System and method for verifying delivery and integrity of electronic messages

Abstract

Third party verification of the content and delivery of an electronic message such as an e-snail, is provided using a server that receives an e-mail sent or forwarded to a specified addressee, and “tags” the message to indicate that it is “registered” with the service provider. The server establishes a direct connection with the addressee's Mail User Agent (MUA), and transmits the tagged email to the addressee's MUA, as well as to the MUA's of any other addressees. After receiving responses from the receiving MUA's that the message was successfully received, the server creates and forwards an electronic receipt to the message originator. The system operators can provide independent third party verification that the receipt is a genuine product of their system and that the information pertaining to content and delivery of the message is accurate, without the need to archive either the original message or the receipt.

1 - 83 . (canceled) 
     
     
         84 . A method of transmitting a message from a sender to a recipient, comprising:
 receiving a message to be sent to a recipient at a server remote from a recipient, the received message having a particular indication identifying the message as requiring special processing;   transmitting the message from the server to the recipient through a first route if the message lacks the particular indication; and   processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication.   
     
     
         85 . The method of  claim 84  wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes transmitting the message to the recipient through a second route different from the first route. 
     
     
         86 . The method of  claim 84  wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes transmitting the message or a copy of the message to a second server remote from the recipient to register the message, the registration of the message serving as a record of at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of receipt, delivery, time of sending, time of receipt, content, reading by the recipient, and that the message was processed in accordance with the particular indication. 
     
     
         87 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message or a representation of the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes transmitting the message to a second server remote from the recipient to process the message in a special manner to provide for at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of a record of content, record of receipt, record of delivery, an indication that at least a portion of the message has been read by the recipient, a record of secure transmission, an indication of tampering with the message, an indication that the message has been encrypted, a process to encrypt the message, a process to encrypt the message transmission, adding a link to the message, preparing for recipient electronic signature on a document associated with the message, recording of response content, addition of data to the message, removal of data from the message, and altering of a single bit of the message. 
     
     
         88 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message in a special manner includes encrypting the message to transmit the message or a portion of the message in a more private manner. 
     
     
         89 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message in a special manner includes preparing for recipient electronic signature on the message, a portion of the message or a document or attachment associated with the message. 
     
     
         90 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message in a special manner includes recording the content of a response to the message transmitted by a recipient of the message. 
     
     
         91 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message by the server through a special process different than the normal process used by the server, and transmitting the message from the server to the recipient through the first route. 
     
     
         92 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message includes determining whether the particular indication is present in the message. 
     
     
         93 . The method of  claim 92 , wherein determining whether the particular indication is present in the message includes filtering the content of the message to determine whether a selected term is present in the message. 
     
     
         94 . The method of  claim 93 , wherein the selected term is a non-blank “cc” field. 
     
     
         95 . The method of  claim 93 , wherein the selected term is a flag. 
     
     
         96 . The method of  claim 95 , wherein the flag is user selectable. 
     
     
         97 . A method of transmitting a message from a sender to a recipient, comprising:
 receiving a message at a server that is remote from a sender of the message or a recipient of the message;   determining by the server if there is a particular indication present in the message that identifies the message as requiring special processing;   transmitting the message from the server to the recipient through a first route if the message lacks the particular indication; and   processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication.   
     
     
         98 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes transmitting the message to the recipient through a second route different from the first route. 
     
     
         99 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes transmitting the message to a second server remote from the recipient to register the message, the registration of the message serving as a record of at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of receipt, delivery, time of sending, time of receipt, content, reading by the recipient, and that the message was processed in accordance with the particular indication. 
     
     
         100 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message or a representation of the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes transmitting the message to a second server remote from the recipient to process the message in a special manner to provide for at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of a record of content, record of receipt, record of delivery, an indication that at least a portion of the message has been read by the recipient, a record of secure transmission, an indication of tampering with the message, an indication that the message has been encrypted, a process to encrypt the message, a process to encrypt the message transmission, adding a link to the message, preparing for recipient electronic signature on a document associated with the message, recording of response content, addition of data to the message, removal of data from the message, and altering of a single bit of the message. 
     
     
         101 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message in a special manner includes encrypting the message or encrypting the message transmission to transmit the message in a more secure manner. 
     
     
         102 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message in a special manner includes preparing for recipient electronic signature on the message or one or more documents or attachments to the message. 
     
     
         103 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message in a special manner includes recording the content of a response to the message. 
     
     
         104 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message in a special manner on the server to provide for at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of a record of content, record of receipt, record of delivery, an indication that the message has been read by the recipient, a record of encrypted transmission, an indication of tampering with the message, and an indication that the message has been encrypted. 
     
     
         105 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message by the server through a special process different than the normal process used by the server, and transmitting the message from the server to the recipient through the first route. 
     
     
         106 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein determining if the particular indication is present in the message includes filtering the content of the message to determine whether a selected term is present in the message. 
     
     
         107 . The method of  claim 106 , wherein the selected term is a non-blank “cc” field. 
     
     
         108 . The method of  claim 106 , wherein the selected term is a flag. 
     
     
         109 . The method of  claim 108 , wherein the flag is user selectable. 
     
     
         110 . The method of  98 , further comprising:
 charging the sender a fee for transmitting the message through the second route.   
     
     
         111 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message by the server in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message in a special manner on the server to perform a business transaction. 
     
     
         112 . The method of  claim 111 , wherein the business transaction includes at least one transaction selected from a list consisting of confirming a signature on a contract, recording a signature on a document, closing an e-commerce transaction, sending a response to a customer query, sending a special offer to a customer, sending a confirmation by the sender to a communication by a customer, responding to an offer to purchase, responding to a complaint by a customer, sending a form to a customer, providing support to a customer, and sending a collection notice to a customer. 
     
     
         113 . A system for transmitting a message from a sender to a recipient, comprising:
 a server configured to receive a message from a sender, the server being remote from the sender of the message or a recipient of the message, the server also being programmable using software commands to determine if there is a particular indication present in the message that identifies the message as requiring special processing, to transmit the message from the server to the recipient through a first route if the message lacks the particular indication, and to process the message in accordance with the particular indication if the particular indication is present.   
     
     
         114 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message or a portion of the message in accordance with the particular indication to transmit the message to the recipient through a second route different from the first route. 
     
     
         115 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to transmit the message to a second server remote from the recipient to record the message, the recording of the message serving as a record of at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of receipt, delivery, time of sending, time of receipt, content, reading by the recipient and that the message was processed in accordance with the particular indication. 
     
     
         116 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to transmit the message to a second server remote from the recipient to process the message in a special manner to provide for at least one parameter selected from a list of parameters consisting of a record of content, record of receipt, record of delivery, an indication that the message has been read by the recipient, a record of privacy, an indication of tampering with the message, an indication that the message has been encrypted, a process to encrypt the message to transmit in a more private manner, preparing for recipient electronic signature on the email message body and or attachments or documents associated with the message body, recording of response content, addition of data to the message, removal of data from the message, and altering of a single bit of the message. 
     
     
         117 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to encrypt the message. 
     
     
         118 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to prepare for recipient electronic signature on the message, a portion of the message, or at least one attachment or document associated with the message. 
     
     
         119 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to record the content of a response to the message. 
     
     
         120 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to process the message by the server through a special process different than the normal process used by the server, and transmitting the message from the server to the recipient through the first route. 
     
     
         121 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server determines if the particular indication is present in the message by filtering the content of the message to determine whether a selected term is present in the message. 
     
     
         122 . The system of  claim 121 , wherein the selected term is a non-blank “cc” field. 
     
     
         123 . The system of  claim 121 , wherein the selected term is a flag. 
     
     
         124 . The system of claim  230 , wherein the flag is user selectable. 
     
     
         125 . The system of  114 , wherein the server is further programmed using software commands to charge the sender a fee for transmitting the message through the second route. 
     
     
         126 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server processes the message in accordance with the particular indication to process the message in a special manner on to perform a business transaction. 
     
     
         127 . The system of  claim 126 , wherein the business transaction includes at least one transaction selected from a list consisting of confirming a signature on a contract, recording a signature on a document, closing an e-commerce transaction, sending a response to a customer query, sending a special offer to a customer, sending a confirmation by the sender to a communication by a customer, responding to an offer to purchase, responding to a complaint by a customer, sending a form to a customer, providing support to a customer, and sending a collection notice to a customer. 
     
     
         128 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message in accordance with at least one of the processes selected from the list of processes consisting of not transmitting the message to the recipient, adding data to the message, removing data from the message, storing the message or a copy of the message. 
     
     
         129 . The method of  claim 84 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes adding a message generated at the server to the message before transmitting the message to the recipient. 
     
     
         130 . The method of  claim 93 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message in accordance with at least one of the processes selected from the list of processes consisting of not transmitting the message to the recipient, adding data to the message, removing data from the message, storing the message or a copy of the message, storing the message or a copy of the message. 
     
     
         131 . The method of  claim 93 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes adding a message generated at the server to the message before transmitting the message to the recipient. 
     
     
         132 . The method of  claim 97 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message in accordance with at least one of the processes selected from the list of processes consisting of not transmitting the message to the recipient, adding data to the message, removing data from the message, storing the message or a copy of the message. 
     
     
         133 . The method of  claim 93 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes adding a message generated at the server to the message before transmitting the message to the recipient. 
     
     
         134 . The method of  claim 106 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes processing the message in accordance with at least one of the processes selected from the list of processes consisting of not transmitting the message to the recipient, adding data to the message, removing data from the message, storing the message or a copy of the message. 
     
     
         135 . The method of  claim 106 , wherein processing the message in accordance with the particular indication includes adding a message generated at the server to the message before transmitting the message to the recipient. 
     
     
         136 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server is further programmed using software commands to process the message in accordance with the particular indication if the particular indication is present in accordance with at least one of the processes selected from the list of processes consisting of not transmitting the message to the recipient, adding data to the message, removing data from the message, storing the message or a copy of the message. 
     
     
         137 . The system of  claim 113 , wherein the server is further programmed using software commands to process the message in accordance with the particular indication if the particular indication is present to add a message generated at the server before the message is transmitted to the recipient.