JP2018005792A - Mail processor, and mail transmission method by the mail processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To collectively recognize mail to which an encrypted file is attached, and mail for notifying a password.SOLUTION: In a mail processor, a storage device 102 stores plural files 122, and a server device 101 comprises: a selection screen provision part 111 for providing a selection screen 201 for selecting a transmission object file 121 to a terminal device 200; an encryption part 113 for encrypting the transmission object file 121 and turning the transmission object file to an encrypted file 123; a mail generation screen provision part 112 for providing a mail generation screen 202 for generating first mail to which the encrypted file 123 is attached; a mail generation part 114 for generating second mail for notifying a password; and a transmission screen provision part 115 for providing a transmission screen 203 for associating the first mail with the second mail and displaying them together.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a mail processing device having a mail transmission function and a mail transmission method by the mail processing device, and in particular, a mail processing device having a function of encrypting a file held by the mail processing device and attaching it to the mail, The present invention also relates to a mail transmission method by the mail processing apparatus.

  In the present specification, drawings, and claims, “mail” is used to mean electronic mail (E-mail).

  Conventionally, a mail created by software called a mailer in a terminal device such as a personal computer is not sent to the mail server, but the mail is operated by operating the terminal device based on a screen provided to the terminal device by the mail server. There is a mail transmission method called WEB mail that creates a message on the mail server.

  Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-228688 once receives a mail created in a terminal device, encrypts the attached file if the received mail has an attached file, and attaches only the encrypted file and sends it to the destination The server is listed. The mail server also has a password notification function for separately creating a mail in which a password when an attached file is encrypted is described and transmitting the mail to the same destination.

  Further, Patent Document 2 discloses software that can set a time for suspending mail transmission when the mail is directly transmitted from the terminal device, and can cancel the mail transmission within the hold time. Has been.

JP 2015-28749 A JP 2005-277976 A

  By the way, when encrypting a file to be attached to an email and sending an email with only the encrypted file attached, the first email to which the encrypted file is attached and the password when encrypted There are cases where three mails are created: a second mail for notifying the password and a third mail for notifying the sender of the password.

  However, these three emails are handled as mutually different transmission jobs, and when displayed on the terminal device, it is difficult for the user to grasp collectively whether the email is related to the encrypted attachment. is there.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and encrypts a file attached to an e-mail, creates an e-mail in which a password used for the encryption is described, and batches the series of e-mails on a terminal device. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mail processing apparatus that can be grasped as a result and a mail transmission method by the mail processing apparatus.

  In order to achieve the above object, a mail processing device according to the present invention is a mail processing device connected to a terminal device via a network, and the mail processing device includes a server device and a storage device, The storage device stores a plurality of files, and the server device provides a selection screen for providing the terminal device with a selection screen for selecting a transmission target file to be transmitted from the files held in the storage device. A terminal, an encryption unit that encrypts the transmission target file based on a predetermined password to make an encrypted file, and an email creation screen for creating a first email to which the encrypted file is attached is provided to the terminal device A mail creation screen providing unit, a mail generating unit for generating a second mail for notifying the password to the same destination as the first mail, and the first And a sending screen providing unit for providing a transmission screen to be displayed at a time related to a second mail indicator indicating a first mail label and the second mail indicating mail to the terminal device.

  According to this, the user can easily grasp a series of emails related to the encrypted file.

  The transmission screen may include a representative row that is a sign representing the first mail and the second mail.

  According to this, a user can grasp a series of mails collectively.

  Further, the transmission screen providing unit may display a folding sign that is integrated with the first mail sign and the second mail sign on the transmission screen.

  According to this, it becomes possible to process a series of mails collectively without the user being aware.

  The mail generation unit generates a third mail notifying the sender of the password, and the transmission screen providing unit is a third mail indicating the third mail in the first mail indicator and the second mail indicator. You may display the mail signs in a related manner. Here, “transmission source” refers to a terminal device that has instructed transmission of mail or a user who has operated the terminal device.

  According to this, it is possible to collectively grasp the mail describing the password transmitted to the transmission source together with the mail transmitted to the destination.

  The server device further includes a mail transmitting unit that transmits the first mail and the second mail at a predetermined time, and the transmission screen providing unit includes the first mail and the mail transmitting unit. Until the second mail is transmitted, a cancel indicator that can cancel the transmission of the first mail and the second mail at a time may be displayed on the transmission screen.

  According to this, it is possible to specify the mail transmission time, and at least the first mail and the second mail can be canceled at a time while the mail transmission is suspended.

  The encryption unit may encrypt the transmission target file immediately before the mail transmission unit transmits the first mail.

  According to this, it is possible to shorten the period in which the file before encryption and the file after encryption are simultaneously held in the storage device, and it is possible to secure a large free space of the storage device.

  In order to achieve the above object, a mail transmission method by a mail processing apparatus according to the present invention is a mail processing apparatus which is connected to a terminal device via a network and stores a plurality of files and a server device. The selection screen providing unit of the server device provides a selection screen for selecting a transmission target file to be transmitted from files stored in the storage device to the terminal device. An encryption unit encrypts the transmission target file based on the password of the file into an encrypted file, and an email creation screen providing unit displays an email creation screen for creating a first email to which the encrypted file is attached to the terminal device. Providing a second mail for notifying the password to the same destination as the first mail; A transmission screen displayed at a time related to a second mail indicator indicating a first mail label and the second mail indicating mail transmission screen providing unit is characterized in that it provides to the terminal device.

  According to this, the user can easily grasp a series of emails related to the encrypted file.

  A program for causing a computer to execute each process included in the mail processing apparatus and the mail transmission method by the mail processing apparatus also corresponds to an embodiment of the present invention. Of course, a recording medium on which the program is recorded also corresponds to an embodiment of the present invention.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to grasp the mail with the encrypted file attached and the mail with the password written together without imposing a burden on the terminal device.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a network to which the NAS device according to the embodiment is connected. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the NAS device. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a selection screen displayed on the terminal device by the selection screen providing unit. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a mail creation screen displayed on the terminal device by the mail creation screen providing unit. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a transmission screen displayed on the terminal device by the transmission screen providing unit. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a state in which the folding sign in the region surrounded by the broken line in FIG. 5 is developed. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing flow of the mail transmission method.

  Next, embodiments of a mail processing apparatus according to the present invention and a mail transmission method by the mail processing apparatus will be described with reference to the drawings. The following embodiments are merely examples of the mail processing device according to the present invention and a mail transmission method by the mail processing device. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention is defined by the wording of the claims with reference to the following embodiments, and is not limited to the following embodiments. Therefore, among the constituent elements in the following embodiments, constituent elements that are not described in the independent claims indicating the highest concept of the present invention are not necessarily required to achieve the object of the present invention. It will be described as constituting a preferred form.

  Also, the drawings are schematic diagrams in which emphasis, omission, and ratio adjustment are performed as appropriate to show the present invention, and may differ from actual shapes, positional relationships, and ratios.

  The present invention can be applied to servers, NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices, and the like. In this embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a NAS device will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a NAS device connected to a network.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the NAS device.

  As shown in these drawings, the NAS device 100 includes a server device 101, which is connected to a plurality of terminal devices 200a and 200b via a LAN (Local Area Network) 310 and functions as a so-called file server. The server device 101 is further connected to a wide area network (hereinafter referred to as a WAN (Wide Area Network)) 300 via a gateway 320, and can communicate with other terminal devices 200c and 200d. The NAS device 100 further includes a storage device 102 in which a file 122 and the like are stored.

  Here, the terminal devices 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d are devices that can display images and can perform information processing based on the displayed images. In the following description, these terminal devices 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d are collectively referred to as a terminal device 200. Specifically, the terminal device 200 includes a smartphone that is a mobile phone with enhanced information processing function, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) that is a portable personal information terminal, a stationary desktop computer, and a notebook computer. Can be shown.

  The LAN 310 includes not only a wired LAN but also a wireless LAN. The WAN 300 includes any network capable of information communication such as the Internet and a mobile phone network.

  The storage device 102 is a device that holds digital data processed by the NAS device 100, and stores digital data using magnetism, light, magneto-optical, semiconductor, and the like, and can be exemplified by a hard disk drive, for example. Instead of the hard disk drive, an SSD (Solid State Drive) may be used.

  The storage device 102 has a hierarchical file system, holds a batch of digital data in units of files 122, and further holds the files 122 in a hierarchical structure (folder structure). In addition, information indicating a folder 124 is also stored in the storage device 102 as information indicating a group of one or more files 122.

  Here, the content indicated by the file 122 is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include text, images, video, audio, databases, programs, and those adapted to various software. The storage device 102 can also hold a transmission target file 121 to be attached to an e-mail and an encrypted file 123 obtained by encrypting the transmission target file 121.

  The server device 101 is a computer that is connected to the network 300 and specialized in reading and writing the file 122 held in the storage device 102.

  The server device 101 includes a plurality of processing units that are realized by executing a program stored as a file in the storage device 102. Specifically, the server apparatus 101 includes a selection screen providing unit 111, a mail creation screen providing unit 112, an encryption unit 113, a mail generation unit 114, a transmission screen providing unit 115, and a mail transmission unit 116 as processing units. It has.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a selection screen displayed on the terminal device by the selection screen providing unit.

  As shown in the figure, the selection screen providing unit 111 selects a transmission target file 121 to be transmitted from a file 122 held in the storage device 102 by an operation based on the selection screen 201 displayed on the terminal device 200. It is a processing unit that provides the terminal device 200 with a selection screen 201 to be selected. In the case of the present embodiment, the selection screen 201 is described in HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language).

  By operating the selection screen 201 displayed on the terminal device 200, the hierarchy of the file structure built in the storage device 102 can be traced, and the file 122 and folder 124 displayed on the selection screen 201 are displayed. Can be selected singularly or plurally. In the present embodiment, selecting the file 122 means checking the first check box 212 displayed before the file indicator 213 displayed in the selection screen 201. The same applies to the folder 124.

  Further, after selecting the file 122 or the folder 124, the mail transmission button 211 displayed on the selection screen 201 is operated to move to the mail creation screen 202, and the created first mail and the selected transmission are selected. The target file 121 is associated.

  In FIG. 3, there is one file indicator 213 corresponding to the transmission target file 121, but a plurality of files 122 may be selected from the plurality of displayed file indicators 213 and these may be used as the transmission target file 121. . Although the folder 124 itself cannot be attached to an e-mail, encryption makes it possible to convert the folder and the file contained in the folder into one encrypted file and attach it to the e-mail for transmission. In this specification, “file to be transmitted” includes “folder”.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a mail creation screen displayed on the terminal device by the mail creation screen providing unit.

  As shown in the figure, a mail creation screen providing unit 112 creates a first mail that is a mail for attaching an encrypted file 123 obtained by encrypting a transmission target file 121 by an encryption unit 113 described later. It is a processing unit that provides the mail creation screen 202 to the terminal device 200. In the case of the present embodiment, the mail creation screen 202 is also described in HTML, like the selection screen 201. Further, the first mail created on the mail creation screen 202 is held in the storage device 102 as a file 122.

  In the terminal device 200 on which the mail creation screen 202 is displayed, a mail address that is a destination to which the first mail is transmitted is selected based on a destination table (not shown) that appears by operating the destination table selection button 221. Alternatively, it may be entered in the mail address field 222.

  The password for encrypting the transmission target file 121 is a password randomly generated by a password generation unit (not shown) included in the server apparatus 101 by operating the automatic generation button 223 on the mail creation screen 202. Become. When an arbitrary password is entered in the password entry field 224 and the manual generation button 225 is operated, the transmission target file is encrypted with the entered password.

  Also, on the mail creation screen 202, whether to create a third mail in which a password is written based on the second check box 227 before the part “Send password mail to itself” is sent and send it It is possible to select whether or not.

  Further, the mail creation screen 202 is provided with fields for inputting the subject of the first mail and the text of the first mail.

  Further, in the mail creation screen 202, the first mail, the second mail, and the third mail are created until the first mail and the second mail (including the third mail in the case of the present embodiment) are transmitted. A cancel button 229 capable of canceling is displayed.

  The encryption unit 113 is a processing unit that encrypts the transmission target file 121 based on a predetermined password to make the encrypted file 123. The encryption method of the transmission target file 121 performed by the encryption unit 113 is not particularly limited, and a known technique is adopted.

  The timing at which the encryption unit 113 encrypts the transmission target file 121 is not particularly limited. However, the transmission target file 121 may be encrypted immediately before the mail transmission unit 116 transmits the first mail. preferable. This is because the burden on the storage device 102 can be reduced.

  The mail generation unit 114 is a mail in which the password when the encryption unit 113 encrypts the transmission target file 121, that is, the password selected by the mail creation screen providing unit 112 is described. This is a processing unit that automatically generates a second mail having the same destination (mail address) determined in 112. The second mail automatically generated by the mail generation unit 114 is held in the storage device 102 as the file 122.

  If the second check box 227 is checked in the mail creation screen providing unit 112, the mail generation unit 114 causes the encryption unit 113 to encrypt the transmission target file 121, that is, the mail creation. A third mail for notifying the password selected by the screen providing unit 112 to the sender of the first mail is automatically generated and stored in the storage device 102 as the file 122.

  Here, the mail generation unit 114 generates related information that associates the file corresponding to the first mail with the file corresponding to the second mail. Further, when generating the third mail, the related information includes information for associating the file corresponding to the third mail.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a transmission screen displayed on the terminal device by the transmission screen providing unit.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a state in which the folding sign in the region surrounded by the broken line in FIG. 5 is developed.

  As shown in these figures, the transmission screen providing unit 115 includes a first mail indicator 231 indicating a first mail (file) created on the mail creation screen 202 and held in the storage device 102, and a mail generation unit 114. It is a processing unit that provides the terminal device 200 with a transmission screen 203 that displays the second mail indicator 232 indicating the automatically generated second mail (file) in association with the related information based on the related information.

  When the folding sign 234 is not expanded, the transmission screen 203 shows the first mail and the second mail, the representative line 230 representing the third mail, and the third mail (file) as shown in FIG. A third mail indicator 233 is displayed. Further, when the folding sign 234 is in the unfolded state, as shown in FIG. 6, the representative row 230, the folding sign 234, the first mail sign 231, the second mail sign 232, and the third mail sign 233 are simultaneously displayed. Is displayed.

  In addition, when the third check box 236 in front of the representative row 230 is checked on the transmission screen 203, a cancel button (cancel sign) 237 appears. By operating the cancel button 237, transmission of the first mail, the second mail, and the third mail may be canceled.

  The mail transmission unit 116 is a processing unit that transmits the first mail and the second mail to which the encrypted file 123 is attached. In the present embodiment, the mail transmission unit 116 is created based on the mail creation screen provision unit 112. It is a processing unit that transmits the first mail and the second mail generated by the mail generation unit 114 after elapse of a predetermined time.

  Here, the predetermined time may be a time from when the operator (transmission source) operates the transmission button 228 displayed on the mail creation screen 202 to when the mail transmission unit 116 performs a transmission operation. , May be determined in advance corresponding to the identifier indicating the operator (transmission source). Also, time such as year, month, hour, minute and second may be set. These may be stored in association with the operator by setting in advance by the operator, or may arbitrarily set a time until transmission or a time to be transmitted. Furthermore, the predetermined time may be set uniformly.

  Next, a mail transmission method by the NAS device 100 connected to the terminal device 200 via the network 300 will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a processing flow of the mail transmission method. In FIG. 7, “Y” indicates Yes and “N” indicates No.

  The NAS device 100 includes a file management function, a business card management function, a received fax management function, and a mail transmission management function, as shown in the function selection menu 215 described in FIGS. In the case of this embodiment, when selecting file management from the function selection menu 215 to select a file 122 to be attached to an e-mail and further selecting a shared folder, the selection screen providing unit 111 provides the selection screen 201 to the terminal device 200. (S101).

  When the operator who operates the terminal device 200 on which the selection screen 201 is displayed selects an arbitrary file 122 or folder 124 and operates the mail transmission button 211 in the selection screen 201, the encryption unit 113 selects the selected file. 122 or the selected folder 124 is recognized as the transmission target file 121 (S102).

  On the other hand, the mail creation screen providing unit 112 provides the mail creation screen 202 to the terminal device 200 (S103).

  Based on the mail creation screen 202, the operator determines the destination mail address by operating the destination table selection button 221 and the like, selects a password, determines whether or not to send a password mail to himself, and determines the subject of the mail. And a text are input, and a first mail is created (S104). When the format of the first mail is prepared, the operator operates the send button 228 in the mail creation screen 202, and the mail creation screen providing unit 112 accepts that the send button 228 is operated (S105).

  Here, the transmission screen providing unit 115 creates a transmission screen that collectively shows the first mail, the second mail, and the third mail (S106), and when the transmission reservation of the function selection menu 215 is selected, A transmission screen 203 is provided to the terminal device 200.

  If the predetermined time has not elapsed (S107: N), the transmission screen providing unit 115 determines whether the third check box 236 of the transmission screen 203 is checked (S108). When the third check box 236 is not checked (S108: N), the process returns to the determination of S107. If the third check box 236 is checked (S108: Y), a stop button 237 is displayed (S109). Next, it is determined whether or not the cancel button 237 has been operated (S110). If the cancel button 237 is not operated, the process returns to the determination in S107 (S110: N).

  When the predetermined time has elapsed (S107: Y), the encryption unit 113 encrypts the transmission target file 121 and creates an encrypted file 123 (S111). Further, the encrypted file 123 is attached to the first mail (S112).

  The mail generation unit 114 creates a second mail for notifying the password used for encryption by the encryption unit 113 to the same destination as the first mail (S113). The mail generation unit 114 determines whether or not the second check box 227 is checked (S114), and if it is checked, creates a third mail (S115).

  Finally, the mail transmission unit 116 transmits the first mail, the second mail, and the third mail (S116).

  On the other hand, if the third check box 236 on the transmission screen 203 is checked before the predetermined time has elapsed (S107: N), a cancel button 237 is displayed (S109), and this cancel button 237 is operated (S110: Y). ) Is not encrypted, the first mail and the second mail are not created, and the flow ends without sending the mail.

  As described above, by selecting the file 122 or the like stored in the storage device 102 of the NAS device 100 and creating the first mail using the mail creation screen 202, the first mail and the second mail for notifying the password Can be grasped collectively on the basis of the transmission screen, and related third mails can also be grasped collectively.

  In addition, the transmission of mail can be suspended for a predetermined time, and the transmission of mail can be canceled during the suspension period. In this case, since the transmission of the first mail, the second mail, and the third mail that are collectively grasped based on the transmission screen can be canceled at a time, the first mail with the encrypted file 123 attached It is possible to easily prevent only the second e-mail from being canceled and only the second e-mail notifying the password from being transmitted.

  Further, since the NAS device 100 performs encryption immediately before mail transmission and automatically generates a second mail and the like, it is possible to eliminate waste of encryption and mail generation when mail transmission is canceled. Become. Therefore, it is possible to secure a large free space in the storage device 102, and to reduce the burden on the CPU of the server device 101.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment. For example, another embodiment realized by arbitrarily combining the components described in this specification and excluding some of the components may be used as an embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the present invention includes modifications obtained by making various modifications conceivable by those skilled in the art without departing from the gist of the present invention, that is, the meaning described in the claims. It is.

  For example, the timing at which the encryption unit 113 encrypts is not limited to the above embodiment, and the encryption may be performed immediately after the file 122 is selected.

  In the above embodiment, the encryption unit 113 encrypts the transmission target file 121 after a predetermined time has been described as immediately before the first mail is transmitted. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the encryption unit 113 may acquire an encryption time that is a time necessary for encrypting the transmission target file 121 in advance, and start encryption before the encryption time after a predetermined time elapses. It may be immediately before the first mail is transmitted.

  The present invention can be used for NAS devices, servers, and the like, and in particular, a mail processing device in which a plurality of people can access one storage device 102 and a plurality of people can create a mail by one server device 101. Available to:

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 NAS apparatus 101 Server apparatus 102 Storage apparatus 111 Selection screen provision part 112 Mail creation screen provision part 113 Encryption part 114 Mail generation part 115 Transmission screen provision part 116 Mail transmission part 121 Transmission object file 122 File 123 Encryption file 124 Folder 200 Terminal device 201 selection screen 202 mail creation screen 203 transmission screen 211 mail transmission button 212 first check box 213 file indicator 215 function selection menu 221 destination table selection button 222 mail address field 223 automatic generation button 224 password input field 225 manual generation button 227 Second check box 228 Send button 229 Cancel button 230 Representative row 231 First mail indicator 232 Second email indicator 233 Third email indicator 234 Indicator 235 Down menu 236 third check box 237 cancel button (cancel labeling)
300 WAN
310 LAN
320 gateway

Claims (7)

A mail processing device connected to a terminal device via a network,
The mail processing device includes a server device and a storage device,
The storage device
Remember multiple files,
The server device
A selection screen providing unit that provides the terminal device with a selection screen for selecting a transmission target file to be transmitted from a file held in the storage device;
An encryption unit that encrypts the transmission target file based on a predetermined password to form an encrypted file;
A mail creation screen providing unit that provides the terminal device with a mail creation screen for creating a first mail to which the encrypted file is attached;
A mail generation unit that generates a second mail for notifying the password to the same destination as the first mail;
A mail processing apparatus comprising: a transmission screen providing unit that provides the terminal device with a transmission screen that displays the first mail sign indicating the first mail and the second mail sign indicating the second mail at a time. The mail processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transmission screen includes a representative row that is a sign representing the first mail and the second mail. 3. The mail processing device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission screen providing unit displays a folding sign that is integrated with the first mail sign and the second mail sign on the transmission screen. The mail generation unit
Generate a third email notifying the sender of the password,
4. The transmission screen providing unit according to claim 1, wherein the first mail sign and the second mail sign are related to a third mail sign indicating the third mail and displayed at a time. Mail processing device. The server device further includes:
The first mail, and a mail transmission unit that transmits the second mail after a predetermined time,
The transmission screen providing unit displays on the transmission screen a cancel indicator that can cancel the transmission of the first mail and the second mail collectively until the first mail and the second mail are transmitted. The mail processing apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-4. The mail processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the encryption unit encrypts the transmission target file immediately before the mail transmission unit transmits the first mail. A mail transmission method by a mail processing device including a storage device connected to a terminal device via a network and storing a plurality of files and a server device,
A selection screen providing unit of the server device provides the terminal device with a selection screen for selecting a transmission target file to be transmitted from a file held in the storage device;
An encryption unit encrypts the transmission target file based on a predetermined password into an encrypted file,
An email creation screen providing unit provides the terminal device with an email creation screen for creating a first email to which the encrypted file is attached,
A mail generating unit generates a second mail for notifying the password to the same destination as the first mail,
Mail transmission by the mail processing device in which the transmission screen providing unit provides the terminal device with a transmission screen for displaying the first mail indicator indicating the first mail and the second mail indicator indicating the second mail at a time. Method.