Mail bot and mailing list detection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10862845-B2
Application number	US-201916377411-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 8, 2019
Priority date	Jun 16, 2017
Publication date	Dec 8, 2020
Grant date	Dec 8, 2020

Abstract

An embodiment of the invention may include a method, computer program product, and system for detecting email messages sent from an automated mailing system. The embodiment may include analyzing email metadata of a user to detect an indication of automation. The embodiment may include identifying any email messages sent corresponding to the pattern of automation. The embodiment may include performing an action in response to the identified email messages.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A computer program product for detecting email messages sent from an automated mailing system, the computer program product comprising:
a computer-readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is not a transitory signal per se, the program instructions comprising:
program instructions to analyze email metadata of a user to detect an indication of automation comprising:
program instructions to analyze the user's email metadata to detect a usage pattern of a sender of email messages, wherein the sender of email messages sends a threshold number of email messages to the user, within a period of time, without receiving a threshold number of email messages;
program instructions to identify the sender of email messages as a mail-bot in response to the detected usage pattern;
program instructions to analyze the user's email metadata to detect a received email message not explicitly addressed to the user, wherein the received email message not explicitly addressed to the user is received by one or more other users;
program instructions to identify the one or more other users as a mailing list; and
program instructions to add the identified one or more other users to a group of mailing lists;
program instructions to identify email messages sent corresponding to the detected indication of automation;
program instructions to perform an action in response to the identified email messages, wherein the action comprises moving one or more of the identified email messages to a specified email folder, marking as read one or more of the identified email messages, deleting one or more of the identified email messages, and filtering out one or more of the identified email messages;
program instructions to determine whether the one or more other users in the group of mailing lists has sent email messages to the user;
based on determining that the one or more other users in the group of mailing lists has sent email messages to the user, program instructions to remove the one or more other users from the group of mailing lists; and
program instructions to provide a visual indication to the user for identified email messages, wherein the visual indication for identified email messages is different from a visual indication for unidentified email messages.

2. A method for controlling an email system comprising:
detecting a sender sending within a predefined time period a threshold number of email messages to a user without receiving a threshold number of email messages to identify a plurality of email messages received by the user as being sent by an automated mailing system;
generating a visual indication of the plurality of email messages different from a visual indication for email messages other than the plurality of email messages;
identifying one of the plurality of email messages as (i) not being explicitly addressed to the user and (ii) being received by one or more other users;
adding the one or more other users to a group of mailing lists;
determining whether a subset of the one or more other users has sent email messages to the user; and
removing the subset of the one or more other users from the group of mailing lists responsive to the subset of the one or more other uses having sent email messages to the user.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising moving at least some of the plurality of email messages to a specified email folder, marking as read at least some of the plurality of email messages, deleting at least some of the plurality of email messages, or filtering out at least some of the plurality of email messages.

4. A method for controlling an email system comprising:
identifying a plurality of email messages received by a user as being sent by an automated mailing system responsive to detecting a sender sending within a predefined time period a threshold number of email messages to the user without receiving a threshold number of email messages;
moving at least some of the plurality of email messages to a specified email folder, marking as read at least some of the plurality of email messages, deleting at least some of the plurality of email messages, or filtering out at least some of the plurality of email messages;
identifying one of the plurality of email messages as (i) not being explicitly addressed to the user and (ii) being received by one or more other users, adding the one or more other users to a group of mailing lists, determining whether a subset of the one or more other users has sent email messages to the user, and removing the subset of the one or more other users from the group of mailing lists responsive to the subset of the one or more other users having sent email messages to the user; and
generating a visual indication of the plurality of email messages different from a visual indication for email messages other than the plurality of email messages.

Assignees

• Hcl Technologies Ltd

Inventors

• Chasse Brenton P
• Davis Andrew E
• Gorman Cory W
• Stair Zachary A

Classifications

• H04L51/42 Primary

  Mailbox-related aspects, e.g. synchronisation of mailboxes · CPC title

• H04L51/212

  using filtering or selective blocking · CPC title

• H04L51/02 Primary

  using automatic reactions or user delegation, e.g. automatic replies or chatbot-generated messages · CPC title

• G06F16/335

  Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles (filtering in web context G06F16/9535, G06F16/9536) · CPC title

• H04L51/12

  Electricity · mapped topic