FR2899754A1 - Electronic mail address transforming method, involves modifying user addresses by adding additional domain name after domain name of service provider and inserting separation character before added name - Google Patents

Abstract

The method involves transmitting an electronic message, in the form multimedia message service (MMS) message, from an electronic originator identified by a user address (A1) to a recipient mail box identified by another user address (A2). The addresses are modified using a transformation unit by adding an additional domain name, which designates a recipient server, after service provider`s domain name at the end of the address (A1) and by inserting a point type separation character (4) before the added domain name. An independent claim is also included for a device for transforming an electronic address contained in header of an electronic mail.

Description

Method and device for transforming electronic addresses contained

  TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to telecommunications, and more particularly, with the aim of promoting the use of several electronic addresses, some of which are obscured, a method and a device of the present invention. transformation of email addresses contained in the header of an email. TECHNOLOGICAL BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is currently common to associate with mobile radio terminals or subscribers of a radiocommunication service an e-mail address called e-mail in addition to a telephone number MSISDN (Mobile Station Integrated Services Digital Network Number). For example, the company SFR provides options in which the subscriber has a box of 1s specific e-mail and has an e-mail address in sfr.fr. This type of address (user.nametci, sfr.fr) generally provides a user name prefix (user.name) followed by the domain name of the provider provider "sfr.fr". It is therefore known in the prior art telecommunications systems to use the electronic address of the mobile terminals. These systems transmit e-mail messages to a mobile radio terminal, for example through a Multimedia Messaging Services (MMS) service. New systems may further automatically transfer a copy of these messages to a conventional digital inbox, using a personal address of the recipient of the messages. A disadvantage of this type of communication is that the responses made by the subscriber, from his conventional messaging, will reveal the personal address associated with the conventional digital inbox, which discourages correspondents to use the email address specifically associated with the subscription to a radiotelephone network. In addition, the user may wish to disclose only his address accessible via a radiotelephone network (for example username@sfr.fr) and keep secret his other address (eg user_name@hotmail.com). From the point of view of the operator who manages the radiotelephone network, one solution could be to prevent transfers to the subscriber's other personal addresses. However, this type of operation damages the subscriber. There is therefore a need to encourage the use by correspondents of e-mail addresses assigned by a radiotelephone operator. The object of the present invention is therefore to eliminate one or more of the disadvantages of the prior art by defining a method of automatic transformation of the electronic addresses used for the routing of an electronic message so as to allow, in the event of a response from a correspondent who has received an electronic message, a controlled display of the electronic addresses vis-à-vis the user who receives the response email. A further object of the invention is to allow a modification of electronic addresses which does not generate blocking due to checks by anti-spam devices (against spamming) such as SPF (Sender Permitted From, also known as Sender Policy Framework). For this purpose, the invention relates to a method of transforming electronic addresses contained in the header of an electronic mail, implemented by a system for transferring electronic messages from a mail server equipped with a mail server. e-mail header processing module, comprising a step of transmitting an electronic message from subscriber sending / subscribing electronic means to a mail server and identified by a first user address (sender) to the minus a recipient e-mail box identified by at least a second user address (recipient), the s server of the transfer system being designated at least via the second user address, characterized in that comprises a step of receiving the electronic message by the transfer system followed by a transformation step using the header processing module for modifying in the header the first user address and one or more destination addresses of the message among which said second user address, the transformation step comprising for the first user address: a step adding at the end of the address (after the domain name of the service provider) an additional domain name designating a provider server; and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character. The method according to the invention thus makes it possible to automatically designate the provider server in the received messages that have undergone the modifications, so that a possible response message is processed by this specific service provider. The added domain name is used naturally during a response, so that the e-mail message will be routed to a server device that can retransform the header e-mail addresses. The address rewritten during the transformation 25 contains all the information necessary to reconstruct the original email address. According to another particularity, the transformation step comprises for each of the destination addresses to be modified other than said second user address: 3o - a step of adding at the end of the address a domain name designating said provider server ; and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character. Thus, in the case for example of a response to all "reply-all", the message will be routed to the server device that retransforms the header e-mail addresses. According to another particularity, the method according to the invention comprises a step of duplication of the electronic message sent from the sender electronic means, the method comprising: a step of transmitting the electronic message to a mobile radio terminal via a communication interface of the transfer system with a radiotelephone network; and a transfer step for another destination of a copy of the electronic message whose header comprises addresses modified using the transformation step; said transforming step comprising using a third address associated with the same user in substitution of the second address, to allow the transfer of the message to said other destination.

  A substitution is not necessary in the header of the copy of the electronic message: the address that appears in the To field is for example the second address. In this case, it is then simply necessary to establish a correlation between this second address and the third address and to pass the third address in the SMTP command RCPT TO. The third address can thus be substituted for the second address in this type of SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) command. According to another particularity, the substitution is made after a consultation of a database of the transfer system containing, for a plurality of user addresses, separate electronic transfer addresses associated with them.

  According to another particularity, the transformation step may comprise for said second user address: a step of adding at the end of the address a domain name designating said provider server; and s -a step of inserting, before the added domain name, a point type separator character. According to another feature, the method according to the invention comprises an inverse transformation step using a reverse processing unit of headers of the transfer system for transforming in the header ro of an electronic response message the addresses modified from the transformation step, the reverse transformation step comprising a reverse substitution performed for the sender address, wherein the second user address is substituted for the third address. According to another feature, the method according to the invention comprises an inverse transformation step using a transfer system header processing module for transforming into the header of an electronic message the resulting modified addresses. of the transformation step, the inverse transformation step comprising for each of the destination addresses: a step of withdrawal at the end of the address of the domain name designating said provider server (that is to say the last domain name) ; and a step of deleting said separating character. In another feature, the reverse transformation step is applied to a response e-mail message sent from a sender means associated with the third address, to allow the domain name added during the transformation step to be masked. The method according to the invention thus makes it possible to hide the domain name changes made previously in the electronic addresses displayed in the header of the electronic messages.

  According to another particularity, the step of receiving the electronic message by the transfer system comprises the use of a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) type mail server which is also used to route reply e-mail messages. received message to the reverse header processing module. According to another particularity, the inverse transformation step is applied to an intermediate electronic message having undergone a transformation step and transmitted by a first electronic message transfer system, the intermediate electronic message being received by a second electronic transfer system. similar to the first system, the domain name added in the first user address during the transformation step to transmit an intermediate electronic message being specific to the first transfer system. According to another particularity, the transformation step is performed by the first transfer system and comprises for the second user address an addition of a domain name designating a provider server associated with the second transfer system. A partnership can thus be envisaged between the two transfer systems to allow an exchange of intermediate emails between two relays managed by separate operators. According to another particularity, the method comprises a step of communication between the transfer system and a Domain Name System (DNS) server to enable routing of the electronic message taking into account modified destination addresses that are inserted in a network. SMTP command RCPT TO. In other words, the message is routed based on what is passed in the RCPT TO command. It is also understood that the messages are sent by the transfer system from a server belonging to the same domain as the sender address (i.e. the address passed in the SMTP MAIL 30 FROM command). According to another particularity, the transformation step comprises an on-the-fly modification of the addresses to be modified by the header processing module, the resulting message being immediately transmitted to an SMTP server with the modified addresses. According to another particularity, the inverse transformation step comprises an on-the-fly modification of the modified addresses to be transformed by the reverse header processing module, the resulting message being immediately transmitted to an SMTP server with the transformed addresses. According to another particularity, the inverse transformation step comprises a step of extracting correspondence data in a database, the headers inverse processing module using these ~ o correspondence data to transform modified addresses in a database. the header of an e-mail message (for example the second and third addresses). Another object of the invention is to provide a solution to one or more of the problems encountered in the prior art by defining a device for automatic transformation of e-mail message header addresses to avoid having to reveal a personal email address. This object is achieved by an electronic address transformation device contained in the header of an electronic mail, comprising an electronic message transfer system having an email header processing module. and having a server IP address corresponding to at least one determined domain name to receive e-mail messages, each sent from subscriber / subscriber sending electronic means to a server designated by a domain name and identified by a first address of user (sender), each received message designating each at least one recipient attached to the determined domain name via a second user address (recipient), characterized in that the header processing module comprises means for modifying in the header of messages received by the system the first user address and at least one destination address of the message including said second user address, the processing module including first means of transformation, in message header, of the first user address, these first transformation means adding an additional domain name designating a server provider and inserting before the added domain name a separator character of type s point to distinguish the original domain name from the domain name added. Thus with such a device, it is permitted to ensure that replies to the sender will be sent to a specific provider server, while retaining in the modified address the elements Io necessary to reconstitute the e-mail address. origin. The means for modifying the header processing module may comprise means for storing the sender and recipient addresses and search means in a correspondence table of a database of the active address addresses other than those associated with the ls. domain name determined. According to another particularity, the processing module comprises second means of transformation, in message header, of each of the destination addresses to be modified other than said second user address, these second transformation means adding a name of 20 A domain designating a provider server and inserting before the added domain name a point-type separator character to distinguish the original domain name from the added domain name. According to another particularity, the transfer system comprises electronic message duplication means and a communication interface with a radiotelephone network to enable a transfer of first electronic messages to a mobile radio terminal. According to another particularity, the processing module transmits second electronic messages with a modified header, obtained from copies provided by the duplication means, to an electronic mail interface 30 to allow a transfer of these second messages to an address. destination distinct from an address associated with a mobile radio terminal.

  According to another particularity, the processing module comprises third transformation means for substituting for the second user address a third address associated with the same user, the third transformation means inserting the third address as an argument of a command RCPT TO for allow the message to be forwarded to an additional destination. According to another particular feature, the device according to the invention comprises means for consulting a database containing, for a plurality of user addresses, separate electronic addresses of ~ o transfer associated with them, the third means process controlling the means of consultation to determine the third address. According to another particularity, the processing module comprises second transformation means for transforming said second >> user address into a message header, these second transformation means adding a domain name designating a provider server and inserting before the domain name added a point type separator to distinguish the original domain name from the added domain name. According to another feature, the electronic message transfer system comprises a reverse header processing module for transforming, in the header of an electronic response message, the sender address formed by the third address by substituting for this third address the second user address, so as to mask the third address for recipients of a reply e-mail message. In another feature, the electronic message transfer system includes a reverse header processing module for transforming modified addresses including an added domain into the header of an e-mail message. inverse processing comprising means for re-transforming, in message header, modified addresses used as destination addresses for retrieving shortened destination addresses, the retransmitting means removing the added domain name designating said provider server and removing the separator character. According to another particularity, the transfer system comprises an electronic mail interface with an SMTP-type mail server and comprising discrimination means making it possible to select electronic messages having modified addresses including a domain in their header. added, by detecting the characters according to the separating character and defining the added domain, the discriminating means ro for providing selected electronic messages to the inverse header processing module. According to another particularity, the transfer system comprises an electronic mail interface equipped with an SMTP type mail server, which makes it possible both to receive specific electronic messages that are to be processed by the header processing module and response message messages to the determined messages, to be processed by the reverse header processing module, the email interface comprising discrimination means between the determined messages and the response messages. According to another particularity, the reverse header processing module has means for extracting context data in a database and uses these context data to transform the modified addresses in the header of the database. an e-mail message. Thus, it is allowed for example to retrieve the second address from the third address. A further object of the invention is to use a device for automatic transformation of e-mail message header addresses to allow referrals of response messages to a specific server. For this purpose, the invention relates to a use of an electronic address transformation device according to the invention, characterized in that the header processing module is used to modify in it the header of messages received any address other than that corresponding to the server associated with the transfer system, by adding an additional domain name. For example, the received incoming messages in a network controlled by a radiotelephone operator (the address associated with the sender not being linked to this network) can thus, after transformation, include in the header "carrying" addresses. "additional domain name. Response messages using these transformed addresses (as recipient addresses) will then be considered for example as outgoing messages from the operator controlled network. Inverse transformations can then be performed for the outgoing messages before they are transferred out of the operator's network. The invention, with its features and advantages, will emerge more clearly on reading the description given with reference to the appended drawings given by way of non-limiting examples in which: FIG. 1 shows an example of transforming electronic addresses permit according to the invention; FIG. 2 schematically represents an example of a device for transforming electronic addresses contained in the header of an electronic mail according to the invention; FIG. 3 schematically shows a module for the inverse processing of headers within a device according to the invention, making it possible to modify the electronic addresses contained in the header of an electronic response message; FIG. 4 represents another example of implementation of the method according to the invention, in which a user collects and replies to messages on a mobile radio terminal without his "mobility" appearing for the correspondents.

  DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION The method according to the invention is adapted to allow forwarding or forwarding of electronic messages in the form of e-mails, MMS messages or the like without revealing to its correspondent an e-mail address. personal. The method aims to modify, in the headers of electronic messages of the e-mail or similar type, the addresses so as to allow a user responding to the message not to reveal a personal address but instead to keep an address Io "intermediary" also called redirection address in his e-mail exchanges with his correspondents. The revelation of the personal address occurs for example in the following case: Bob has configured his account Operator X so that the electronic mails he receives on the address bob@operateurx.com are transferred to his personal account , for example bob@wanadoo.fr; When Alice writes to Bob from alice@yahoo.fr to bob@wanadoo.fr, Bob receives this message on his X Operator account; - This message is transferred so that the e-mail is received at the address bob@wanadoo.fr (From From field: Alice@yahoo.fr, To field: bob@neurx.com); - Bob responds to this email from the webmail of 25 wanadoo or from his messaging software (accessible with his mobile radio terminal); - Alice then receives an email reply whose sender is the personal address bob@wanadoo.fr and not bob @ operatorx.com). 3o It is clear that the personal address bob@wanadoo.fr is revealed to Alice. To avoid this, the method according to the invention makes it possible to make specific modifications for passing the response emails by at least one intermediate address corresponding to a provider server of the operator. It can be provided as many intermediate addresses as recipients of the message. In the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the method provides for modifying the e-mail addresses contained in the headers of an e-mail to be transferred. This modification is made before transferring the received electronic mail to an "intermediary" address, via a system (1) for the transfer of electronic messages. With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the method according to the invention is in fact implemented by a system (1) for transferring electronic messages from a messaging server equipped with a module (10) for processing messages. e-mail headers. The method applies when an electronic message has been previously transmitted from subscriber sending / subscribing electronic means to a mail server and identified by a first user address (Al) to a recipient e-mail box identified by a second user address (A2), the server of the transfer system (1) being designated via the second user address (A2). In one embodiment of the invention, an electronic mail interface (15) associated with the electronic message transfer system (1) is provided in particular for receiving and forwarding e-mails. This interface (15) makes it possible to communicate with computer machines (31, 32) connected to a network of Internet type or the like. With reference to FIG. 2, the transfer system (1) comprises means (100) for duplicating the electronic messages and a communication interface (2) with a radio network (N) to enable a transfer of first electronic messages to a mobile radio terminal (3). Second modified header electronic messages are also transferred by the processing module (10) to a personal email account, which second electronic messages are obtained from copies provided by the duplicate means (100). The second messages are transferred from the processing module (10) to the electronic mail interface (15) which transfers these second messages to a destination address distinct from the address associated with the mobile radio terminal (3).

  In other words, after the step (SO) of receiving the electronic message by the transfer system (1), the processing module (10) allows the further routing of the electronic message and simultaneously, makes the necessary modifications in the e-mail headers to ensure the transfer of a copy of message to the personal address, for example bob@aol.fr in the example of Figure 1. The routing of the electronic message to a "mobile" address can be enabled by a communication interface (2) of the transfer system (1) with a radiotelephone network (N). The e-mail message having undergone the modifications is then conveyed, for example in the form of an MMS message, to the mobile radio terminal (3) during a transmission step (S11) (to reach the destination corresponding to the address bob@sfr.mobi in the example of Figure 1). The transfer step (S2) for the other destination makes it possible to send to a personal account / "fixed" address (bob@aol.fr in the example of FIG. 1) the copy of the electronic message whose header comprises addresses modified appropriately during the transformation step (S12). The transfer system (1) may have a Domain Name System (DNS) server or communicate with a DNS-like server to enable e-mail routing, taking into account the destination addresses that are inserted into an SMTP command. RCPT TO. The DNS server is part of the Internet infrastructure and is used transparently. The messages are sent by the transfer system (1) from a server belonging to the same domain as the sender address. In other words, the address passed in the SMTP MAIL command 3o FROM is used for sending messages.

  In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the step (S12) of transformation carried out before the transfer (S2) to the personal account comprises a modification in the header of the message received by the system (1), by the header processing module (10), the first user address (A1) and at least one destination address of the message including the second user address (A2). In particular, the transformation step (S12) provides for the first user address (Al): a step of adding at the end of an address, after the domain name of the access provider, a name additional domain designating a provider server; and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character (4). The address rewriting thus carried out makes it possible, in case of response, to designate the domain through which the messages must transit, for example sfr.mobi in the case of FIG. 1. In addition, the transformation step (S12) can include a substitution, in the header of the copy of the electronic message, of the second user address (A2) by a third address (A3) associated with the same user. The use of this third address (A3), in this case bob@aol.fr in the example of Figure 1, allows the transfer of the message to the additional destination. This third address is inserted for this in argument of the command RCPT TO. Thus, in the case of FIG. 1, Bob can consult the message copied from his computer machine (32) and respond to this message if necessary (by the function "reply" or "reply-all" for example) without the address bob@aol.fr is revealed on the computer machine (31) to Alice. In one embodiment of the invention, the substitution of the second address (A2) by the third address (A3) is performed after a consultation of a database (DB) of the transfer system (1). This database (DB) contains, for example, for a plurality of user addresses, separate transfer electronic addresses associated with them.

  In order that the address to be masked does not appear whatever the recipient of the response, the transformation step (S12) may comprise for each of the destination addresses to be modified other than said second user address (A2): s - a step of adding at the end of the address a domain name designating said provider server; and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character (4). Thus, persons receiving a copy (indicated in the CC o field of the header) of the original message sent from the sender electronic means identified by a first user address (Al) will also not be able to receive answers revealing the personal address bob@aol.fr. Indeed, to each of the potential recipients of a response message (made from the received message) corresponds to a modified address 1s which allows the transmission of the response message by the transfer system (1). In the example of Figure 1, if the address carine@hotmail.com is in the CC field of the header of the initial message, then a reply-all message will indicate an address modified with the domain name "hotmail.com" embedded in an extended domain name, ending with .sfr.mobi. It is understood that the system (1) for transferring electronic messages has an IP (Internet Protocol) address corresponding to at least one determined domain name, sfr.mobi in the example of FIG. 1, to receive these electronic messages. . With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the step (SO) of receiving the electronic message by the transfer system (1) comprises the use of a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) type mail server. This server is also used to route response e-mail messages to the received message to a reverse header processing module (12) of the transfer system (1). 3o Thus, in the example of FIGS. 1 and 3, the step (S3) of transmitting a response message from Bob's computer machine (32) makes it possible to route the response mail to the module (12). reverse header processing. The SMTP type mail server is for example provided in the email interface (15). The email interface (15) includes discriminating means for determining the electronic messages whose headers are to be modified for the first time and the response electronic messages whose headers are to be modified for the second time. In one embodiment of the invention, the discriminating means of the electronic mail interface (15) performs a selection of the electronic messages having in their header modified addresses including the added domain name and a password character. separation (4) such as a dot before this added domain name. These messages which have already undergone a modification of their header can be selected by detecting the end of the added address, which starts from the inserted separator character (4). The discriminating means then supplies the selected electronic messages to the header reverse processing module (12). It will be understood that the electronic mail transfers allowed with the method according to the invention are carried out simply by using the standard SMTP protocol. The mail of a server can therefore be transferred from one server to another in point-to-point connection. The initial request to send e-mail can be formulated in a traditional way, according to the following scenario for example: - When opening the SMTP session, the first command to send is the command HELO or EHLO followed by a space (noted 25 <S, P>) and the domain name of the machine (to say "hello I am such a machine"), then it remains to validate by entry (noted <CRLF>); The second command is "MAIL FROM .:" followed by the e-mail address of the sender. If the command is accepted, the server 30 returns the message "250 OK".

  The following command is "RCPT TO:" followed by the recipient's e-mail address. If the command is accepted the server returns the message "250 0K". - The DATA command is the third step of sending. It announces the beginning of the body of the message. If the command is accepted the server returns an intermediate message numbered 354 indicating that the sending of the body of the mail can begin and considers all the following lines until the end of the message identified by a line containing only one point. The Io body of the mail may contain some of the following headers Date - Subject - Cc 15 - IBcc - IFrom The To field can also be used. If the command is accepted, the server returns the message "250 OK." With reference to FIG. 2, in particular to enable the address of the sender to be reconstructed, the processing module (10) comprises first transformation means. (41), in the message header, of the first user address (Al) .These first transformation means (41) add a domain name designating the provider server (for example sfr.mobi) and insert before the domain name 25 added the point type separator character (4) which distinguishes the original domain name from the added domain name, thus the length of the domain name in the modified address is lengthened and retains information from the domain name initially assigned to the first user address (Al) In the example of Figure 1, the sender name Alice 3o can be kept but the domain name becomes yahoo.fr.sfr.mobi in the modified address (A1 ') of dispatch The first transformation means (41) thus generate a point. In a less advantageous embodiment, an equivalent separation character (4) is generated. The use of the separating character (4) facilitates the detection of a domain addition at the end of the address by discrimination means of the transfer system (1). As illustrated in FIG. 2, the processing module (10) also comprises second message header transformation means (42) of each of the destination addresses to be modified other than said second user address (A2). ). These second transformation means make it possible to add a domain name designating the provider server and insert before the added domain name a separation character (4) of type point making it possible to distinguish the initial domain name from the added domain name. The character (4) of separation can be identical to that 'used for the modification of the first address 1s of user (Al). The third processing means (43) of the processing module (10) make it possible to substitute, in the header of a copy of the electronic message generated by the duplication means (100), an additional address called third address (A3). ) at the second user address (A2). The additional address can be retrieved by database lookup means (DB). The third transformation means (43) control for example these means of consultation to determine the third address (A3) which will allow a transfer of electronic rnessage to a personal account of the recipient user (bob@aol.fr in the case of Figure 1). Referring to FIGS. 1 and 3, to allow the third address (A3) and the domain name added to the different destination addresses to be masked for recipients of a reply e-mail message, the message transfer system (1) electronics comprises a module (12) for inverse processing of headers. This module (12) of 3o inverse processing replaces, in the header of a response e-mail message, the sender address formed by said third address (A3) by the second user address (A2). Thus, the reply electronic mail processed by the transfer system (1) and transmitted in particular to the computer machine (31) of the initial sender (Alice in the scenario of Figure 1) in the transmission step (S5) no longer has a trace of the third address (A3) of the user. The substitution address can of course be obtained by the inverse processing module (12) via the database consultation means (DB). The second address (A2) and the third address (A3) are mapped into this database (DB). The correspondence can be established by the user himself. Alternatively, several bases of ~ o data can be used. In one embodiment of the invention, the user may have several third addresses. A filter system can forward emails to one of these addresses according to user-defined rules. The use of different addresses of this type is for example to sort the professional emails of personal emails. In addition, the header reverse processing module (12) may be used to transform modified email addresses including the added domain name preceded by the separator character into the header of an electronic message ( 4). The inverse processing module (12) comprises for this purpose means for re-transformation (45), in the message header, of modified addresses used as destination addresses. These address retransfer means provide an inverse rewrite so as to retrieve shortened destination addresses (DAs). The domain name retrieved is from the extended part of the domain name introduced during the transformation step (S12). The retransmitting means (45) remove the added domain name used to direct the response message to the provider server associated with the transfer system (1). The point forming the separator character (4) is then deleted.

  In variant embodiments, the module (12) for inverse header processing may also have means for extracting context data in a database (BD) and use these context data to transform the modified addresses. in the header of an e-mail message. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, it is understood that the inverse transformation step (S4) using the inverse processing module (12) comprises a reverse substitution performed for the sender address of the response message with respect to the substitution carried out for the destination address of the initial message during the transformation step (S12). The inverse transformation step (S4) is thus applied to an electronic response message sent from a sender means associated with the third address (A3). The transformation step (S12) may comprise a stolen processing of the addresses to be modified by the header processing module (10), the resulting electronic message being immediately transmitted to an SMTP server with the modified addresses. Similarly, the inverse transformation step (S4) may comprise an on-the-fly transformation of the modified addresses to be transformed by the header reverse processing module (10), the resulting electronic message being immediately transmitted to a user. SMTP server with the transformed addresses. The names displayed in the display name field can be preserved. The displayed names corresponding respectively to the second address (A2) and the third address (A3) can be configured by the user with associated electronic addresses (A2, A3). In one embodiment of the invention, the name to be displayed as display name and associated with the third user address (A3) in the response e-mail message is removed. Another example of implementation of the method according to the invention will now be described with reference to FIG. 4.

  In some cases, it may be advantageous to perform an email relay between two partner operators to route an e-mail message. A transformation step (S12 ') similar to step (S12) of FIG. 1 can then be performed by a first transfer system (101) for transmitting the electronic mail to a second transfer system (102). The second transfer system (102) may for example have the interface (2) with a radio network (N) to route an electronic message to a mobile radio terminal (3). The structure of these transfer systems is for example of the same type ~ o that of the transfer system (1) described in connection with Figures 1 to 3. The first system (101) may however be devoid of radiocommunication interface. As illustrated in FIG. 4, a step (S12 ') of transformation comparable to the above-mentioned step (S12) comprises for said second user address (A2) a specific treatment with: a step of adding at the end of address of a domain name designating a provider server (partner); and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character (4).

Step (S12) of transformation provided in the case of Figure 4 does not provide address substitution for the recipient but adds a domain name corresponding to a partner. For example, the first system (101) can be associated with the laposte.net domain and the second system (102) can be associated with the sfr.mobi domain. If the sender Alice sends an initial message from his computer machine (31) using an address bob@laposte.net, then it is the first system (101) transfer that will make the changes in the header of the e-mail sent according to the sending step (50). The transformation step (S12 ') then makes it possible to modify the sender address called the first user address (Al) by inserting the .laposte.net domain name, in the same way as for the step ( S12) of Figure 1. In contrast, the address of: 23 recipient must be modified by inserting the domain name of the partner provider server, that is to say .sfr.mobi. Thanks to this specific transformation step (S12 '), the electronic mail is not sent directly to the addressee but relayed to the second transfer system (102) during a relay step (51). In the example of FIG. 4, this second system (102) will allow the sending (52) of the electronic message in the form of an MMS message to the mobile radio terminal (3) of Bob, thanks to an interface ( 2) associated with this second system (102). lo For this, the method comprises a step (S4 ') of inverse transformation applied to the intermediate electronic message having undergone the step (S12') of transformation and transmitted by the first system (101) for the transfer of electronic messages. This step (S4 ') provides for removing the added domain names and deleting the separator character (4).

The addresses that will be displayed for the recipient Bob will therefore be the initial addresses present in the header of the email sent from the machine (31) of the user Alice. In case of response from the terminal (3) of the user Bob, for example by MMS message, the second transfer system (102) naturally performs a reception (53) of the message, for example via the interface ( 2) with the radiotelephone network (N). A transformation step (S12 ") analogous to step (S12 ') is performed to route a response e-mail to the first transfer system (101) during a return relay step (54). first system (101) then performs an inverse transformation step (S14 ") applied to the intermediate electronic message having undergone the transforming step (S12") Finally, the user Alice of the computer machine (31) does not does not take into account the "mobility" of Bob since the domain name sfr.mobi is deleted each time during the steps (S4 ', S4 ") of inverse transformation. It is understood that the domain name added at the end of the first user address (Al) during the transformation step (S12 ') is specific to the transfer system (101) which receives the message. Thus, when an initial message is dialed from a mobile terminal (3) in the example of FIG. 4, the domain name added in the sender address is different because the message is first received by the second transfer system (102). One of the advantages of the invention is to allow the maintenance of an intermediate address to avoid revealing a personal email account. In the example in Figure 1, Alice will continue to write Bob with the address bob@sfr.mobi, even if Bob replies from his personal account. This also encourages more frequent use of the functions of the mobile radio terminal (3). The transformed headers also remain relatively ergonomic for the user Bob. Another advantage of the method according to the invention is that it is not necessary to use special characters, which may cause blocking by anti-spam devices. Only one dot and an additional domain name are added at the end of the address. Emails transferred by a .sfr.mobi transfer system will pass the SPF checks. It should be obvious to those skilled in the art that the present invention allows embodiments in many other specific forms without departing from the scope of the invention as claimed. Therefore, the present embodiments should be considered by way of illustration, but may be modified within the scope defined by the scope of the appended claims and the invention should not be limited to the details given above.

Claims (28)

  1. A method for transforming electronic addresses contained in the header of an electronic mail, implemented by a system (1) for transferring electronic messages from a mail server equipped with a module (10) method for processing e-mail headers, comprising a step of transmitting an electronic message from an electronic subscriber subscriber / attached to a mail server and identified by a first user address (Al) to at least a recipient e-mail box identified by at least one Io second user address (A2), the server of the transfer system (1) being designated at least via the second user address (A2), characterized in that it comprises a step (SO) for receiving the electronic message by the transfer system (1) followed by a transformation step (S12) using the header processing module (10) for modifying d in the header the first user address (Al) and one or more destination addresses of the message among which said second user address (A2), the transformation step (S12) comprising for 'the first address user (Al): a step of adding at the end of the address after the domain name of the service provider of an additional domain name designating a provider server; and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character (4).   2. Method according to claim 1, wherein the transformation step (S12) comprises for each of the destination addresses to be modified other than said second user address (A2): a step of adding at the end of the address a domain name designating said provider server; and - an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character (4).   3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, comprising a step of duplicating the electronic message sent from the sender electronic means, the method comprising: a step (SI 1) of transmission of the electronic message to a mobile radio terminal (3) by via a communication interface (2) of the transfer system (1) with a radiotelephone network (N); and - a transfer step (S2) for another destination of a copy of the electronic message whose header comprises addresses ~ o modified using the step (S12) of transformation; said transforming step (S12) comprising using a third address (A3) associated with the same user in substitution of the second address (A2), to allow the transfer of the message to said other destination. 1;   The method according to claim 3, wherein the substitution is performed after a consultation of a database (DB) of the transfer system (1) containing, for a plurality of user addresses, separate electronic addresses of transfer associated with them.   5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transformation step (S12 ') comprises for said second user address (A2): a step of adding at the end of the address a domain name designating said provider server; and an insertion step, before the added domain name, of a point type separation character (4). 25   The method of claim 3, comprising an inverse transformation step (S4) using a reverse header processing module (12) of the transfer system (1) to transform into the header of a message. electronic response of the modified addresses resulting from the transformation step (S12), the reverse transformation step (S4) comprising a reverse substitution performed for the sender address, wherein the second user address (A2 ) replaces the third address (A3).   7. Method according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it comprises a step (S4) of inverse transformation using a module (12) of inverse processing of headers of the system (1) transfer to transform into the header of an electronic message the modified addresses resulting from the transformation step (S12), the inverse transformation step (S4) comprising for each of the destination addresses: a step of withdrawal of the domain name designating the provider server; a step of deleting said separation character.   The method of claim 7 when dependent on claim 3, wherein the inverse transformation step (S4) is applied to a response e-mail message sent from a sender means associated with the third address (A3), to allow to hide the domain name added during the transformation step (S12).   The method of claim 7 or 8, wherein the step (SO) of receiving the electronic message by the transfer system (1) comprises the use of an SMTP messaging server which is also used to forwarding response e-mail messages to the received message to the reverse header processing module (12).   The method of claim 7, wherein the reverse transformation step (S4 ') is applied to an intermediate electronic message which has undergone a processing step (S12') and transmitted by a first (101) transfer system. electronic messages, the intermediate electronic message being received by a second electronic message transfer system (102) similar to the first system (101), the domain name added in the first user address (A1) during the step ( S12 ') for transmitting an intermediate electronic message being specific to the first transfer system (101).   11. The method of claim 10, wherein the transformation step (S112 ') is performed by the first transfer system (101) and comprises for the second user address (Al) an addition of a domain name designating a provider server associated with the second transfer system (102).   12. Method according to one of claims 1 to 11, comprising a communication step between the system (1) transfer and a server type DNS to allow routing of the electronic message taking into account the modified destination addresses that are inserted in Io an SMTP RCPT TO command.   13. Method according to one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the step (S12) of transformation comprises an on-the-fly modification of the addresses to be modified by the module (10) for processing headers, the resulting message being immediately forwarded to an SMTP server with the modified addresses. i>   The method according to one of claims 6 to 13, wherein the step (S4) of inverse transformation comprises an on-the-fly modification of the modified addresses to be transformed by the module (10) of inverse processing of headers, the message Resultant being immediately transmitted to an SMTP server with the transformed addresses. 20   15. Method according to one of claims 6 to 13, wherein the step (S4) of inverse transformation comprises a step of extracting correspondence data in a database (BD), the module (12) of inverse processing d Headers using these match data to transform modified addresses into the header of an electronic message.   16. A device for transforming electronic addresses contained in the header of an electronic mail, comprising an electronic message transfer system (1) provided with a module (10) for processing mail headers electronic and having a server IP address 3o corresponding to at least one domain name determined to receive electronic messages, each sent from a sender electronic means identified by a first user address (Al) and subscribed / attached to a server designated by a domain name, each received message designating at least one recipient attached to the determined domain name via a second user address (A2), characterized in that the module (10) for processing a heads comprises means for modifying in the header of messages received by the system (1) the first user address (A1) and at least one destination address of the message including said second th user address ~ o (A2), the processing module (10) comprising first transformation means (41), in the message header, of the first user address (Al), these first means of transformation (41) adding an additional domain name designating a provider server and inserting a separator character (4) of i before the added domain name; point type to distinguish the original domain name from the added domain name.   Apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the processing module (10) comprises second message header transforming means (42) of each of the destination addresses to be modified other than said second address. user (A2), said second transforming means (42) adding a domain name designating a provider server and inserting before the added domain name a separator character (4) of type point to distinguish the initial domain name from the name Domain added.   18. Device according to claim 16 or 17, wherein the transfer system (1) comprises means (100) for duplicating the electronic messages and a communication interface (2) with a radio network (N) to enable a transfer. first electronic messages to a mobile radio terminal (3). 30   The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the processing module (10) transmits second modified header electronic messages, obtained from copies provided by the duplicate means (100), to an electronic mail interface. (15) to allow a transfer of these second messages to a destination address distinct from an address associated with a mobile radio terminal (3).   20. Device according to claim 18 or 19, wherein the processing module (10) comprises third transformation means (43) for substituting Na second user address (A2) a third address (A3) associated with the same user. the third transforming means (43) inserting the third address (A3) as an argument to an RCPT TO command to allow the transfer of the message to an additional destination.   Apparatus according to claim 20, comprising database look-up means (DB) containing, for a plurality of user addresses, separate transfer electronic addresses associated with them, the third means of transformation (43) controlling the consultation means to determine the third address (A3).   Apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, wherein the processing module (10) comprises second transformation means (42) for transforming (said second user address (A2) into a message header, these second transformation means (42) adding a domain name designating a provider server and inserting before the added domain name a point type separation character (4) to distinguish the initial domain name from the added domain name.   Apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the electronic message transfer system (1) includes a reverse header processing module (12) for transforming into the header of an electronic response message. , the sender address formed by said third address (A3) substituting for that third address (A3) the second user address (A2), so as to mask the third address (A3) for recipients of a message electronic answer.   24. Device according to one of claims 16 to 23, wherein the system (1) for transferring electronic messages comprises a module (12) of reverse processing of headers to transform, in the header of a message electronic, modified addresses including the added domain, the reverse processing module (12) including means (45), in message header, of modified addresses used as destination addresses for retrieving destination addresses shortened, the re-transformation means (45) removing the added domain name designating said provider server and removing the separator character (4).   Apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the transfer system (1) comprises an electronic mail interface (15) having an SMTP-type mail server and comprising discriminating means for selecting electronic messages having in their header modified addresses including an added domain, character detection according to the separator character (4) and defining the added domain, discriminating means for providing selected electronic messages to the processing module (12) inverse of headers.   Device according to claim 24 or 25, wherein the transfer system (1) comprises an electronic mail interface (15) equipped with an SMTP type mail server, allowing both to receive specific electronic messages to processing by the headers processing module (10) and the response messages to the determined messages to be processed by the headers inverse processing module (12), the electronic mail interface (15) comprising discrimination means between the determined messages and the response messages.   27. Device according to one of claims 24 to 26, wherein the module (12) of reverse header processing has means for extracting context data in a database (BD) and uses these context data to transform the modified addresses in the header of an e-mail message.   28. Use of the electronic address transformation device according to claim 16, characterized in that the header processing module (10) is used to modify in the header of messages received any address other than that corresponding to the server associated with the transfer system (1), by adding an additional domain name.