| US 7,574,477 B2 | ||
| Electronic mail distributing apparatus with email address registration or authentication features, electronic mail distributing method therefor, and storage medium storing a program for the apparatus | ||
| Hiroyuki Nagai, Kanagawa (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Canon Kabushiki Kaisha, (Japan) | ||
| Filed on Dec. 18, 2003, as Appl. No. 10/739,909. | ||
| Claims priority of application No. 2002-368853 (JP), filed on Dec. 19, 2002. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2004/0193690 A1, Sep. 30, 2004 | ||
| Int. Cl. G06F 15/16 (2006.01); G06F 15/173 (2006.01); G06F 15/177 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 709—206 [423/700] | 15 Claims |
| 1. An electronic mail distributing apparatus connected to at least one external apparatus via a network, comprising:
a first storage section that stores e-mail addresses as destinations of e-mails to be distributed;
a second storage section that stores e-mail addresses to which e-mail distribution is rejected;
a distributing section that distributes desired e-mails addressed to the e-mail addresses stored in said first storage section;
a first receiving section that receives an e-mail address as a destination of e-mails to be distributed from at least one
of the external apparatus;
a first determining section that determines whether the e-mail address received by said first receiving section is stored
in said second storage section;
a first registration control section that provides control to register the received e-mail address in said first storage section
when said first determining section determines that the received e-mail address is not stored in said second storage section;
a first authenticating section that requests authentication information from the external apparatus to carry out an authenticating
process on the received e-mail address when said first determining section determines that the received e-mail address is
stored in said second storage section;
a second registration control section provides control to register the received e-mail address in said first storage section
when said first authenticating section has succeeded in authentication of the received e-mail address, and to reject registration
of the received e-mail address in said first storage section when said first authenticating section has failed in authentication
of the received e-mail address;
a second receiving section that receives an e-mail address, to which e-mail distribution is to be rejected, from at least
one of the external apparatus;
a second determining section that determines whether the e-mail address received by said second receiving section is stored
in said first storage section;
a fourth registration control section that provides control to register the received e-mail address in said second storage
section when said second determining section determines that the received e-mail address is not stored in said first storage
section;
a second authenticating section that requests authentication information from the external apparatus to carry out an authenticating
process on the received e-mail address when said second determining section determines that the received e-mail address is
stored in said first storage section; and
a fifth registration control section that provides control to delete the received e-mail address from said first storage section
and registers the e-mail address in said second storage section when said second authenticating section has succeeded in authentication
of the received e-mail address, and to reject registration of the received e-mail address in said second storage section when
said second authenticating section has failed in authentication of the received e-mail address.
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