JP2010015417A - Incoming notification server and message server system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve authentication corresponding to a secret level such as the presence/absence of incoming (the number of items of incoming), sender and subject, and content (text) of a message. <P>SOLUTION: An incoming notification server includes: a means for confirming the incoming of a message in a message server connected to the Intranet separated from the Internet by a fire wall; a means for encrypting the sender name and subject of the message by the key of a client; and a means for transmitting the number of items of the message and the encrypted sender and subject in response to an inquiry for the incoming of the message from the client connected to the Internet. Also, the message server system is configured of an incoming notification server and a message server. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a technique in which a user on the Internet side securely and simply confirms an incoming mail in an intranet separated from the Internet by a firewall.

Conventionally, confirmation of incoming mail from an intranet separated from the Internet by a firewall from the Internet side is performed by remotely accessing the PC connected to the intranet from the Internet side, logging on, starting the mailer, and checking. It was. The security level for such remote access differs between the confirmation of the presence / absence of an incoming mail and the number of mails, the list display of the subject of the mail, the display of the contents, and the reply. Therefore, mail in the intranet is used with remote access that matches the highest confidentiality level.

  An information distribution server disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-215630 (Patent Document 1) transmits / receives individual information corresponding to map information based on predetermined authentication information to / from an information terminal device, thereby protecting security. Is used in the information terminal device.

JP 2002-215630 A

In the conventional handling of confidential information, confidentiality protection corresponding to the highest confidentiality level of the information to be handled is required, and the qualified person who handles the confidentiality is authenticated even on the intranet. Even when accessing information on the intranet from the Internet side, the qualified person who handles confidential information is authenticated at the time of remote access or logon.

  The confidential information handled in the intranet includes mail and instant messenger messages in addition to documents. Regarding mail and instant messenger messages, the user's interests are the presence / absence of an incoming call, the sender, the subject, and the content (text). Conventionally, remote access to an intranet with the authentication of a qualified person who handles explicit confidentiality simply by checking the presence / absence of incoming calls (number of incoming calls) in order to seek security that is appropriate for the confidentiality level of the content (text) Was demanded.

An incoming notification server which is one aspect of the present invention is a means for confirming the arrival of a message to a message server connected to an intranet separated by the Internet and a firewall, and encrypts the sender name and subject of the message with a client key. And means for transmitting the number of messages and the encrypted sender and subject in response to an inquiry about the arrival of a message from a client connected to the Internet.

  In another aspect of the present invention, a message server connected to an intranet separated from the Internet and a firewall, the number of messages received at the message server, the sender name and the subject are received, and the sender name and subject of the message are received by the client. It is a message server system having an incoming call notification server that returns the number of messages and the encrypted sender and subject in response to an inquiry about the arrival of a message from a client connected to the Internet, encrypted using a key.

  Still another aspect of the present invention is to connect a client connected to the Internet and an intranet separated by the Internet and a firewall, divide the message into a subject and a caller, and a main body, hold the number of messages, This is a message server system provided with message servers that authenticate at different authentication levels in response to inquiries about the number of cases with different security levels, subject and sender, and main body.

According to the present invention, it is possible to realize authentication corresponding to a confidential level such as presence / absence (number of incoming calls) of a message, sender and subject, and contents (text). When confirming the number of incoming intranet messages and confirming the caller and subject by using multi-step authentication that requires simple authentication for low-confidential information and complicated and secure authentication for highly-sensitive information Remote access to the intranet with authentication of a qualified person who handles explicit confidentiality is not required.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described as Example 1 and Example 2.

Example 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. In the figure, 21 is an information processing apparatus (client), 22 is an incoming call notification server, 23 is an agent in an in-house network (intranet), specifically messenger software running on an information processing apparatus such as a PC, and 24 is an in-house network. The message server 25 is a third party message server outside the company.

  The operation of the information processing apparatus 21 will be described with reference to FIG. The information processing device 21 periodically inquires of the incoming notification server 22 whether or not a message has arrived, and the arrival number notification notifies the arrival of the message from the incoming notification server 22 (10).

  At this time, the information processing apparatus 21 receives the sender and subject that are incidental information other than the main body of the message that has arrived at the message server 24 from the incoming call notification server 22.

  When an event occurs during the number display (10) operation, the routine corresponding to each event is processed and the display returns to the number display (10).

  When the timer interrupt (101) occurs, the information processing apparatus 21 inquires of the incoming notification server 22 whether or not a message has arrived using polling / push (11), and when the incoming message is received, the incoming notification server 22 pushes the incident. Receive information. When the processing is completed, the display returns to the number display (102), and the information processing apparatus 21 grasps the number of messages from the received incidental information and displays it (10). Thereafter, polling / push (11) is repeated each time a timer interrupt occurs.

  The incoming call notification server 22 performs authentication using the unique identifier of the communication interface of the information processing apparatus 21 when making an inquiry by polling / push (11). Specifically, a simple authentication process is performed for confirming a fixed ID such as a MAC address possessed by the network adapter, a telephone number possessed by the modem, or a subscriber number. If the authentication is successful, the incoming call notification server 22 receives the incident information other than the main body of the message encrypted by the key that the information processing device 21 has in plain text or the public key that the information processing device 21 has made public. To 21.

  When the mouse or trackpad button is clicked (103) (selected) by the user (user) on the icon or window of the number display (10), an event occurs and transitions to local authentication (104) Wait for user authentication using a user identifier or the like. If authentication fails or the time expires, the display returns to the number of cases (105). When the authentication is successful, the sender name and subject that are not concealed in the number display (10) are displayed in the subject display (12) from the incidental information already received. The information processing apparatus 21 displays and displays the sender name and the subject name with a key (common key or secret key) held by the information processing apparatus 21 on the basis of successful authentication. When the subject is not clicked in the subject display (12) and the time expires, the display returns to the number display (105) and the incidental information is not displayed.

  When the subject is clicked (121) while the subject is displayed, the information processing apparatus 21 attempts remote access (122) to the agent 23 in the in-house network via the Internet over the FireWall. In remote access (122), authentication is performed with FireWall, and after successful authentication, a VPN (virtual private network) is constructed and reaches the internal network. User authentication is performed when logging on to the agent 23 of the in-house network. If the authentication is successful, the screen transitions to content display / playback (13), and the content is displayed or played back in the window pane of the number display (10) window. If the user explicitly disconnects after display or playback, or if the communication environment is disconnected for some reason during remote access with a mobile phone, the content display / playback (13) ends and the contents of the window pane are discarded. Is / hides and returns to the subject display (124). Return to the subject display and click again to try remote access (122). If you leave it alone and the time expires, you will return to the number display (105) and no additional information will be displayed.

  According to FIG. 1, a fixed ID such as the MAC address of the network adapter of the information processing apparatus 21, the telephone number of the modem, or the subscriber number is used for the inquiry to the incoming notification server 22 for displaying the number of cases. Do not use user information, especially email or instant messenger accounts. A key (common key or secret key) possessed by the information processing device 21 is used to display the sender name and subject name, which are incidental information. By doing so, it becomes difficult for a third party to associate the number of users with incidental information.

  For display / reproduction of contents, the use qualification of the internal network is performed by FireWall and the user is authenticated by the agent 23. In this way, different authentications are used to display the number of cases, the sender name and the subject name, which are incidental information, and the contents, and different authentications depending on the confidentiality of the information handled by the information processing device 21. The level is set.

  The outline of the message server system will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 2, a mail server (message server) 24 of the in-house network (intranet) sends and receives e-mail and instant messenger messages, distributes them to mailboxes, and responds to the POP protocol from the mailer of the user agent 23. Do. In addition, voice mail recording and storage, distribution to the user agent 23, registration of a schedule, and notification (remind) to the user agent 23 are performed.

  The mail server 24 of the in-house network performs mail transmission / reception (201) irregularly with an external mail server 25 connected to the Internet, and the received mail is distributed to the corresponding user's mailbox according to the destination.

  The incoming call notification server 22 periodically checks (202) the incoming call to the mail server 24. When there is a new incoming call after the previous incoming call confirmation, the mail server 24 is requested for a header including the sender and subject, which is incidental information other than the main body of the message, and the header is acquired (203). The incoming call notification server 22 encrypts (204) incidental information other than the main body of the acquired message with a key possessed by the information processing apparatus 21 or a public key publicized by the information processing apparatus 21.

  The information processing apparatus 21 periodically checks (205) the incoming call notification server 22 independently of the above-described processes 201-204. If the incoming call notification server 22 has acquired (203) the header from the mail server 24 after the previous periodic incoming call confirmation (205), the information processing device 21 receives the number of plaintexts and the information processing device from the incoming call notification server 22. Accompanying information other than the main body of the message encrypted with the key possessed by the information processing apparatus 21 or the public key made public by the information processing apparatus 21 is acquired (206). When the header is not acquired, information indicating that the number of cases is 0 is acquired (206). Update the number display (207) to reflect the number acquired (206).

  When the incoming call notification server 22 transmits the sender and subject, which are additional information other than the main body of the message, to the information processing apparatus 21, the encrypted sender and subject are associated with color information in plain text and transmitted. Since the color information does not need to be concealed, it is transmitted equally.

  In the information processing apparatus 21, independently of the above-described processes 205 to 207, when a mail icon or the like is clicked by the user, an event is generated and the user is authenticated by local authentication (208). If authentication fails or the time expires, the display returns to the count display. When the authentication is successful, the sender name and the subject that are not concealed and displayed in the number display from the incidental information already received are displayed in the subject display (209). The information processing apparatus 21 displays and displays the sender name and the subject name with a key (common key or secret key) held by the information processing apparatus 21 on the basis of successful authentication. Based on the color information transmitted from the incoming call notification server 22 in association with the caller name or the subject, for example, it is displayed in an area filled with that color. When the subject is not clicked in the subject display (209) and the time expires, the display returns to the number display (207) and the incidental information is not displayed.

  When an event occurs when the subject is clicked in the subject display (209), the information processing apparatus 21 attempts remote access to the agent 23 in the in-house network over the FireWall via the Internet. In remote access, authentication is performed with FireWall (210), and after successful authentication, a VPN (virtual private network) is constructed and reaches the internal network. User authentication is performed when logging on to the agent 23 of the in-house network. If the authentication is successful, the user agent 23 returns (211) from the startup or power saving mode to the normal operation mode. In FIG. 2, the user agent 23 is always in the power saving mode when there is no remote access, but can also operate in the normal operation mode.

  When the user agent 23 returns to the normal operation mode (211), it tries to send / receive (212) mail to / from the mail server 24 in the in-house network, and acquires unread mail from the user's mailbox. The acquired mail is displayed / reproduced (214) by the user agent 23 using the mailer of the user agent 23. This display screen is transferred to the information processing apparatus 21 by the remote display protocol and displayed on the information processing apparatus 21 (213). Is done.

  The mail server 24 acquires the header (203) by the incoming call notification server 22 at a timing independent of the above-described processes 201 to 214, and then the information processing apparatus 21 acquires (206) the header and knows that the message has arrived. Check if it has been read (215). By this confirmation, the mail server 24 of the in-house network informs the instant messenger on the in-house network whether or not the message is reachable to the user of the information processing apparatus 21.

  In the above description using FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the message server (mail server) 24 and the incoming call notification server 22 have been described as being separated in order to make the description easy to understand. The function of the incoming call notification server 22 may be configured as part of the function of the message server (mail server) 24.

  The number display (10) will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 shows how the number of cases is displayed. When the information processing device 21 includes a plurality of display devices, the number is displayed on one of the display devices, for example, the sub liquid crystal. When a plurality of display devices are not provided, a part of the task bar of the window system displayed by the information processing device 21, the title bar and the toolbar decorating the window is occupied and displayed.

  The display of the number of cases in FIG. 3 displays the number of cases when the display (30) is at time 08:46 and the display (31) is at time 11:12.

  At time 08:46, the display (30) informs the arrival of the mail with the mail icon (301) and the number of cases (302). The mail icon (301) is displayed brightly in a dark color or a conspicuous color, and 3 and 1 are displayed as the number of incoming calls in the number (302). The upper 3 of the number of incoming calls indicates the total, and the lower 1 indicates the number of messages with a high degree of urgency. For messages with a high degree of urgency, the number of instant messenger messages is added to the number of mails determined by the incoming call notification server 22 based on the mail sender, subject, and attributes.

  Next to it is a voicemail icon (303) and the number of voicemails (304), which informs you that there are still voicemails. The voice mail icon (303) is brightly displayed in a dark color or a conspicuous color, and 2 is displayed in the number of voice mails (304). Next to it, a reminder icon (305) and a scheduled time (306) line up to inform you that a scheduled event is imminent. The reminder icon (305) is displayed brightly in a dark color or a conspicuous color, and is displayed as 09: 00-10: 00 at the scheduled time (306).

  Thus, by displaying the icon and the number of cases or the scheduled time corresponding to the message type (mail type, reminder), the operability of selecting the icon corresponding to the message type is good.

  Since the e-mail and the instant messenger message have already been read at time 11:12 as time elapses, in the display (31), the mail icon (301) is displayed in a light color and dark. In addition, since one voice mail was reproduced, the number of voice mails was 1, and the reminder icon confirmed the schedule, so the scheduled time (306) was not displayed.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the information displayed on the number display is only the number of cases with low confidentiality and the scheduled time.

  If the count display is parasitic and displayed on the task bar of the window system or the title bar or toolbar that decorates the window, the mail icon (301), voice mail icon (303), or reminder icon (305) is displayed. When clicked, the windows of FIG. 4, FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 open.

  4 is a network launcher, FIG. 5 is a gadget player, and FIG. 6 is a terminal program. In any case, the number of cases can be displayed, and the number of cases shown in FIG. 3 can be activated and made resident independently without causing it to infest the task bar, the title bar or the toolbar decorating the window. Further, when none of the programs is activated, clicking on the parasitic number display in FIG. 3 activates one of the programs associated with the click. After startup, the number of cases is displayed in any of the parasitic cases shown in FIG.

  The number display in the network launcher will be described with reference to FIG. The description of the part overlapping in FIG. 3 is omitted. In FIG. 4, since the display (40) is displayed at the same security level as the display (30) of FIG. 3, the information being displayed is only the number and the scheduled time with low confidentiality.

  In the display (40), wireless LAN, modem, WiMAX (401), and wired LAN are arranged from the left as communication means icons at the top. Available communication means are displayed brightly in dark or conspicuous icons. A wireless LAN and WiMAX (401) can be used, and the information processing apparatus 21 periodically inquires of the incoming call notification server 22 whether a message has arrived.

  Remote access can be started manually by clicking on the icon of the communication means that is available. A text box (411) for inputting a personal authentication number for remote access is arranged below the icon of the communication means.

  In the display (40), icons equivalent to the number display in FIG. 3 are arranged below the text box (411), and the subject is displayed when the icon is clicked. In the display (40), instead of the reminder icon and the scheduled time, the schedule is displayed as a filled box on the timeline. Below the display (40) icon is a subject display area (42) that is an area for displaying the subject, and the subject display area (42) portion expands when the icon is clicked. The subject display area (42) is associated with the sender and subject transmitted from the incoming call notification server 22, and is displayed in color by painting or the like based on the transmitted color information.

  In the display (41), since the mail icon is clicked, the subject display area (42) displayed in color is expanded to display the subject display (421), and the sender and subject of the mail are displayed. The subject display (421) can be scrolled when the number of cases increases, and clicking on the subject starts remote access to the in-house agent 23.

  In remote access, authentication is first performed between the FireWall and the information processing apparatus 21, and after successful authentication, a VPN (virtual private network) is constructed and reaches the internal network. When logging on to the agent 23 in the in-house network, a terminal program compliant with the remote display protocol is activated to perform user authentication. If the authentication is successful, the terminal program compliant with the remote display protocol is used to log on to the in-house network agent 23, and the contents of the mail, instant messenger, voice mail, and schedule are displayed or reproduced.

  In FIG. 4, when making an inquiry to the information processing apparatus 21 in which the network launcher is operating, the incoming call notification server receives a fixed ID such as a MAC address held by the network adapter of the information processing apparatus 21, a telephone number held by the modem, or a subscriber number. Follow a simple authentication process to confirm If the authentication is successful, the incoming call notification server 22 receives the incident information other than the main body of the message encrypted by the key that the information processing device 21 has in plain text or the public key that the information processing device 21 has made public. To 21.

  The number display in the gadget player will be described with reference to FIG. The description of the part overlapping in FIG. 3 is omitted. In FIG. 5, since the display (50) is displayed at the same security level as the display (30) of FIG. 3, the information being displayed is only the number and the scheduled time with low confidentiality.

  In the display (50), icons equivalent to the number of cases shown in FIG. 3 are arranged, and the subject is displayed when the icon is clicked. In the display (50), instead of the reminder icon and the scheduled time, the schedule (501) and the schedule (502) are displayed as boxes filled on the timeline. There are three timelines under the schedule (501) and schedule (502) in the display (50), and the schedule (503) and schedule (504) are displayed as boxes on the timeline. Has been.

  The schedule of the user of the information processing apparatus 21 is displayed on the timeline on which the schedule (501) and the schedule (502) are listed. The remaining three timelines can display the schedules of other users in the company, and the schedules of other users registered and set in advance by the user of the information processing apparatus 21 are displayed in the schedules (503) and (504). . The schedule (504) has a different display color from the schedule (501), the schedule (502), and the schedule (503), and represents a vacation. Since the display color can be registered and set in advance by the user of the information processing apparatus 21, the type of the schedule represented by the displayed color varies depending on the user, and other people cannot see the type of the schedule at a glance. The display of the timeline can also be changed by the user of the information processing apparatus 21.

  When a timeline or a box on the timeline is clicked on the display (50), an event occurs and the user is authenticated by local authentication. If authentication is successful, the subject will be displayed in the scheduled box. The display of the gadget player is displayed (51), the schedule (501) is a conference, the schedule (502) is a business trip, the schedule (503) is going out, and the schedule (504) is a vacation. As a result, for example, the superior is scheduled to go out, the colleague is absent on vacation, and the subordinates are present in the office.

  The number display in the terminal program will be described with reference to FIG. The description of the part overlapping in FIG. 3 is omitted. In FIG. 6, the display (60) has the same icons as the display (30) in FIG. 3 arranged in the lower frame of the window, and the voice mail list (602) is displayed in the window pane (61).

  Before displaying the list, the display (60) is displayed at the same confidential level as the display (30) in FIG. 3. Therefore, the information being displayed was only the number of less sensitive items and the scheduled time, but the voice mail icon ( As a result of successful local authentication, a list of voice mails (602) is displayed. In the voice mail list (602), a reproduction icon (604) and a deletion icon (603) are displayed together with the date and time and the caller. When the user of the information processing terminal 22 clicks the reproduction icon (604) or the deletion icon (603), remote access to the in-house agent 23 is started.

  In remote access by the terminal program of FIG. 6, authentication is first performed between the FireWall and the information processing apparatus 21, and after successful authentication, a VPN (virtual private network) is constructed and reaches the in-house network. Since the purpose of the remote access is to reproduce or delete the voice mail, the agent 23 in the in-house network is requested to relay the voice mail. The agent 23 in the company network performs user authentication with the user of the terminal program, and when the authentication is successful, requests the mail server 24 to distribute voice mail. The distributed voice mail is a streaming protocol, and the in-house agent 23 relays it to the information processing apparatus 21, and the terminal program reproduces it. During playback, the playback icon (604) changes to a pause icon, and the delete icon (603) changes to a playback stop icon.

  The terminal program terminates remote access after a certain period of time from the playback or deletion operation. After that, when a certain period of time elapses without operation by the user, the voice mail list (602) is not displayed in the window pane (61), and the incidental information is not displayed.

  If nothing is displayed in the window pane (61) and the mail icon (605) is clicked and local authentication is successful, a list of mails is displayed along with the subject. When the subject is displayed, remote access to the in-house agent 23 is started. In remote access, authentication is first performed between the FireWall and the information processing apparatus 21, and after successful authentication, a VPN (virtual private network) is constructed and reaches the internal network. Unlike the above-mentioned voice mail, the user authentication is continued with the agent 23 in the in-house network using the remote display protocol, and the agent 23 is logged on. In the agent 23, the contents of the mail, instant messenger, voice mail, and schedule are displayed or reproduced by the mailer of the user agent 23, and this display screen is transferred to the information processing apparatus 21 by the remote display protocol to the information processing apparatus 21. Is displayed in the window pane (61) of the terminal program.

  As described above, the information processing device 21 communicates with the incoming call notification server 22 using the interfaces shown in FIGS. 3, 4, 5, and 6 as shown in FIGS. Multi-level authentication is realized according to the confidentiality level of information handled by a person.

  While the information processing device 21 is displaying the number of cases, the address, sender name, and subject that may contain personal information even in the incidental information sent by the incoming call notification server 22 are encrypted and kept secret. Confidential incidental information is not displayed or displayed in a state that it is filled and cannot be read. A part of the incidental information, for example, the incoming date and time is not encrypted.

  When the user succeeds in the authentication (104) on the information processing device 21, the information that has been concealed is plainly displayed, and the content that was not displayed or unreadable is displayed (12) in a readable state. The After a certain period of time, the incidental information is not displayed or is illegible as it was originally. When the user confirms the subject, the user remotely accesses the user agent 23 in the in-house network as necessary, confirms the contents, and returns a reply.

  According to the first embodiment, with regard to mail and instant messenger messages, the presence / absence of incoming calls (number of incoming calls), the sender and subject, and the content (text) are classified according to the confidentiality level. Realize multi-step authentication that requires complex and robust authentication for sensitive information.

  This multi-level authentication according to the level of confidentiality involves users on the Internet side confirming the number of incoming intranet messages and authenticating the qualified person who handles explicit confidentiality when confirming the caller and subject. Remote access to the intranet is not required.

A second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the figure, 71 is an information processing apparatus, 72 is an incoming call notification server and an IC card chip, 73 is an agent in an in-house network (intranet), specifically messenger software running on a PC, and 74 is a message server in the in-house network. 75 is a third party message server outside the company.

  The outline of the message server system in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 7, a mail server 74 in the in-house network sends and receives electronic mail and instant messenger messages, distributes them to a mailbox, and responds to the POP protocol from the mailer of the user agent 73. In addition, voice mail recording and storage, distribution to the user agent 73, registration of a schedule, and notification (remind) to the user agent 73 are performed.

  The mail server 74 in the in-house network performs irregular transmission / reception (701) of mail with the external mail server 75 and distributes the received mail to the corresponding user's mailbox according to the destination.

  The IC card chip 72 is inserted into the slot of the information processing device 71, the information processing device 71 supplies power to the IC card chip 72, and accesses the Internet using the communication interface of the information processing device 71. The communication interface can be used even when the information processing apparatus 71 is in the power saving mode. Since the information processing apparatus 71 includes the sub liquid crystal, the IC card chip 72 updates the display content of the sub liquid crystal even during the power saving mode.

  The IC card chip 72 has a plurality of programs stored in the chip, and the program of the incoming call notification server is activated by default when the power is connected. The IC card chip 72 has a tamper-resistant storage area, and an area is allocated for each program, and the program of the incoming call notification server is assigned to the allocated information in the information of the user of the information processing device 71 and the internal network. Information and information for authentication with Firewall are stored.

  The IC card chip 72, which is an incoming call notification server, periodically performs incoming call confirmation (702) with respect to the mail server 74. When there is a new incoming call after the previous incoming call confirmation, the mail server 74 is requested to obtain a header including the sender and subject, which is incidental information other than the message body, and the header is acquired (703). The acquired information is held in the area assigned to the program of the incoming call notification server by the IC card chip 72. The IC card chip 72 as an incoming notification server encrypts (704) the incidental information other than the main body of the acquired message with a key held by the information processing device 71 or a public key publicly available by the information processing device 71.

  The information processing device 71 periodically confirms (705) the incoming call to the IC card chip 72, which is an incoming call notification server, independently of the processing 701 to 704 described above. If the IC card chip 72 that is the incoming notification server has acquired the header from the mail server 74 after the previous periodic incoming call confirmation (705), the information processing apparatus 71 is the IC card chip 72 that is the incoming notification server. From the number of plaintexts and incidental information other than the main body of the message encrypted with the key possessed by the information processing device 71 or the public key made public by the information processing device 71 is obtained (706). If the header is not acquired, information indicating that the number of cases is 0 is acquired (706). Update the number display (707) to reflect the number acquired (706).

  In the information processing apparatus 71, an event is generated when a mail icon or the like is clicked by the user independently of the above-described processes 705 to 707, and the user is authenticated by local authentication (708). For this local authentication (708), an identifier (user ID, password, etc.) of the user, biometric information of the user, or an authentication device possessed by the user is used. When the user's biometric information is used, the user's biometric information (fingerprint, vein pattern of hand or finger, etc.) is registered in advance in the information processing device 71 or the IC card chip 72, and the registered biometric information and Authentication is performed by collating with the biometric information of the user input via the biometric information input device (reading device) connected to the information processing device 71. When using an authentication device possessed by the user, information specific to the user is stored in advance in the authentication device and the information processing apparatus 71, and both of them are connected with the connection of the authentication device to the information processing apparatus 71. Authentication is performed by collating user-specific information stored in. In this case, the authentication device may be an IC card chip 72. Thus, by storing information necessary for authentication in the IC card chip 72 and using the information, the IC card chip 72 has the function of the authentication device as well as the function of the incoming call notification server. As the function of the authentication device, when the information used for authentication is information for identifying the client, the authentication device authenticates the client without depending on the user, and identifies the user like biometric information. In the case of information, the authentication device authenticates the user without depending on the client. One authentication device may store information for specifying both.

  If authentication fails or the time expires, the display returns to the count display. If the authentication is successful, the sender name and the subject that are not concealed and displayed in the number display from the incidental information already received are displayed in the subject display (709). The information processing device 71 displays the sender name and the subject name in plain text with the key (common key or secret key) possessed by the information processing device 71 on the basis of the successful authentication. When the subject is not clicked in the subject display (709) and the time expires, the display returns to the number display (707).

  When an event occurs when the subject is clicked in the subject display (709), the information processing apparatus 71 attempts remote access to the agent 73 in the in-house network via the Internet over the FireWall. For remote access, authentication is performed with FireWall (710), and after successful authentication, a VPN (virtual private network) is constructed and reaches the internal network. User authentication is performed when logging on to the in-house network agent 73. If the authentication is successful, the user agent 73 returns from the startup or power saving mode to the normal operation mode (711). In FIG. 7, the user agent 73 is always in the power saving mode when there is no mote access, but can also operate in the normal operation mode.

  When the user agent 73 returns to the normal operation mode (711), the user agent 73 attempts to send / receive mail (712) to / from the mail server 74 in the in-house network, and acquires unread mail from the user's mailbox. The acquired mail is displayed / reproduced (714) by the user agent 73 using the mailer of the user agent 73, and the display screen is transferred to the information processing apparatus 71 by the remote display protocol and displayed on the information processing apparatus 71 (713). Is done.

  The mail server 74 obtains a header (703) from the IC card chip 72, which is an incoming call notification server, at a timing independent of the above-described processing 701 to 714, and then obtains the header (706) by the information processing device 71, Check if the incoming call was notified by the read confirmation (715). By this confirmation, the mail server 74 in the in-house network informs the instant messenger on the in-house network whether the message is reachable to the user of the information processing apparatus 71.

  The number display on the mobile terminal will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 8, the information being displayed on the display (80) is only the number of secrets and the scheduled time.

  In the display (80), the incoming mail is notified by the mail icon and the number of cases. The mail icon is displayed brightly in a dark color or a conspicuous color, and 3 and 1 are displayed as the number of incoming calls. The upper 3 of the number of incoming calls indicates the total, and the lower 1 indicates the number of messages with a high degree of urgency. For messages with a high degree of urgency, the number of instant messenger messages is added to the number of mails determined by the incoming call notification server 72 based on the mail sender, subject, and attributes.

  Next to it is a voicemail icon and the number of voicemails, letting you know that there are still voicemails. The voice mail icon is displayed brightly in a dark color or a conspicuous color, and the number of voice mails is displayed as 2 together.

  Under the above-mentioned mail icon and voice mail icon, a schedule (801) and a schedule (802) are displayed as boxes filled on the timeline. The schedule of the user of the information processing apparatus 71 is displayed in the timeline on which the schedule (801) and the schedule (802) are listed, and the schedule (801) is scheduled at 09: 00-10: 00 and is scheduled at 12:00:00 ( 802) exists. Since the display color of the schedule (801) and the schedule (802) can be registered and set in advance by the user of the information processing apparatus 71, the type of the schedule represented by the displayed color cannot be determined by others at first glance. The display of the timeline can also be changed by the user of the information processing apparatus 71.

  Nothing is displayed at the bottom of the display (80), in the window pane (82) below the timeline. When the mail icon is clicked in the display (80), an event is generated and the user is authenticated by local authentication. If the authentication is successful, the subject is displayed (805) in the window pane (82), and at the same time, the subject is displayed in the scheduled box. The display (81) is displayed, the schedule (803) is a conference, and the schedule (804) is a business trip. When a certain period of time elapses without operation, the display (80) returns to the display (81), and the incidental information is not displayed or displayed in an unreadable state.

  According to the second embodiment, with regard to mail and instant messenger messages, the presence / absence of incoming calls (number of incoming calls), the caller, subject, and contents (text) are classified according to the confidentiality level. Realize multi-step authentication that requires complex and robust authentication for sensitive information.

  This multi-level authentication according to the level of confidentiality involves users on the Internet side confirming the number of incoming intranet messages and authenticating the qualified person who handles explicit confidentiality when confirming the caller and subject. Remote access to the intranet is not required.

  The incoming call notification server program is a program in the chip of the IC card chip, and a part of the tamper-resistant storage area of the chip is allocated. The tamper-resistant memory of the IC card chip to which the incoming notification server program is assigned user information, in-house network information, firewall authentication information, number of incidents, and incidental information including encrypted sender and subject Since the information is stored in the area, the number, sender, and subject can be confirmed even when the information processing apparatus is offline and not connected to the Internet.

  Since the information processing device is equipped with a sub liquid crystal, the incoming notification server on the IC card chip updates the display content of the sub liquid crystal even during the power saving mode, so that the user can easily receive messages even when the information processing device is in the power saving mode. Can be confirmed.

  As described above, according to Example 1 and Example 2, with regard to mail and instant messenger messages, the presence / absence of incoming calls (number of incoming calls), the sender and subject, and the content (text) are divided into confidential levels, When confirming the number of incoming intranet messages and confirming the caller and subject by using multi-step authentication that requires simple authentication for low-confidential information and complicated and secure authentication for highly-sensitive information Remote access to the intranet with authentication of a qualified person who handles explicit confidentiality is not required.

  More specifically, each authentication level of multi-step authentication differs depending on information used for authentication and its processing. The information used for authentication described in the first and second embodiments includes an identifier of a communication interface provided in the client, an IC card chip as an authentication device provided in the client, an identifier of a client user, and a user of the client There is an IC card chip as an authentication device owned by the user. Although the authentication level varies depending on whether these are used alone or in combination, a multi-step authentication from simple authentication to firm authentication can be realized. The message server system described as an embodiment uses each level of this multi-step authentication corresponding to the confidential level of information.

  As shown in FIG. 1, for the inquiry to the incoming call notification server, a MAC address possessed by the network adapter of the information processing device 21 or a fixed ID such as a telephone number or a subscriber number possessed by a modem is used. By not using an instant messenger account, it becomes difficult for a third party to associate the number of users with incidental information, and privacy is maintained.

  As in the second embodiment, the incoming call notification server program is assigned an IC card chip to which user information, in-house network information, firewall authentication information, the number of incidents, and incidental information including the encrypted sender and subject are assigned. Since the information processing apparatus is offline and not connected to the Internet, the number, the sender, and the subject can be confirmed.

  In addition, even if the information processing device is in the power saving mode, the incoming notification server on the IC card chip can make an inquiry to the intranet mail server for incoming calls, so that the average power consumption of the information processing device can be reduced and the power consumption can be reduced. The battery life is extended, and when the battery life is constant, the number of battery cells can be reduced and the weight can be reduced.

  Since the information processing apparatus includes the sub liquid crystal, the incoming notification server of the present invention on the IC card chip updates the display content of the sub liquid crystal even during the power saving mode, so that the user can receive a message even when the information processing apparatus is in the power saving mode. The number of cases can be easily confirmed.

3 is a flowchart of the operation of the information processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. It is a figure which shows the message server system structure and data flow of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the mode of the number display in the sub liquid crystal of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the mode of the number display in the network launcher of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the mode of the number display in the gadget player of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the mode of the number display in the terminal program of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the message server system structure and data flow of Example 2. FIG. It is a figure which shows the mode of the number display on the portable terminal of Example 2. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

21, 71 ... Information processing device, 22 ... Incoming notification server, 23, 73 ... User agent, 24, 74 ... Mail server, 25, 75 ... Outside mail server, 72 ... IC card chip.

Claims (11)

A means for confirming the arrival of a message in a message server connected to an intranet separated from the Internet and a firewall; a means for encrypting the sender name and subject of the message with a client key; and from the client connected to the Internet. An incoming call notification server comprising: means for transmitting the number of messages, the encrypted sender, and the subject name in response to an inquiry about an incoming message. 2. The incoming call notification server according to claim 1, further comprising means for authenticating by using a unique identifier of the communication interface of the client in response to an inquiry about the incoming message from the client. A message server connected to an intranet separated by the Internet and a firewall, and the number of messages received by the message server, the sender name and subject are received, and the sender name and subject of the message are encrypted using a client key. And an incoming call notification server that returns the number of messages and the encrypted sender and subject in response to an inquiry about the arrival of the message from the client connected to the Internet. Server system. 4. The message server system according to claim 3, wherein the incoming notification server authenticates by using a unique identifier of the communication interface of the client in response to an inquiry about the arrival of the message from the client. The client includes one or more display means, and associates the number of the messages returned from the incoming call notification server with an icon indicating the type of the message in one of the one or more display means. 5. The message server system according to claim 4, wherein the message server system is displayed. The client authenticates the user in response to the selection of the icon by a user of the client, and when the authentication is successful, the encrypted message of the type corresponding to the selected icon is encrypted. 6. The message server system according to claim 5, wherein the sender and the subject are plainly displayed and displayed on the one or more display means. In response to selection by the user of the displayed sender and the subject, the client is authenticated by the firewall, connected to another information processing apparatus connected to the intranet, and the other information The message server system according to claim 6, wherein the message corresponding to the selected caller and the subject that is received by the message server is accessed via a processing device. The incoming call notification server transmits the encrypted color information associated with the sender and subject to the client in plain text, and the client fills the area filled with the color information on the one or more display means. The message server system according to claim 6, wherein the plain caller and the subject are displayed. The client connected to the Internet and connected to the intranet separated from the Internet and the firewall, the message is divided into a subject, a sender, and a main body, the number of the message is retained, and the number of the messages from the client having different security levels And a message server that authenticates at different authentication levels in response to the subject and the caller and the inquiry of the main body. The authentication level includes an identifier of a communication interface included in the client, an authentication device included in the client, an identifier of a user of the client, biometric information of the user of the client, and an authentication device possessed by the user The message server system according to claim 9, wherein any one or more of the above are used to correspond to the confidentiality level. The authentication device included in the client inquires the message server about the presence or absence of the message, receives the number of the messages, the sender and the subject from the message server as a response to the inquiry, and receives the number of the received messages. The message server system according to claim 10, wherein the authentication device holds the sender and the subject in an internal storage area.

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