Restricting Distribution of Electronic Messages by Identifying Potential Recipients that Violate the Restricion

Abstract

A method of restricting distribution of electronic messages may include receiving an electronic message, the message including message content and message-specific distribution restriction information, enabling a recipient of the electronic message to compose a related message that includes at least a portion of the message content, the composed message including a list of proposed recipients. In connection with an operation to process a draft of the composed message without initiating transmission of the composed message to the list of proposed recipients, the method includes identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information and notifying the recipient of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of restricting distribution of electronic messages, comprising:
 at a client system having one or more processors and memory storing one or more programs for execution by the one or more processors:   receiving an electronic message, the message including message content and message-specific distribution restriction information;   enabling a recipient of the electronic message to compose a related message that includes at least a portion of the message content, the composed message including a list of proposed recipients; and   in connection with an operation to process a draft of the composed message without initiating transmission of the composed message to the list of proposed recipients:
 identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information; and 
 notifying the recipient of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction. 
   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information further includes comparing, at the client system, the list of proposed recipients with the distribution restriction information embedded in the received electronic message. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information further includes sending a request from the client system to a remotely located computer to compare the list of proposed recipients with the distribution restriction information embedded in the received electronic message. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the list of proposed recipients includes at least one proposed recipient that violates the distribution restriction information when the at least one proposed recipient is not a member of a group defined by the distribution restriction information. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein distribution restriction information corresponds to a distribution group selected from the set consisting of all email addresses having a predefined domain name, a predefined list of email addresses, and a group that includes all email addresses having a respective domain name and a respective list of email addresses. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the distribution restriction information corresponds to participants of the received electronic message. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the operation to process a draft of the composed message is a save message operation. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the operation to process a draft of the composed message is an operation to add a proposed recipient to the list of proposed recipients. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the notifying includes presenting a list of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction at the client system. 
     
     
         10 . A method of restricting distribution of electronic messages, comprising:
 at a server system, remotely located from a client system, having one or more processors and memory storing one or more programs for execution by the one of more processors:   in connection with an operation to process a draft of an electronic message composed at the client system and without initiating transmission of the electronic message to a list of proposed recipients:
 receiving from the client a request to compare the list of proposed recipients of the electronic message with message-specific distribution restriction information associated with the electronic message; 
 in response to the request:
 comparing the list of proposed recipients with the distribution restriction information associated with the electronic message; 
 identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction; and 
 sending an error message to the client system, wherein the error message includes information for displaying a list of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction at the client system. 
 
   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the error message includes identifiers of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , further including receiving the electronic message from the client system in response to the operation to process a draft of the electronic message composed at the client system, the electronic message including message content and the message-specific distribution restriction. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , further including sending the electronic message to recipients in the list of proposed recipients that do not violate the distribution restriction information. 
     
     
         14 . A client system for restricting distribution of electronic messages, comprising:
 memory;   one or more processors; and   one or more modules stored in memory and configured for execution by the one or more processors, the modules comprising instructions for:
 receiving an electronic message, the message including message content and message-specific distribution restriction information; 
 enabling a recipient of the electronic message to compose a related message that includes at least a portion of the message content, the composed message including a list of proposed recipients; and 
 in connection with an operation to process a draft of the composed message without initiating transmission of the composed message to the list of proposed recipients:
 identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information; and 
 notifying the recipient of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction. 
 
   
     
     
         15 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the instructions for identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information further include instructions for comparing, at the client system, the list of proposed recipients with the distribution restriction information embedded in the received electronic message. 
     
     
         16 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the instructions for identifying recipients from the list of proposed recipients that violate the distribution restriction information further include instructions for sending a request from the client system to a remotely located computer to compare the list of proposed recipients with the distribution restriction information embedded in the received electronic message. 
     
     
         17 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the list of proposed recipients includes at least one proposed recipient that violates the distribution restriction information when the at least one proposed recipient is not a member of a group defined by the distribution restriction information. 
     
     
         18 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein distribution restriction information corresponds to a distribution group selected from the set consisting of all email addresses having a predefined domain name, a predefined list of email addresses, and a group that includes all email addresses having a respective domain name and a respective list of email addresses. 
     
     
         19 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the distribution restriction information corresponds to participants of the received electronic message. 
     
     
         20 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the operation to process a draft of the composed message is a save message operation. 
     
     
         21 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the operation to process a draft of the composed message is an operation to add a proposed recipient to the list of proposed recipients. 
     
     
         22 . The claim system of  claim 14 , wherein the instructions for notifying the recipient of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction further include instructions for presenting a list of the identified recipients that violate the distribution restriction at the client system.