or recipient,appending the encrypted digest to the message before forwarding a copy of the message to the recipient'"'"'s mailbox.

Specification

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Current Assignee
RPost Communications Limited (RPost International Limited)
Original Assignee
RPost International Limited
Inventors
Tomkow, Terrance A.

Granted Patent

US 8,224,913 B2
Time in Patent Office

Days
Field of Search
US Class Current

709/206
CPC Class Codes

G06Q 10/107   Computer-aided management o...

H04L 51/00   User-to-user messaging in p...

H04L 51/23   Reliability checks, e.g. ac...

H04L 51/234   for tracking messages

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VERIFYING DELIVERY AND INTEGRITY OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGES

First Claim

2 Assignments

0 Petitions

Accused Products

Abstract

21 Citations

61 Claims

Specification

Solutions

Use Cases

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SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VERIFYING DELIVERY AND INTEGRITY OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGES

First Claim

2 Assignments

Subscription Required

Subscription Required

0 Petitions

Subscription Required

Accused Products

Subscription Required

Abstract

21 Citations

61 Claims

Specification

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Solutions

Use Cases

Quick Links