JP5884316B2 - Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and computer program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for relay control of electronic mail.

  In recent years, it has become common to send and receive various types of information using electronic mail. At that time, information leakage resulting from an error in setting an e-mail transmission destination address or an error in attaching a file to the e-mail has become a problem.

  Therefore, instead of sending an email immediately, an email filtering rule is set, and an email that matches the rule is canceled or suspended, and the sender of the email In some cases, companies or the like have introduced a system for performing filtering processing such as permitting / disabling transmission according to the operation instruction.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a technique related to delayed transmission processing in which transmission of an electronic mail is temporarily suspended and an electronic mail is transmitted after confirmation processing of the electronic mail sender.

JP 2005-277976 A

  It is desirable to perform both the filtering process and the delayed transmission process as described above in order to reduce the risk of information leakage. However, when both of these processes are executed, if one of the processes is performed first and the other process is performed according to the result, the process is not necessarily efficient. Sometimes.

  For example, when the delay transmission process is performed first and then the filtering process is executed, the process determined by the delay transmission process is a delay transmission of 30 minutes, and the process determined by the filtering process permits the transmission of an e-mail If it is not (deleted), there is not much meaning in performing delayed transmission processing. In addition, when the filtering process is performed first and then the delay transmission process is executed, the control result by the filtering process determines that the relay control method is determined based on the judgment by the superior and the mail transmission is suspended. When the process to be determined is delayed transmission of 30 minutes, the sender cannot know when the relay control method is determined by the superior, so that the sender cannot grasp when the mail transmission instruction can be given by itself. Occur.

  In addition, when such relay control is performed, other processing such as encryption processing and data compression / decompression processing may be executed. Based on the results of the filtering process and the delay transmission process, it is possible to determine whether these processes should be performed before the filtering process and the delay transmission process or after the filtering process and the delay transmission process. It is preferable to make it.

  Therefore, the present invention determines which process is to be executed with priority among a plurality of processes determined according to conditions, such as when relay control of e-mail based on a plurality of different rules is performed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a technique that can be suitably set.

  In order to achieve the above object, an information processing apparatus of the present invention is an information processing apparatus that performs relay control of electronic mail using a plurality of different relay control rules, and is used for relay control of the electronic mail. A first relay control rule that stores a plurality of different relay control rules in which at least an e-mail condition to which the relay control rule is applied and an action to be performed on e-mail data that matches the condition is set A storage means, an acquisition means for acquiring e-mail data, and a plurality of different relay control rules are respectively applied to the e-mail data acquired by the acquisition means, and a process based on each relay control rule is determined. 1 deciding means and second deciding means for deciding a process to be preferentially executed among the processes decided by the deciding means. And butterflies.

  In order to achieve the above object, the information processing method of the present invention includes a plurality of different relay control rules used for relay control of an electronic mail, the condition of the electronic mail to which the relay control rule is applied, and the condition And a storage device for storing relay control rules in which at least actions to be executed on the e-mail data matching the above are set, and the information processing device performs relay control of the e-mail using the plurality of different relay control rules. Information processing method for obtaining an e-mail, and applying the plurality of different relay control rules to the e-mail obtained in the obtaining step, and determining a process based on each relay control rule A first determination step to perform and a second determination to determine a processing to be executed with priority among the processing determined in the first determination step Characterized in that it comprises a degree.

  In order to achieve the above object, the computer program of the present invention is a plurality of different relay control rules used for relay control of email, and the conditions of the email to which the relay control rule is applied and the conditions. An information processing apparatus that includes a storage device that stores a relay control rule in which at least actions to be executed on matched electronic mail data are set, and that performs relay control of electronic mail using the plurality of different relay control rules. Acquisition means for acquiring mail, first determination means for applying the plurality of different relay control rules to the electronic mail acquired by the acquisition means, and determining processing according to each relay control rule; Of the processes determined by the first determining means, function as a second determining means for determining a process to be executed with priority. And features.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the technique which sets suitably which process should be prioritized among the several processes which the process performed according to conditions determines, and performs relay control of an email can be provided.

It is a block diagram which shows an example of the information processing system structure of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of the electronic mail control server 101 of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows an example of a function structure of the email control server 101 of FIG. It is a figure which shows the transmission path | route of the email in the information processing system of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the outline | summary of the process performed by the email control server 101 of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a filtering and delay transmission action determination process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a mail delay transmission process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of mail hold processing. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of an email deletion process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of an email relay process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a pending | holding mail control process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a delay transmission mail control process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a pending | holding mail relay process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a delay transmission mail relay process. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of a delayed transmission mail automatic transmission process. It is a figure which shows an example of a structure of a pending | holding email operation screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a structure of a pending | holding email detailed display screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a data structure of a delay transmission rule. It is a figure which shows an example of the data structure of a filtering rule. It is a figure which shows an example of a data structure of an encryption rule. It is a figure which shows an example of a data structure of a priority action determination rule. It is a figure which shows an example of a delivery control file. It is a flowchart explaining the example of delivery control of one e-mail in this invention.

  Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of an information processing system according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the present invention includes an electronic mail control server 101, a pre-stage mail server 102, a post-stage mail server 103, a LAN 104, client apparatuses 105-1 to 105-3 (hereinafter collectively referred to as client apparatus 105), and the Internet. And a wide-area communication network 106 such as the above.

  In the figure, an e-mail control server 101 is a server apparatus that functions as an information processing apparatus of the present invention, and performs filtering that performs relay control according to the audit result after an audit by an auditor according to the contents of the e-mail. Processing or delay transmission processing to send an e-mail to a destination after temporarily suspending the transmission without sending the e-mail to the destination and accepting a transmission instruction from an e-mail sender . The e-mail server 101 provides a service for performing such processing to the client device 105 in the form of SaaS or the like, and performs filtering processing and delayed transmission processing for the e-mail transmitted from the client device 105.

  The pre-stage mail server 102 is a mail receiving server that receives electronic mail data transmitted from the client device 105. The e-mail received by the pre-stage mail server 102 is transmitted to the e-mail control server 101, and filtering processing and delayed transmission processing are performed by the e-mail control server 101.

  The post-stage mail server 103 sends the e-mail determined to be relayed to the destination set in the e-mail as a result of the filtering process or delayed transmission process by the e-mail control server 101 to the designated destination. Process to send.

  The LAN 104 is a network for connecting the electronic mail control server 101, the pre-stage mail server 102, and the post-stage mail server 103 so that they can communicate with each other.

  The client device 105 is a terminal device used by a user who uses an e-mail account for which e-mail account management is performed in the pre-stage mail server 102 and the post-stage mail server 103 to send and receive e-mail.

  The wide area communication network 106 is a network for connecting the client device 105 and the electronic mail control server 101, the pre-stage mail server 102, and the post-stage mail server 103 so that they can communicate with each other. The above is an example of the system configuration of the information processing system of the present invention.

  Of course, the functions of a plurality of devices of the electronic mail control server 101, the upstream mail server 102, and the downstream mail server 103 may be executed by one device. For example, the front-stage mail server 102 and the rear-stage mail server 103 may be a single server apparatus, or the electronic mail control server 101, the front-stage mail server 102, and the rear-stage mail server 103 may be a single server apparatus.

  Next, an example of the hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus applicable to the electronic mail control server 101 in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the figure, a CPU 201 comprehensively controls each device and controller described later connected to a system bus 204. In addition, the ROM 203 or the external memory 211 is configured to cause a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) or an operating system program (hereinafter referred to as an OS), which is a control program of the CPU 201, or the electronic mail control server 101 to execute various processes described later. Various programs and data necessary for the storage are stored. The RAM 202 functions as a main memory, work area, and the like for the CPU 201.

  The CPU 201 implements various processes to be described later by loading a program or the like necessary for executing the process into the RAM 202 and executing the program. An input controller (input C) 205 controls input from an input device 209 configured with a keyboard, a pointing device, and the like. A video controller (VC) 206 controls display on a display device such as the display device 210. The display device 210 is composed of, for example, a CRT display or a liquid crystal display.

  A memory controller (MC) 207 is a hard disk (HD), floppy disk (registered trademark FD) or PCMCIA card slot for storing a boot program, browser software, various applications, font data, user files, editing files, various data, and the like. Controls access to an external memory 211 such as a compact flash memory connected via an adapter.

  A communication I / F controller (communication I / FC) 208 is connected to and communicates with an external device via a network, and executes communication control processing in the network. For example, Internet communication using TCP / IP is possible.

  Note that the CPU 201 enables display on the display device 210 by executing outline font rasterization processing on a display information area in the RAM 202, for example. Further, the CPU 201 enables a user instruction with a mouse cursor (not shown) on the display device 210. The above is the description of the hardware configuration of the information processing apparatus applicable to the e-mail control server 101. However, the hardware configuration shown in FIG. It goes without saying that it does not matter.

  Further, since the front-stage mail server 102, the rear-stage mail server 103, the client device 105, and the like have almost the same hardware configuration, description thereof is omitted here.

  Next, an example of a functional configuration of the electronic mail control server 101 in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The electronic mail control server 101 includes a mail reception unit 301, a relay control unit 302, a mail transmission unit 303, a storage unit 304, a mail control instruction reception unit 305, a mail deletion unit 306, and the like.

  The mail receiving unit 301 is a functional unit that receives an electronic mail transmitted from the upstream mail server 102.

  The relay control unit 302 is a functional unit that performs relay control for relaying / deleting / holding / delaying transmission of an electronic mail received by the mail reception unit 301, and includes a filtering rule determination unit 302-1 and a delay transmission rule determination unit 302-. 2. A priority action determination unit 302-3 is provided.

  The filtering processing unit 302-1 is a functional unit that performs a filtering action determination process using the filtering rules stored in the filtering rule storage unit 304-1 of the storage unit 304 described later, and is received by the mail reception unit 301. It is a functional unit that determines whether or not an e-mail matches a filtering rule condition, and determines that the action set in the filtering rule is executed as processing for the e-mail when the e-mail matches.

  The delayed transmission processing unit 302-2 is a functional unit that performs a delayed transmission action determination process using the delayed transmission rule stored in the delayed transmission rule storage unit 304-2 of the storage unit 304. It is a functional unit that determines whether or not a received electronic mail meets the conditions of the delayed transmission rule, and determines that the action set in the delayed transmission rule is executed as processing for the electronic mail when the received electronic mail matches.

  The priority action determination unit 302-3 determines which of the actions determined by the filtering processing unit 302-1 and the action determined by the delayed transmission processing unit 302-2 is to be executed preferentially in the storage unit 304. It is a functional unit that determines according to a priority action determination rule stored in a priority action determination rule storage unit.

  The mail transmission unit 303 is a functional unit that transmits an e-mail determined to be relayed to the post-mail server 103 as a result of the relay control process in the relay control unit 302.

  The storage unit 304 is a storage unit that stores various data used when the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 performs processing to be described later. The storage unit 304 includes a filtering rule storage unit 304-1, a delayed transmission rule storage unit 304-2, A priority action determination rule storage unit 304-3, a pending mail storage unit 304-4, a delayed transmission mail storage unit 304-5, an operation log storage unit 304-6, and the like are provided.

  The mail control instruction reception unit 305 is a functional unit that receives a relay / deletion instruction for an electronic mail whose relay is delayed by the relay control unit 302 or an electronic mail whose relay is suspended.

  The mail deletion unit 306 is a functional unit that performs a process of deleting an e-mail that is determined to be deleted by the relay control unit 302 or an e-mail that has received a deletion instruction by the mail control instruction reception unit 305.

  The above is an explanation of an example of the functional configuration of the electronic mail control server 101.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 4, the flow of e-mail when sending e-mail in the present invention will be described. The e-mail transmitted from the client device 105 is first received by the pre-stage mail server 102. Thereafter, the pre-stage mail server 102 transfers the e-mail to the e-mail control server 101.

  The e-mail control server 101 that has received the e-mail transferred by the pre-stage mail server 102 determines a process to be executed on the e-mail by the relay control unit 302, and executes the process on the e-mail.

  The e-mail for which relay processing has been executed by the e-mail control server 101 is transmitted to the post-mail server 103.

  The post-stage mail server 103 transmits the e-mail received from the e-mail control server 101 to the mail server that manages the e-mail address set as the destination (TO, CC, BCC) of the e-mail. Here, when the e-mail address set as the destination is an e-mail address managed by the system, the post-stage mail server 103 transmits the e-mail to the pre-stage mail server 101.

  The pre-stage mail server 102 that has received the e-mail from the post-stage mail server 103 stores the e-mail in the mailbox of the e-mail address (e-mail account) set as the destination of the e-mail. The above is the description of the flow of e-mail when sending e-mail in the present invention.

  Next, an overview of processing performed by the electronic mail control server 101 in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. A program for causing the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 to perform the process shown in this figure is stored in the external memory 211 or the like. When the CPU 201 executes the process shown in this figure, the program is stored in the external memory 211. Are loaded into the RAM 202 and this processing is executed according to the control by the loaded program.

  When the e-mail control server 101 receives the e-mail transmitted from the pre-stage mail server 101 (YES in step S501), the e-mail control server 101 performs e-mail filtering / delayed transmission action determination processing (step S502). Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When an audit request for an email whose transmission is suspended is received from the client device 105 (YES in step S503), a suspended mail control process is performed (step S504). Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When a request for confirmation of an electronic mail whose transmission is delayed (delayed transmission mail) is received from the client device 105 (YES in step S505), a delayed transmission mail control process is performed (step S506). Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  If the CPU 201 determines to execute the automatic transmission process for delayed transmission mail (YES in step S507), the CPU 201 performs the automatic transmission process for delayed transmission mail (step S508). Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  The above processing is performed until an instruction to end the processing is received (until YES is determined in step S509). The outline of the processing performed by the electronic mail control server 101 has been described above.

  Next, the details of the “filtering / delayed transmission action determination process” in step S502 of FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, the CPU 201 stores the e-mail file received in step S <b> 501 of FIG. 5 in the external memory 211. Thereafter, a filtering action determination process using a filtering rule is performed (the processes in steps S602 to S605).

  First, the CPU 201 determines whether there is an unapplied filtering rule for the e-mail (step S602). A filtering rule is a rule used when CPU201 performs a filtering action determination process.

  Here, an example of the data structure of the filtering rule will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 19, the filtering rule 1900 includes data items such as an ID 1901, a rule name 1902, a condition 1903, and an action 1904.

  ID 1901 is a data item in which identification information for uniquely identifying each filtering rule is registered. Hereinafter, individual filtering rules are referred to as individual filtering rules. The rule name 1902 is a data item in which the rule name of the individual filtering rule of the record is registered.

  The condition 1903 is a data item in which an e-mail condition for executing the process indicated by the action 1904 of the individual filtering rule indicated by the record is registered. As the condition 1903, data items such as a transmission source condition 1903-1, a destination condition 1903-2, an attached file condition 1903-3, and a keyword condition 1903-4 are set.

  The transmission source condition 1903-1 is a data item for registering a condition regarding the transmission source of the electronic mail. For example, it is possible to register, as conditions, items such as an e-mail address that is a data transmission source, a group to which a user using the e-mail address belongs, and the FROM of the e-mail header is different from the FROM of the envelope. Needless to say, registration is possible if the condition is related to the transmission source.

  A destination condition 1903-2 is a data item for registering a condition related to an e-mail destination. For example, it is possible to register an e-mail address as an e-mail destination, a domain of the e-mail address as a destination, the number of e-mail addresses designated as the destination, the number of domains, and the like. Needless to say, registration can be made as long as the condition is related to the destination.

  The attached file condition 1903-3 is a data item for registering a condition related to an attached file of an electronic mail. For example, the presence / absence of an attached file to an electronic mail, the size of the attached file, the file format, and the like can be registered as conditions.

  A keyword condition 1903-4 is a data item for registering a condition relating to a keyword included in the subject, body, and attached file of an e-mail. For example, it is possible to register a condition such as “the body of an e-mail contains any one of“ confidential, confidential ”and“ private ”.

  An action 1904 is a data item for registering processing to be executed for an e-mail that matches various conditions registered in the condition 1903. When “relay” is set in this data item, it is determined that the e-mail data is set to “relay” as a processing result of the filtering action determination process. If “hold” is set, the relay of the email is temporarily suspended as the processing result, and the email is relayed by the input of the audit result by the auditor of the user who sent the email. It is determined that “pending”, which is a process for determining whether to perform or not, is performed. If “delete” is set, it is determined not to relay the e-mail and to “delete” the e-mail.

  The above is an example of the data structure of the filtering rule. Needless to say, the data structure may be other than that shown in FIG. 19 as long as the e-mail control server 101 can execute processing to be described later using filtering rules.

  Returning to the description of FIG. If it is determined in the determination process in step S602 that there is an individual filtering rule that has not yet been applied to the email (YES), one of the unapplied individual filtering rules is acquired according to the priority order (step S603). The priority is, for example, the order in which the ID 1901 is small.

  Then, it is determined whether or not the received electronic mail matches the condition 1903 of the individual filtering rule acquired in step S603 (step S604). If it is determined that the condition matches (YES), the process proceeds to step S605. On the other hand, if it is determined in the determination process in step S604 that the condition is not met (NO), the process returns to step S602, and the subsequent processes are repeated.

  In step S605, the process set in the action 1904 of the individual filtering rule determined to match the condition in step S604 is set as an action determined by the filtering action determination process for the email (determining the action based on the filtering rule: Step 605). If the process proceeds to step S605 as a result of determining NO in step S602, the process set as the default action of the filtering action determination process is set as an action to be executed on the e-mail data. It will be.

  After the e-mail filtering action determination process shown in steps S602 to S605 is completed, the CPU 201 performs a delayed transmission action determination process using a delayed transmission rule (steps S606 to S609).

  First, the CPU 201 determines whether there is an unapplied delayed transmission rule for the email (step S606). The delayed transmission rule is a rule used when the CPU 201 performs a delayed transmission process.

  Here, an example of the data configuration of the delayed transmission rule will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 18, the delayed transmission rule 1800 includes data items such as an ID 1801, a rule name 1802, a condition 1803, and an action 1804.

  ID 1801 is a data item in which identification information for uniquely identifying each delayed transmission rule is registered. Hereinafter, individual delay transmission rules are referred to as individual delay transmission rules. The rule name 1802 is a data item in which the rule name of the individual delayed transmission rule of the record is registered.

  The condition 1803 is a data item in which an e-mail condition for executing the processing indicated by the action 1804 of the individual delay transmission rule indicated by the record is registered. As the condition 1803, data items such as a transmission source condition 1803-1, a destination condition 1803-2, an attached file condition 1803-3, and a keyword condition 1803-4 are set.

  The transmission source condition 1803-1 is a data item for registering a condition regarding the transmission source of the electronic mail. For example, it is possible to register, as conditions, items such as an e-mail address as a data transmission source, a group to which a user using the e-mail address belongs, and the FROM of the e-mail header is different from the FROM of the envelope. Needless to say, registration is possible if the condition is related to the transmission source.

  A destination condition 1803-2 is a data item for registering a condition related to an e-mail destination. For example, it is possible to register an e-mail address as an e-mail destination, a domain of the e-mail address as a destination, the number of e-mail addresses designated as the destination, the number of domains, and the like. Needless to say, registration can be made as long as the condition is related to the destination.

  The attached file condition 1803-3 is a data item for registering a condition related to an attached file of an electronic mail. For example, the presence / absence of an attached file to an electronic mail, the size of the attached file, the file format, and the like can be registered as conditions.

  A keyword condition 1803-4 is a data item for registering a condition related to a keyword included in the subject, text, and attached file of an e-mail. For example, it is possible to register a condition such as “the body of an e-mail contains any one of“ confidential, confidential ”and“ private ”.

  An action 1804 is a data item for registering processing to be executed for an e-mail that matches various conditions registered in the condition 1803. When “delay” is set in this data item, the processing result of the delay transmission action determination process is “delay” that delays transmission to the destination for the time set as the delay time. Decide that. If “relay” is set, the e-mail data is determined to be “relay” as a processing result of the delayed transmission process.

  The above is an example of the data configuration of the delayed transmission rule. Note that the data configuration may be other than that shown in FIG. 18 as long as the e-mail control server 101 can execute processing to be described later using the delayed transmission rule.

  Returning to the description of FIG. If it is determined in the determination process in step S606 that there is a delayed transmission rule that has not yet been applied to the email (YES), one of the unapplied individual delayed transmission rules is acquired according to the priority order (step S607). . The priority is, for example, in ascending order of ID 1801.

  Then, it is determined whether the received e-mail matches the individual delay transmission rule condition 1803 acquired in step S607 (step S608). If it is determined that the condition is met (YES), the process proceeds to step S609. . On the other hand, if it is determined in the determination process in step S608 that the condition is not met (NO), the process returns to step S606, and the subsequent processes are repeated.

  In step S609, the processing set in the action 1804 of the individual delay transmission rule determined to meet the condition in step S608 is set as the action determined by the delay transmission action determination processing for the e-mail (the action based on the delay transmission rule). Is determined: step 609). If the result of determination in step S606 is NO and the process proceeds to step S609, delayed transmission for executing the processing set as the default action of the delayed transmission action determination processing on the e-mail data. The action is determined by the action determination process.

  Thereafter, an action to be performed on the e-mail is determined (step S610). At this time, the CPU 201 uses the action determination rule 2100 shown in FIG. 21 to determine which of the action determined by the filtering action determination process and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is to be executed first. It will be.

  Here, the data structure of the action determination rule will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 21 illustrates an example of the data configuration of the action determination rule. The action determination rule 2100 defines which of the action determined in the filtering action determination process and the action determined in the delayed transmission action determination process is executed first.

  For example, reference numeral 2101 in the figure indicates that if the action determined in the filtering action determination process is “relay” and the action determined in the delay transmission action determination process is “delay”, the delay transmission action determination process This indicates that the “delay” that is the determined action is executed first.

  2102 in the figure indicates that the action determined in the filtering action determination process is “pending” and the action determined in the delay transmission action determination process is “delayed”. This indicates that the “delay” that is the determined action is executed first. Furthermore, 2103 in the figure is determined by the filtering action determination process when the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “deletion” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “delay”. This indicates that the “delete” performed is executed first. In this case, even if the sender confirms the e-mail with a delay, the deletion determined in the filtering action determination process is eventually executed on the e-mail. It is more efficient to delete emails before they are delayed. Therefore, priority is given to “deletion” determined in the filtering action determination process. The above is the description of the action determination rule 2100 in FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. After determining the action to be performed on the e-mail in step S610, a delivery control file is created and saved according to the actions determined in step S605, step S609, and step S610 (step S611). The delivery control file is, for example, as shown in FIG. In addition, an operation log that stores processing to be executed for the electronic mail is also created and stored (step S612).

  Here, the delivery control file will be described with reference to FIG. In the delivery control file 2200, an e-mail sender (FROM), an e-mail destination (RCTP), a transmission date / time (TIMESTAMP), a delayed transmission process result (DELAY_RULE), and a filtering process result (FILTERING_RULE) are set. It will be. DELAY_RULE is 1 and FILTERING_RULE is 2, which indicates the order of processing.

  In FIG. 22, abcde @ example. com to vwxyz @ asdfg. co. The result of the delayed transmission process of the e-mail sent to jp at 16:44:02 on May 17, 2011 is delayed (1800 seconds), and the result of the filtering process is pending (HOLD). Indicates the order of delay and hold. The above is the description of the delivery control file in FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. After creating and saving the delivery control file in step S611, the CPU 201 executes the determined action (processing) for the electronic mail. If the action to be performed on the e-mail is “delay” (YES in step S613), the CPU 201 executes a mail delay transmission process (step S614). Details of this processing will be described with reference to FIG.

  Here, the details of the mail delay transmission process will be described with reference to FIG. First, the CPU 201 stores the e-mail to be delayed transmitted in the delay queue (step S701). Then, a notification is sent to the sender of the e-mail subject to delayed transmission that the e-mail has been delayed (step S702). This notification is performed using e-mail or the like, for example. The above is the detailed description of the mail delayed transmission process in step S614 of FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. When the action (process) to be executed for the e-mail is “hold” (YES in step S615), the CPU 201 executes a mail hold process (step S616). Details of this processing will be described with reference to FIG.

  Here, the details of the mail hold processing will be described with reference to FIG. The CPU 201 saves the e-mail that has been put on hold in the hold queue (step S801). Thereafter, an inspector who audits the electronic mail is specified (step S802). For example, the CPU 201 determines the superior of the user who performed the transmission process of the e-mail as an auditor. In addition to this, an e-mail security officer or the like may be an auditor.

  Then, the auditor determined in step S802 is notified that there is a suspended electronic mail (step S803). This notification is performed using e-mail or the like, for example. The above is the description of the mail hold processing in step S616 in FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. If the action (process) to be executed on the e-mail is “delete” (YES in step S617), the CPU 201 performs a mail delete process (step S618). Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When the action (process) to be executed for the e-mail is “relay” (NO in step S617), the CPU 201 performs the e-mail relay process (step S619). Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG. The above is the description of the filtering / delayed transmission determination process in step S502 of FIG.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 11, the details of the pending mail control process in step S504 of FIG. 5 will be described. Note that the processing shown in steps S1101 to S1112 is processing performed by the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101. Also, the processing shown in steps S1121 to 1134 is processing performed by the CPU of the client device 105.

  First, when the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives a pending mail audit request from the client device 105 (YES in step S503 in FIG. 5), an e-mail to be audited by the auditor who has made the pending mail audit request. (Audit object e-mail) is acquired (step S1101).

  Then, the screen information including the list information of the e-mail acquired in step S1101 is created (step S1102), and the created screen information is transmitted to the client device 105 that has made the pending mail audit request (step S1103).

  When receiving the screen information from the email control server 101 (step S1121), the CPU of the client device 105 displays a pending email operation screen on the display device based on the received screen information (step S1122). The hold email operation screen displayed here is as shown in FIG.

  Here, an example of the hold e-mail operation screen will be described with reference to FIG. On the hold email operation screen 1600, a hold mail list display unit 1601, a hold mail selection check box 1602, a detail anchor 1603, a relay button 1604, a delete button 1605, an end button 1606, and the like are set.

  The hold e-mail list display unit 1601 is a display unit for displaying a list of hold e-mails to be audited by the inspector. Here, as information on the hold email, the transmission date and time 1601-1 of the hold email, the sender 1601-2, the destination (TO) 1601-3, the destination (CC) 1601-4, and the destination (BCC) 1601-5 Information such as the subject 1601-6 and the presence / absence of an attached file 1601-7 are displayed. The display items are not limited to these.

  A check box 1602 is a control for selecting / deselecting a hold e-mail, and this check box is checked, that is, a button 1604 for relaying or deleting a hold e-mail in a selected state. It becomes a pending e-mail to be processed when an instruction to press 1605 is received.

  The detail anchor 1603 is used for requesting detailed information of the pending emails displayed as a list. When a click instruction for the detail anchor 1603 is received, the CPU of the client device 105 makes a request for detailed information on the email to the email control server 101.

  A relay button 1604 is a control for instructing the electronic mail control server 101 to perform a relay instruction for the selected pending electronic mail, and a delete button 1605 is an instruction for deleting the selected electronic mail in the selected state. An end button 1606 is a control used to end the process using this screen. The above is an example of the configuration of the hold email operation screen 1600.

  Returning to the description of FIG. In step S1122, the CPU of the client device 105 displays the hold email operation screen 1600 based on the screen information received from the email control server 101, and then receives a delete instruction for the hold email, that is, the hold of FIG. When an instruction to press the delete button 1605 is received in the state where the check box 1602 is checked on the e-mail operation screen 1600 (YES in step S1123), specific information for specifying the hold e-mail to be instructed for deletion is acquired. (Step S1124). Thereafter, an instruction to delete the pending email including the specific information is transmitted to the email control server 101 (step S1125).

  When the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives a hold e-mail deletion instruction including specific information of the hold e-mail from the client device 105 (step S1104), the CPU 201 of FIG. 9 is executed (steps S1105 and S1106). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S1101 to create screen information for displaying a list of audit emails to be audited by the inspector after deletion of the pending email for which the deletion instruction has been accepted, and the screen information is stored in the client device. 105 to be transmitted. Details of the mail deletion processing in step S1106 will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When the CPU of the client device 105 accepts a relay instruction for the hold email, that is, on the hold email operation screen 1600 in FIG. 16, the CPU 105 issues an instruction to press the relay button 1604 while the check box 1602 is checked. If accepted (YES in step S1126), specific information for identifying the pending electronic mail for which the relay instruction is to be issued is acquired (step S1127). Thereafter, a relay instruction for the pending electronic mail including the specific information is transmitted to the electronic mail control server 101 (step S1128).

  When the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives a relay instruction for the hold e-mail including the e-mail specific information from the client device 105 (step S1107), for all the hold e-mails for which the relay instruction has been received, FIG. The hold mail relay process shown in FIG. 4 is performed (steps S1108 and S1109). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S1101 to create screen information for displaying a list of audit emails to be audited by the inspector after relaying (transmitting) the pending mail that has received the relay instruction. Is transmitted to the client device 105.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 13, the details of the pending mail relay process in step S1109 of FIG. 11 will be described.

  The CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 acquires the distribution control file for the hold e-mail that has received the relay instruction (step S1301). Then, the action information (DELAY_RULE, FILTERING_RULE) in the distribution control file is acquired (step S1302). Then, using the acquired action information, it is determined whether or not the action (processing) by the filtering action determination process has been preferentially performed (step S1303).

  If it is determined in the determination process in step S1303 that the action determined in the filtering action determination process is preferentially performed (YES), the process proceeds to step S1304, and the delayed transmission set in DELAY_RULE of the action information is performed. It is determined whether the action of the action determination process is “delay” or “relay”.

  If it is determined in step 1304 that the action of the delayed transmission action determination process is “delayed”, the process proceeds to step S1305 to perform the delayed mail transmission process. Since this mail delayed transmission processing has already been described with reference to FIG. 7, the description thereof is omitted here.

  If NO is determined in the determination process in step S1303, or if the relay is determined in the determination process in step S1304, the process proceeds to step S1306, and the mail relay process is performed on the e-mail that has received the relay instruction. Details of this mail relay process will be described later with reference to FIG.

  After completing the delayed transmission process in step S1305 or the mail relay process in step S1306, the CPU 201 advances the process to step S1307 and deletes the e-mail data stored in the delay queue. The above is the details of the pending mail relay process in step S1109 in FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. When the CPU of the client device 105 receives a request for requesting detailed information on a hold email, that is, when a click instruction for any detail anchor 1603 is received on the hold email operation screen 1600 in FIG. 16 (YES in step S1129). Then, specific information for specifying the pending electronic mail requesting the detailed information is acquired (step S1130). Thereafter, a detailed information request for the pending email including the specific information is transmitted to the email control server 101 (step S1131).

  When the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives the detailed information request including the specific information of the hold e-mail from the client device 105 (step S1110), it acquires the hold e-mail data indicated by the specific information (step S1111). Using the hold e-mail data, screen information for displaying a screen for confirming the content of the hold e-mail is created and transmitted to the client device 105 which has requested the detailed information (step S1112).

  Upon receiving the screen information transmitted from the email control server 101 (step S1132), the CPU of the client device 105 displays a hold email detail display screen on the display device based on the received screen information (step S1133). . The hold email detail display screen displayed here is as shown in FIG. After displaying the hold email detail display screen, the process proceeds to step S1123.

  The above processing is repeated until the CPU of the client device 105 receives an end instruction, that is, determines that an instruction to press the end button 1606 on the hold email operation screen 1600 in FIG. 16 is received (YES in step S1134). It will be. The above is the detailed description of the pending mail control process in step S504 of FIG.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 17, an example of the configuration of the hold email detail display screen will be described. The hold email detail display screen 1700 includes a FROM display unit 1701, a TO display unit 1702, a CC display unit 1703, a BCC display unit 1704, a subject display unit 1705, a text display unit 1706, an attached file display unit 1707, a relay button 1708, A delete button 1709 and a cancel button 1710 are set.

  The FROM display unit 1701 is a display unit that displays the e-mail address of the sender of the displayed hold e-mail. The TO display unit 1702 is a display unit that displays an e-mail address set as a destination (TO) of the hold e-mail. The CC display unit 1703 is a display unit that displays an e-mail address set as a destination (CC) of the hold e-mail. The BCC display unit 1704 is a display unit that displays the email address set as the destination (BCC) of the pending email.

  The subject display unit 1705 is a display unit that displays the subject of the suspended electronic mail. The text display unit 1706 is a display unit that displays the text of the pending electronic mail. The attached file display unit 1707 is a display unit that displays the name of the attached file attached to the pending electronic mail. When a click instruction is received for the attached file name displayed here, the contents of the file are displayed.

  The relay button 1708 is a button used to input a relay instruction for the pending electronic mail displayed on this screen. A delete button 1709 is a button used to input a delete instruction to the pending email displayed on this screen. A cancel button 1710 is a button used to end the display of this screen. The above is an example of the configuration of the hold email detail display screen 1700.

  In the present invention, the e-mail inspector displays the hold e-mail detail display screen 1700 to confirm details of the e-mail on which the relay is put on hold, and gives an instruction to relay or delete the hold e-mail. It can be carried out. As a result, the inspector can issue an appropriate relay control instruction for the pending electronic mail.

  Next, details of the delayed transmission mail control process in step S506 of FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIG. Note that the processing shown in steps S1201 to S1212 is processing performed by the CPU 201 of the electronic mail control server 101. Further, the processing shown in steps S1221 to 1233 is processing performed by the CPU of the client device 105.

  First, when the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives a confirmation request for delayed transmission mail from the client device 105 (YES in step S505 in FIG. 5), the confirmation target of the user (sender) who made the confirmation request for delayed transmission is received. A delayed transmission email (confirmation target email) is acquired (step S1201).

  Then, screen information including the list information of the e-mail acquired in step S1201 is created (step S1202), and the created screen information is transmitted to the client device 105 that has requested confirmation of delayed transmission mail (step S1203). .

  When receiving the screen information from the email control server 101 (step S1221), the CPU of the client device 105 displays a delayed transmission email operation screen on the display device based on the received screen information (step S1222). The delayed transmission e-mail operation screen is substantially the same as the configuration of the hold e-mail operation screen 1600 already described, and therefore detailed description thereof is omitted.

  When the CPU of the client device 105 receives an instruction to delete a delayed transmission email via a delay transmission operation screen (not shown) (YES in step S1223), the CPU acquires the specific information for specifying the delayed transmission email to be deleted (step S1223). Step S1224). Thereafter, an instruction to delete the delayed transmission email including the specific information is transmitted to the email control server 101.

  When the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives an instruction to delete a delayed transmission e-mail including e-mail specifying information from the client device 105 (step S1204), the CPU 201 of FIG. 9 is executed (steps S1205 and S1206). Details of the mail deletion processing in step S1206 will be described later with reference to FIG.

  When the CPU of the client device 105 receives a relay instruction for the delayed transmission e-mail (YES in step S1226), the CPU acquires the specific information for specifying the delayed transmission e-mail to be relayed (step S1227). Thereafter, a relay instruction for delayed transmission e-mail including the specific information is transmitted to the e-mail control server 101 (step S1228).

  When the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives a relay instruction for delayed transmission e-mail including e-mail specific information from the client device 105 (step S1207), for all delayed transmission e-mails for which the relay instruction has been received, The delayed transmission mail relay process shown in FIG. 14 is performed (steps S1208 and S1209). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step 1201 to create screen information for displaying a list of delayed transmission e-mails to be confirmed by the user (sender) after relaying (transmitting) the delayed transmission mail for which the relay instruction has been accepted. Then, the screen information is transmitted to the client device 105.

  Here, with reference to FIG. 14, the details of the delayed transmission mail relay process in step S1209 of FIG. 12 will be described.

  The CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 acquires a delivery control file for the delayed transmission e-mail that has accepted the relay instruction (step S1401). Then, action information (DELAY_RULE, FILTERING_RULE) in the distribution control file is acquired (step S1402). Then, using the acquired action information, it is determined whether or not the action (process) by the delayed transmission action determination process has been preferentially performed (step S1403).

  If it is determined in the determination process in step S1403 that the action determined in the delayed transmission action determination process has been preferentially performed (YES), the process proceeds to step S1404, and the filtering set in FILTERING_RULE of the action information is performed. It is determined whether the action by the action determination process is “relay”, “hold”, or “delete”.

  If it is determined in step S1404 that the action of the filtering action determination process is “delete”, the process proceeds to step S1405, and an email deletion process is performed. Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

  If it is determined in step S1404 that the action of the filtering action determination process is “pending”, the CPU 201 advances the process to step S1406 to perform mail hold processing. The details of this processing have already been described with reference to FIG. 7, and thus detailed description thereof will be omitted. After completion of the mail hold processing in step S1406, the electronic mail is deleted from the delayed transmission queue (step S1407).

  If it is determined in step S1404 that the action of the filtering action determination process is “relay”, the CPU 201 advances the process to step S1408 and performs mail relay processing. Details of this processing will be described later with reference to FIG. The above is the detailed description of the delayed transmission mail relay process in step S1209 of FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. When the CPU of the client device 105 receives an instruction for requesting detailed information on a delayed transmission email via a delay transmission operation screen (not shown) (YES in step S1229), the CPU specifies the delayed transmission email that requests detailed information. Information is acquired (step S1230). Thereafter, a detailed information request for delayed transmission email including specific information is transmitted to the email control server 101 (step S1231).

  When the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 receives the detailed information request including the specific information of the delayed transmission mail from the client device 105 (step S1210), the CPU 201 acquires the delayed transmission e-mail indicated by the specific information (step S1211). Using the delayed email data, screen information for displaying the details screen of the delayed email display (not shown), which is a screen for confirming the content of the delayed email, was created and a detailed information request was made. The data is transmitted to the client device 105 (step S1212).

  When the CPU of the client device 105 receives the screen information transmitted from the e-mail control server 101 (step S1232), the CPU displays a delayed transmission mail detail display screen (not shown) on the display device based on the received screen information. Since the configuration of the delayed transmission mail detail display screen is substantially the same as the pending email detail screen already described, the detailed description is omitted. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S1223.

  Similar to the hold email, in the present invention, the sender of the email confirms the details of the email that is regarded as delayed transmission on the delayed transmission email details display screen, and relays the delayed transmission email. A deletion instruction can be issued. As a result, it is possible to perform appropriate relay control of delayed transmission e-mail.

  The above processing is repeated until the CPU of the client device 105 determines that an end instruction has been received (YES in step S1233). The above is the detailed description of the delayed transmission e-mail control process in step S506 of FIG.

  Next, details of the delayed transmission mail automatic transmission processing in step S508 of FIG. 5 will be described with reference to FIG. This process is performed by the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101.

  First, the CPU 201 acquires all e-mail data stored in the delayed transmission queue (step S1501). And the process of step S1503-S1505 is performed with respect to each electronic mail acquired by step S1501.

  First, in step S1503, the distribution control file for one of the e-mails acquired in step S1501 is acquired. Then, the transmission instruction time set in TIME_STAMP of the distribution control file and the delayed transmission time set in DELAY_RULE (1800 seconds in the case of FIG. 22) are acquired.

  Thereafter, the current time is acquired, and it is determined whether the delay transmission time has elapsed from the transmission instruction time (step S1504). If it is determined that the time has elapsed (YES), a delayed transmission email relay process is executed for the delayed transmission email. Details of this processing will be described with reference to FIG. The above is the detailed description of the delayed transmission mail automatic transmission processing in step S508 of FIG.

  Next, details of the mail deletion process in step S618 in FIG. 6, step S1106 in FIG. 11, step S1206 in FIG. 12, and step S1405 in FIG. 14 will be described with reference to FIG. This process is a process performed by the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101.

  The CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101 first determines whether the e-mail data deletion process is performed based on a deletion instruction from an auditor or a mail sender, or is determined by a filtering action determination process. It is determined whether or not there is (step S901). Specifically, when this process is executed as the process of step S1106 in FIG. 11 or the process of step S1206 in FIG. 12, that is, when an e-mail deletion instruction is received from a sender or an auditor and this process is executed. The CPU 201 makes a YES determination in this determination process.

  On the other hand, when this processing is executed as the processing in step S618 in FIG. 6 and the processing in step S1405 in FIG. 14, that is, when the action is determined to be “deleted” by the filtering action determination processing, the CPU 201 performs this determination processing. It is determined as NO.

  If the determination process in step S901 determines NO, the CPU 201 advances the process to step S902, deletes the e-mail to be deleted, advances the process to step S906, and sets a distribution control file for the e-mail data. delete. The processing order of step S902 and step S906 may be changed, or these processes may be performed simultaneously.

  On the other hand, if it is determined YES in the determination process in step S901, the CPU 201 advances the process to step S903 to determine whether the e-mail data is stored in the hold queue. If YES is determined in step S903, the electronic mail stored in the hold queue is deleted (step S904). Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S906, and the delivery control file of the electronic mail data is deleted. The processing order of steps S904 and S906 may be changed, or these processes may be performed simultaneously.

  If NO is determined in step S903, the process proceeds to step S905, and the e-mail stored in the delay queue is deleted. Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S906, and the delivery control file of the electronic mail data is deleted. The processing order of step S905 and step S906 may be changed, or these processes may be performed simultaneously.

  In step S907, an operation log indicating that the e-mail has been deleted is stored, and the process ends. The above is the detailed description of the e-mail deletion process.

  Next, details of the mail relay process in step S619 in FIG. 6, step S1306 in FIG. 13, and step S1408 in FIG. 14 will be described with reference to FIG. This process is a process performed by the CPU 201 of the e-mail control server 101.

  First, the CPU 201 acquires an email to be relayed (step S1001). Note that when relaying a pending electronic mail, the electronic mail is acquired from the pending queue, and when relaying a delayed transmission mail, the electronic mail is acquired from the delay transmission queue. In that case, the electronic mail is deleted from the hold queue or the delayed transmission queue. Further, when relaying immediately, an e-mail temporarily stored in the RAM 202 is acquired.

  Then, whether to send the e-mail acquired in step S1001 to the destination as it is or to send it to the destination after performing the encryption process is determined by checking the e-mail with the encryption rule. This process may be performed at the timing of performing the filtering action determination process or the delayed transmission action determination process in FIG. 6 (in FIG. 23 described later, an example of performing the encryption process determination at the same timing as the filtering action determination process or the like). Will be explained).

  Here, an example of the data structure of the encryption rule will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 20, the encryption rule 2000 includes data items such as an ID 2001, a rule name 2002, a condition 2003, and an action 2004.

  The ID 2001 is a data item in which identification information for uniquely identifying each encryption rule is registered. Hereinafter, individual encryption rules are referred to as individual encryption rules. The rule name 1802 is a data item in which the rule name of the individual encryption rule of the record is registered.

  The condition 2003 is a data item in which an e-mail condition is registered for the process shown in the action 2004 of the individual encryption rule indicated by the record. As the condition 2003, data items such as a transmission source condition 2003-1, a destination condition 2003-2, an attached file condition 2003-3, and a keyword condition 2003-4 are set.

  The transmission source condition 2003-1 is a data item for registering a condition regarding the transmission source of the electronic mail. For example, it is possible to register an e-mail address as a data transmission source, a group to which a user using the e-mail address belongs, and the like. Needless to say, registration is possible if the condition is related to the transmission source.

  A destination condition 2003-2 is a data item for registering a condition related to an e-mail destination. For example, it is possible to register an e-mail address as an e-mail destination, a domain of the e-mail address as a destination, the number of e-mail addresses designated as the destination, the number of domains, and the like. Needless to say, registration can be made as long as the condition is related to the destination.

  An attached file condition 2003-3 is a data item for registering a condition related to an attached file of an electronic mail. For example, the presence / absence of an attached file to an electronic mail, the size of the attached file, the file format, and the like can be registered as conditions.

  A keyword condition 2003-4 is a data item for registering a condition relating to a keyword included in the subject, body, and attached file of an e-mail. For example, it is possible to register a condition such as “the body of the e-mail contains any one of“ confidential, confidential ”and“ private ”.

  An action 2004 is a data item for registering a process to be executed for an e-mail that matches various conditions registered in the condition 2003. In this data item, an encryption method is registered. If no action is registered for this data item, the e-mail is relayed without performing encryption processing. The above is the description of the encryption rule in FIG.

  Returning to the description of FIG. In step S1002, the CPU 201 determines whether there is still an individual encryption rule that has not been applied to the email to be relayed. If it is determined YES in this determination process, the CPU 201 acquires one of the unapplied individual encryption rules according to the priority order (step S1003). The priority is, for example, in ascending order of ID2001.

  Then, it is determined whether the e-mail to be relayed matches the condition of the individual encryption rule acquired in step S1003 (step S1004). If it is determined that the condition is met (YES), the process goes to step S1005. Proceed. On the other hand, if NO is determined in the determination process of step S1004, the process returns to step S1002. Then, when it is determined NO in the determination process in step S1002, the process proceeds to step S1007.

  In step S1005, the CPU 201 determines whether or not the process related to the encryption process is registered in the action 2004 of the individual encryption rule that is determined to match the condition set in step S1004. To determine whether to execute encryption processing.

  If the CPU 201 determines that the encryption process is to be executed in step S1005 (YES), the process proceeds to step S1006, and the action set in the action 2004 of the individual encryption rule applied to the e-mail is executed. Thus, the encryption process for the electronic mail is performed.

  If NO is determined in step S1005, the process proceeds to step 1007 without executing the encryption process in step S1006.

  In step S1007, the CPU 201 records an operation log. Then, after recording the operation log, an e-mail is transmitted to the destination (step S1008). The above is the detailed description of the mail relay process.

  Finally, a preferred mail relay control using the present invention will be described. In the following description, the case where the priority action determination rule is as shown in FIG. 21 is regarded as the optimal electronic mail relay control, and one e-mail relay control process is performed using the priority action determination rule. The flow of e-mail relay control will be described.

  Here, the reason why it is the optimal e-mail relay control process to determine, by the priority action determination rule shown in FIG. 21, which action to be prioritized is the action by the filtering action determination process or the action by the delayed transmission action determination process explain.

  If the action determined by the filtering action determination process and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process are both “relay”, the process itself does not change regardless of which is given priority, but for the sake of convenience, the filtering action Judgment processing is prioritized and e-mail relay processing is performed.

  If the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “relay” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “delayed transmission”, the delayed transmission process of email is performed before relaying. Since confirmation by the sender is required, priority is given to the action determined in the delayed transmission action determination process, and “delayed transmission” is performed first.

  If the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “pending” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “relay”, an e-mail hold process is performed before relaying, and the auditor Since it is necessary to perform an audit according to the above, priority is given to the action determined in the filtering action determination process, and “hold” is performed first.

  When the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “pending” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “delayed transmission”, the confirmation by the sender before relaying and the auditor However, if the auditor performs the audit first, the sender does not know when the audit by the auditor will end and cannot know when the confirmation can be done. . So, let the sender perform the confirmation first, and as a result of the confirmation process, notify the auditor that the audit should be performed after receiving the instruction to relay the email, and let the auditor perform the audit It is preferable. Therefore, priority is given to the action by the delayed transmission action determination process, and “delayed transmission” is performed first.

  If the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “delete” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “relay”, the e-mail should be deleted without relaying. Priority is given to the action determined by the action determination process, and “deletion” is performed first.

  If the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “delete” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “relay”, the e-mail should be deleted without relaying. Priority is given to the action determined by the action determination process, and “deletion” is performed first.

  If the action determined by the filtering action determination process is “delete” and the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process is “delayed transmission”, even if “delayed transmission” is performed first, eventually Thereafter, the e-mail is deleted, so that the action determined by the filtering action determination process is prioritized and “deletion” is performed first.

  Hereinafter, an example of an e-mail relay control process when a priority action is determined using the priority action determination rule shown in FIG. 21 will be described.

  First, the CPU 201 of the electronic mail control server 101 stores the received mail in the RAM 202 or the like (step S2301). Thereafter, a filtering action determination process using a filtering rule (step S2302) and a delayed transmission process using a delayed transmission rule are executed (step S2303). The process in step S2301 corresponds to the process in step S601 in FIG. Further, the processing in step S2302 corresponds to the processing from step S602 to step S605 in FIG. 6, and the processing in step S2303 corresponds to the processing from step S606 to step S608 in FIG.

  Then, after the processing of step S2303 is completed, encryption rule determination processing is performed (step S2304). This processing corresponds to the processing in steps S1002 to S1004 in FIG. This process may be performed at this timing or immediately before relaying the mail.

  Thereafter, the e-mail delivery control file and log data are stored in the external memory 211 or the like (steps S2305 and S2306). The process in step S2305 corresponds to the process in step S611 in FIG. 6, and the process in step S2306 corresponds to the process in step S612 in FIG.

  Then, it is determined whether the action for the electronic mail determined in the filtering process in step S2302 is relay, hold, or deletion (step S2307). This process corresponds to the process of step S610 in FIG.

  In the determination process of step S2307, if the CPU 201 determines that the action determined in step S2302 is relay or hold, the process proceeds to step S2307, and the action determined in the delayed transmission action determination process of step S2303 is determined. It is determined whether it is a relay or a delay. The processing in step S2307 corresponds to the processing in step S610 in FIG.

  On the other hand, if the CPU 201 determines in the determination process in step S2307 that the message is to be deleted, the process proceeds to step S2321, and the electronic mail is deleted. The determination processing in step S2321 corresponds to the processing in step S617 in FIG.

  If it is determined in step S2308 that the CPU 201 is a relay, the process advances to step S2313. On the other hand, if the CPU 201 determines that there is a delay, the process advances to step S2309 to store the e-mail in the delay queue. Thereafter, a control instruction (relay / deletion) by the operator is accepted (step S2310). The process in step S2308 corresponds to the process in step S610 in FIG. The process of step S2309 corresponds to the process of step S701 in FIG. The process in step S2310 corresponds to the process in step S1204 or step S1207 in FIG.

  Thereafter, the control instruction for the electronic mail received from the sender is stored as an operation log (step S2311). This process corresponds to the process in step S907 of FIG. Even when the delay time set in the e-mail has elapsed and the relay is automatically performed, the control content (automatic relay) is stored.

  Then, it is determined whether the control instruction received in step S2310 is relay or deletion, and whether a delay time has elapsed without input of a control instruction from the operator (automatic relay) (step S2312). . This process corresponds to the determination process in step S1504 of FIG.

  If it is determined to be deleted in the determination process in step S2312, the process proceeds to step S2321, and the e-mail for which the delete instruction is accepted is deleted.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in the determination process of step S2312 that the relay or automatic relay is determined, the process proceeds to step S2313.

  In step S2313, the CPU 201 determines whether the action determined in step S2302 is relay or pending. This process corresponds to the process of step S610 in FIG. If the CPU 201 determines that the relay is in this determination process, the process advances to step S2318.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in the determination process in step S2313 that the CPU 201 is on hold, the process proceeds to step S2314, and the electronic mail is stored in the hold queue. This processing corresponds to the processing in step S801 in FIG.

Thereafter, an input of a control instruction for a pending electronic mail from an electronic mail inspector (for example, a superior of the electronic mail sender) is accepted (step S2315). This processing corresponds to the processing in step S1104 or step S1107 in FIG.

  Thereafter, the control instruction of the electronic mail received from the auditor is stored as an operation log (step S2316).

  Then, it is determined whether the control instruction received in step S2315 is relay or deletion (step S2317).

  If the CPU 201 determines in the determination process in step S2317 that the data is to be deleted, the process proceeds to step S2321, and the e-mail data is deleted. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2317 that it is relay, the process proceeds to step S2318.

  In step S2318, as a result of applying the encryption rule to the e-mail decided to be relayed (applied in step S2304), it is determined whether or not to execute the encryption process on the e-mail. This process corresponds to the process in step S1005 of FIG. If it is determined that the encryption process is to be executed in this process (YES in step S2318), the process proceeds to step S2319, and the encryption process set in the encryption rule is executed. This process corresponds to the process of step S1006 in FIG.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S2320, and the encrypted electronic mail is transmitted to the designated destination. The processing in step S2320 corresponds to the processing in step S1008 in FIG.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2318 that the encryption process is not performed (NO), the e-mail is transmitted to the designated destination without encryption (step S2320).

  The above is an example of mail control suitable for the present invention.

  In addition, without using the priority action determination rule 2100 shown in FIG. 21, a program that has the processing procedure as described above is created, and an electronic program that has the processing procedure as shown in FIG. Of course, the mail control process may be performed.

  Further, in this embodiment, an example has been described in which it is determined whether to prioritize the action determined in the filtering action determination process or the action determined in the delayed transmission action determination process. The processing order of the three actions of the action determined by the action determination process, the action determined by the delayed transmission action determination process, and the action determined by the encryption rule is determined according to the content of the action determined by each. But of course.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the technique which sets suitably which process should be prioritized among the several processes which the process performed according to conditions determines, and performs relay control of an email can be provided.

  Also, an object of the present invention is to supply a recording medium (or storage medium) in which a program code of software that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments is recorded to a system or apparatus, and the computer (or CPU or Needless to say, this can also be achieved when the MPU) reads and executes the program code stored in the recording medium. In this case, the program code itself read from the recording medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the recording medium on which the program code is recorded constitutes the present invention.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an operating system (OS) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.

  Furthermore, after the program code read from the recording medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion card inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function is based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the CPU or the like provided in the expansion card or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

When the present invention is applied to the recording medium, program code corresponding to the flowchart described above is stored in the recording medium.

101 E-mail Control Server 102 Pre-stage Mail Server 103 Post-stage Mail Server 104 LAN (Local Area Network)
105-1, 105-2, 105-3 Client device 106 Wide area communication network 201 CPU
202 RAM
203 ROM
204 System bus 205 Input controller 206 Video controller 207 Memory controller 208 Communication I / F controller 209 Input device 210 Display device 210
211 External memory

Claims (5)

An information processing apparatus that performs relay control of electronic mail,
Storage means for individual rules processing and is associated to be performed on matches the email conditions and the conditions email relay control rule formed by being registered more, a plurality of storage,
An acquisition means for acquiring an email;
A first rule for determining a process in the relay control rule for each relay control rule by applying an individual rule constituting the relay control rule stored in the storage unit to the e-mail acquired by the acquiring unit A determination means;
Of the processes determined for each relay control rule by the first determination means, second determination means for determining a process to be executed with priority.
An information processing apparatus comprising: The storage means further stores a priority process decision rule indicating which process is preferentially executed among the processes determined by the first determination means,
The second determination unit determines a process to be preferentially executed according to the process determined by the first determination unit and the priority process determination rule stored in the storage unit. Item 4. The information processing apparatus according to Item 1.   3. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the relay determination is included in the process determined by the first determination unit, the second determination unit determines that the relay prohibition is performed with priority. The information processing apparatus described. The relay control rule formed by individual rule processing and is associated to perform the electronic mail that matches the email condition and the condition is multiple registered, a plurality of storage, the relay control rule An information processing method in an information processing apparatus that performs relay control of electronic mail using
An acquisition step in which the acquisition unit of the information processing apparatus acquires an email;
The first determination means of the information processing measure applies the individual rule constituting the stored relay control rule to the email acquired by the acquisition step , so that the relay control for each relay control rule A first determination step for determining processing in the rule ;
A second determination step in which the second determination unit of the information processing apparatus determines a process to be preferentially executed among the processes determined for each relay control rule in the first determination step;
An information processing method comprising: The relay control rule formed by individual rule processing and is associated to perform the electronic mail that matches the email condition and the condition is multiple registered, a plurality of storage, the relay control rule Is a program that can be executed in an information processing apparatus that performs relay control of e-mail using
The information processing apparatus;
An acquisition means for acquiring an email;
A first rule for determining a process in the relay control rule for each relay control rule by applying an individual rule constituting the relay control rule stored in the storage unit to the e-mail acquired by the acquiring unit A determination means;
A program that functions as a second determination unit that determines a process to be preferentially executed among the processes determined for each relay control rule by the first determination unit.

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