US6199102B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method and system for filtering electronic messages
Assignee: Google LLC
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Filing: 1997-08-26
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Granted: 2001-03-06
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Expires: 2017-08-26
Abstract
Abstract The present invention provides a system and method for filtering unsolicited electronic commercial messages. A system and method according to the present invention for screening out unsolicited commercial messages comprises the steps of receiving a message from a sender, sending a challenge back to the sender, receiving a response to the challenge, and determining if the response is a proper response.
Inventors
- 👤 Christopher Alan Cobb
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 05:12
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04L; H04L51/00; H04L51/21; H04L51/212
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 41
Claim 1
Independent Claim
71 words
A method for filtering electronic messages, the method comprising: receiving an electronic message from a sender, the message including an address field containing a sender's address; comparing the sender's address to a list of accepted senders; sending a prompt back to the sender if the sender's address is not contained in the list of accepted senders, wherein the prompt is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
71 words
A method for filtering electronic messages, the method comprising: receiving an electronic message from a sender, the message including an address field containing a sender's address; comparing the sender's address to a list of accepted senders; sending a prompt back to the sender if the sender's address is not contained in the list of accepted senders, wherein the prompt is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
13 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the electronic message is an e-mail.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of determining if information regarding the sender is listed on a predetermined list.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of not filtering out the message if information regarding the sender is listed on the list of accepted senders.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
36 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of comparing the sender's address to a list if blocked addresses and filtering out the message if information regarding the sender is listed on the list.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of automatically adding information regarding the sender to a list.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 1 , further comprising a step of determining if the received electronic message is properly addressed to a predetermined receiver.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 7 , wherein a message is filtered out if the received electronic message is not properly addressed to the predetermined receiver.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of claim 1 additionally comprising a step of receiving a response to the prompt and adding the sender's address to the list of accepted senders if the response to the prompt is correct.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
35 words
The method of claim 1 additionally comprising a step of receiving a response to the prompt and adding the sender's address to a list of blocked senders if the response to the prompt is incorrect.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 10 additionally comprising a step of deleting the response if the response does not contain a correct answer to the prompt.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 11 wherein the step of deleting the response comprises moving the response to a deleted messages folder.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of claim 1 wherein the sender's address field is a reply address field and the sender's address is a reply address for the sender.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
63 words
The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of additionally comprising a step of comparing the sender's address to a list of blocked senders, wherein the step of sending a prompt to the sender comprises sending a prompt to the sender only if the sender's address is not in the list of accepted senders and not in the list of blocked senders.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 14 additionally comprising a step of deleting the message if the sender's address is in the list of blocked senders.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
28 words
The method of claim 1 additionally comprising a step of adding the sender's address to the list of accepted senders if the sender correctly responds to the prompt.
Claim 18
Independent Claim
67 words
A system for filtering electronic messages, the system comprising: means for receiving an electronic message from a sender; means for determining that a return address of the sender is an accepted sender's address; means for sending a prompt back to the sender if the return address is not an accepted sender's address, wherein the prompt is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 19
Independent Claim
67 words
A system for filtering electronic messages, the system comprising: means for receiving an electronic message from a sender; means for determining that a return address of the sender is an accepted sender's address; means for sending a prompt back to the sender if the return address is not an accepted sender's address, wherein the prompt is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
23 words
The system of claim 17 , wherein the means for determining comprises means for determining if the address is listed on a list.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
28 words
The system of claim 18 , further comprising means for not filtering out the message if information regarding the sender is listed on the list of accepted senders.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
27 words
The system of claim 18 , further comprising means for filtering out the message if information regarding the sender is listed on a list of blocked senders.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
18 words
The system of claim 17 , further comprising means for adding information regarding the sender to a list.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
22 words
The system of claim 17 , further comprising means for determining if the received message is properly addressed to a predetermined receiver.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
23 words
The system of claim 22 , wherein the received message is filtered out if it is not properly addressed to the predetermined receiver.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
77 words
A computer readable medium containing program instructions for filtering electronic messages, the program instructions comprising: receiving an electronic message from a sender the message including an address field containing a sender's address; comparing the sender's address to a list of accepted senders; sending a prompt back to the sender if the sender's address is not contained in the list of accepted senders, wherein the prompt is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
77 words
A computer readable medium containing program instructions for filtering electronic messages, the program instructions comprising: receiving an electronic message from a sender the message including an address field containing a sender's address; comparing the sender's address to a list of accepted senders; sending a prompt back to the sender if the sender's address is not contained in the list of accepted senders, wherein the prompt is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
35 words
The medium of claim 24 additionally comprising a step of receiving a response to the prompt and adding the sender's address to the list of accepted senders if the response to the prompt is correct.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
35 words
The medium of claim 24 additionally comprising a step of receiving a response to the prompt and adding the sender's address to a list of blocked senders if the response to the prompt is incorrect.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
25 words
The medium of claim 26 additionally comprising a step of deleting the response if the response does not contain a correct answer to the prompt.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
21 words
The medium of claim 27 wherein the step of deleting the response comprises moving the response to a deleted messages folder.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
26 words
The medium of claim 24 wherein the sender's address field is a reply address field and the sender's address is a reply address for the sender.
Claim 33
Independent Claim
73 words
A method for filtering electronic messages, the method comprising: receiving an electronic message from a sender, the message including a sender's address field containing an address of the sender; comparing the sender's address to a list of accepted senders; sending a challenge back to the sender if the sender's address is not in the list of accepted senders, wherein the challenge is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 34
Independent Claim
73 words
A method for filtering electronic messages, the method comprising: receiving an electronic message from a sender, the message including a sender's address field containing an address of the sender; comparing the sender's address to a list of accepted senders; sending a challenge back to the sender if the sender's address is not in the list of accepted senders, wherein the challenge is designed to be answered by a person and not a machine.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
12 words
The method of claim 30 , wherein the challenge includes a prompt.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
13 words
The method of claim 30 , wherein the challenge includes a legal notice.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 32 , wherein the legal notice includes text which cannot be altered once the text is sent to the sender.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 30 , further comprising a step of automatically updating the list of accepted senders.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 30 , wherein the challenge includes a program version number.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 30 , further comprising a step of determining if the received electronic message is properly addressed to a predetermined receiver.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 36 , wherein the received message is filtered out if it is not properly addressed to a predetermined receiver.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2004-03-05 | 2004-09-04 | 2005-03-06 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2008-03-05 | 2008-09-04 | 2009-03-06 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2012-03-05 | 2012-09-04 | 2013-03-06 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |