Patents Assigned to ProofPoint, Inc.
  • Patent number: 11979319
    Abstract: A communication system includes multiple Point-of-Presence (POP) interfaces distributed in a Wide-Area Network (WAN), and one or more processors coupled to the POP interfaces. The processors are configured to assign to an initiator in the communication system a client Internet Protocol (IP) address, including embedding in the client IP address an affiliation of the initiator with a group of initiators, to assign to a responder in the communication system a service IP address, including embedding in the service IP address an affiliation of the service with a group of responders, and to route traffic between the initiator and the responder, over the WAN via one or more of the POP interfaces, in a stateless manner, based on the affiliation of the initiator and the affiliation of the service, as embedded in the client and service IP addresses.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2023
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Etay Bogner, Eduardo Warszawski
  • Patent number: 11973801
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to dynamic and automated spear phishing management. A computing platform may identify users to receive a simulated spear phishing message. In some instances, the computing platform may receive a very attacked persons (VAP) list and may identify the users to receive the simulated spear phishing message based on the VAP list. Based on historical message data associated with a first user, the computing platform may identify message features associated with the first user. Using a predetermined template and for a first user account linked to the first user, the computing platform may generate a first spear phishing message based on the message features. The computing platform may then send, to the first user account, the first spear phishing message.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Nathan James Grealish
  • Patent number: 11973786
    Abstract: A universal resource locator (URL) collider processes a click event referencing a URL and directs a browser to a page at the URL. While the page is being rendered by the browser with page data from a web server, the URL collider intercepts the page data including events associated with rendering the page, determines microfeatures of the page such as Document Object Model objects and any URLs referenced by the page, applies detection rules, tags as evidence any detected bad microfeature, bad URL, or suspicious sequence of events, and stores the evidence in an evidence database. Based on the evidence, a judge module dynamically determines whether to condemn the URL before or just in time as the page at the URL is fully rendered by the browser. If so, the browser is directed to a safe location or a notification page.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2024
    Assignee: PROOFPOINT, INC.
    Inventors: Pranay Harsadbhai Patel, Juan Marcelo Da Cruz Pinto
  • Patent number: 11973799
    Abstract: A domain processing system is enhanced with a first-pass domain filter configured for loading character strings representing a pair of domains consisting of a seed domain and a candidate domain in a computer memory, computing a similarity score and a dynamic threshold for the pair of domains, determining whether the similarity score exceeds the dynamic threshold, and iterating the loading, the computing, and the determining for each of a plurality of candidate domains paired with the seed domain. A similarity score between the seed domain and the candidate domain and a corresponding dynamic threshold for the pair are computed. If the similarity score exceeds the corresponding dynamic threshold, the candidate domain is provided to a downstream computing facility. Otherwise, it is dropped. In this way, the first-pass domain filter can significantly reduce the number of domains that otherwise would need to be processed by the downstream computing facility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2024
    Assignee: PROOFPOINT, INC.
    Inventors: Hung-Jen Chang, Ali Mesdaq, Gaurav Dalal, Kevin Dedon
  • Patent number: 11966469
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to detecting and protecting against cybersecurity attacks using unprintable tracking characters. A computing platform may receive a character-limited message sent to a user device. Subsequently, the computing platform may detect that the character-limited message sent to the user device includes suspicious content. Then, the computing platform may generate a modified character-limited message by inserting one or more special characters into the character-limited message and cause transmission of the modified character-limited message to the user device. Next, the computing platform may receive, from the user device, a spam report that includes the modified character-limited message. Then, the computing platform may identify a presence of the one or more special characters included in the modified character-limited message and adjust one or more filters based on the identification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Thomas Lee
  • Patent number: 11956196
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to providing commercial and/or spam messaging detection and enforcement. A computing platform may receive a plurality of text messages from a sender. It may then tokenize the plurality of text messages to yield a plurality of tokens. The computing platform may then match one or more tokens of the plurality of tokens in the plurality of text messages to one or more bulk string tokens. Next, it may detect one or more homoglyphs in the plurality of text messages, and then detect one or more URLs in the plurality of text messages. The computing platform may flag the sender based at least on the one or more matching tokens, the one or more detected homoglyphs, and the one or more detected URLs. Based on flagging the sender, the computing platform may block one or more messages from the sender.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas Lee, Sarah Solieman
  • Patent number: 11956272
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to identifying legitimate websites and removing false positives from domain discovery analysis. Based on a list of known legitimate domains, a computing platform may generate a baseline dataset of feature vectors corresponding to the known legitimate domains. Subsequently, the computing platform may receive information identifying a first domain for analysis and may execute one or more machine learning algorithms to compare the first domain to the baseline dataset. Based on execution of the one or more machine learning algorithms, the computing platform may generate first domain classification information indicating that the first domain is a legitimate domain. In response to determining that the first domain is a legitimate domain, the computing platform may send one or more commands directing a domain identification system to remove the first domain from a list of indeterminate domains maintained by the domain identification system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Hung-Jen Chang, Gaurav Mitesh Dalal, Ali Mesdaq
  • Patent number: 11943193
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to data loss prevention. A computing platform may detect input of a first target recipient domain into a first email message. The computing platform may identify, in real time and prior to sending the first email message, that the first target recipient domain is an unintended recipient domain instead of an intended recipient domain. The computing platform may identify, in real time and prior to sending the first email message, that the first email message violates one or more data loss prevention rules. Based on identifying the violation, the computing platform may send a notification that the first target recipient domain is flagged as an unintended recipient domain and one or more commands directing a user device of the message sender to display the notification.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Shalini Kamalapuram Sundaram, Chris Moores, Durgaprasad Velagaleti, Srikanth Konjarla, Harsh Doshi
  • Patent number: 11934535
    Abstract: A cyberthreat detection system queries a content database for unstructured content that contains a set of keywords, clusters the unstructured content into clusters based on topics, and determines a cybersecurity cluster utilizing a list of vetted cybersecurity phrases. The set of keywords represents a target of interest such as a newly discovered cyberthreat, an entity, a brand, or a combination thereof. The cybersecurity cluster thus determined is composed of unstructured content that has the set of keywords as well as some percentage of the vetted cybersecurity phrases. If the size of the cybersecurity cluster, as compared to the amount of unstructured content queried from the content database, meets or exceeds a predetermined threshold, the query is saved as a new classifier rule that can then be used by a cybersecurity classifier to automatically, dynamically and timely identify the target of interest in unclassified unstructured content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Daniel Clark Salo
  • Patent number: 11928212
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to spear phishing simulation using machine learning. A computing platform may send, to an enterprise user device, a spear phishing message. The computing platform may receive initial user interaction information indicating how a user of the enterprise user device interacted with the spear phishing message. Based on the initial user interaction information and using a series of branching message templates, the computing platform may generate additional spear phishing messages. The computing platform may receive additional user interaction information indicating how the user interacted with the additional spear phishing messages. Based on the initial user interaction information and the additional user interaction information, the computing platform may compute spear phishing scores.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Nicholas Patrick McClay
  • Patent number: 11924246
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to detecting and identifying malicious sites using machine learning. A computing platform may receive a uniform resource locator (URL). The computing platform may parse and/or tokenize the URL to reduce the URL into a plurality of components. The computing platform may identify human-engineered features of the URL. The computing platform may compute a vector representation of the URL to identify deep learned features of the URL. The computing platform may concatenate the human-engineered features of the URL to the deep learned features of the URL, resulting in a concatenated vector representation. By inputting the concatenated vector representation of the URL to a URL classifier, the computing platform may compute a phish classification score. In response to determining that the phish classification score exceeds a first phish classification threshold, the computing platform may cause a cybersecurity server to perform a first action.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Brian Sanford Jones, Zachary Mitchell Abzug, Jeremy Thomas Jordan, Giorgi Kvernadze, Dallan Quass
  • Patent number: 11924224
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to processing external messages using a secure email relay. A computing platform may receive, from a message source server associated with a first domain, a first email message and a first set of authentication credentials. Based on validating the first set of authentication credentials, the computing platform may inject, into the first email message, a DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) signature of a second domain different from the first domain, which may produce a signed message that identifies itself as originating from the second domain. Based on scanning and validating content of the signed message, the computing platform may send the signed message to a message recipient server, which may cause the message recipient server to validate the DKIM signature of the signed message and determine that the signed message passes Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance (DMARC) with respect to the second domain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Ashley Harlow Valeski
  • Patent number: 11888895
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to generating threat intelligence information. A computing platform may receive forensics information corresponding to message attachments. For each message attachment, the computing platform may generate a feature representation. The computing platform may input the feature representations into a neural network, which may result in a numeric representation for each message attachments. The computing platform may apply a clustering algorithm to cluster each message attachments based on the numeric representations, which may result in clustering information. The computing platform may extract, from the clustering information, one or more indicators of compromise indicating that one or more attachments corresponds to a threat campaign.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Zachary Mitchell Abzug, Kevin Patrick Blissett, Brian Sanford Jones
  • Publication number: 20240031156
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to message verification. A computing platform may generate a cryptographic key pair comprising a public key and a private key. The computing platform may publish, to a server, the public key. The computing platform may generate a short message service (SMS) message. The computing platform may sign, using the private key, the SMS message, which may include computing a cryptographic hash of the SMS message using the private key and embedding the cryptographic hash in an SMPP field of the SMS message. The computing platform may send, to a downstream computing system, the signed SMS message, where the downstream computing system may be configured to validate the signed SMS message using the cryptographic hash embedded in the SMPP field of the SMS message and by accessing the public key.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2023
    Publication date: January 25, 2024
    Applicant: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas Lee, Kevin San Diego
  • Patent number: 11882131
    Abstract: A URL velocity monitor is integrated with a message-hold decision maker of an electronic mail processing system that processes electronic messages for a protected computer network. The URL velocity monitor receives or obtains a URL, decomposes the URL into URL features based on logical boundaries, and determines features of interest from the URL features for velocity tracking. Examples of URL features can include a randomized URL segment. The velocity of each feature of interest is tracked over a period of time using a counting algorithm that employs a slow counter or a fast counter. The two different counters track two types of velocities which represent different domain behaviors targeting the protected computer network. The URL velocity monitor determines whether the velocity of a feature of interest is accelerating within the time period. If so, the URL is placed in a queue or a sandbox.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 23, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Gregory Lee Wittel, Edward Pavlov
  • Patent number: 11871235
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to providing secure shortened URLs in character-limited messages. A computing platform may receive one or more character-limited messages sent to a user device. The computing platform may detect a URL within the one or more character-limited messages for replacement and generate a shortened URL corresponding to the detected URL, wherein a domain of the shortened URL is hosted by the message security system. The computing platform may then modify the one or more character-limited messages by replacing the URL with the shortened URL, and then cause transmission of the modified one or more character-limited messages to the user device. Next, the computing platform may receive, from the user device, a request to access the shortened URL, and redirect the user device to the detected URL corresponding to the shortened URL.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Thomas Lee
  • Patent number: 11868412
    Abstract: To find enriching contextual information for an abbreviated domain name, a data enrichment engine can comb through web content source code corresponding to the abbreviated domain name. From textual content in the web content source code, the data enrichment engine can identify words with initial characters that match characters of the abbreviated domain name to thereby establish a relationship there-between. This relationship can facilitate more accurate and efficient domain name classification. The data enrichment engine can query a WHOIS server to find out if candidate domains having initial characters that match the characters of the abbreviated domain name are registered to the same entity. If so, keywords can be extracted from the candidate domains and used to find more relevant domains for domain risk analysis and detection. Candidate domains determined by the data enrichment engine can be provided to a downstream computing facility such as a domain filter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Gaurav Mitesh Dalal, Ali Mesdaq, Hung-Jen Chang
  • Patent number: 11863566
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to dynamic message analysis using machine learning. A computing platform may monitor a messaging server associated with an enterprise organization. Based on monitoring the messaging server, the computing platform may identify bi-directional messaging traffic between enterprise domains associated with the enterprise organization and external domains not associated with the enterprise organization. Based on identifying the bi-directional messaging traffic, the computing platform may select external domains for a conversation detection process. The computing platform may compute an initial set of rank-ordered external domains by: determining, based on a number of messages sent to and received from each enterprise domain/external domain pair, weighted difference values and ranking the plurality of external domains selected for the conversation detection process based the weighted difference values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2024
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: J. Trent Adams
  • Patent number: 11847935
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to dynamically generating simulated attack messages configured for annotation by users as part of cybersecurity training. A computing platform may generate a simulated attack message including a plurality of elements and send the simulated attack message to an enterprise user device. Subsequently, the computing platform may receive, from the enterprise user device, user selections annotating selected elements of the plurality of elements of the simulated attack message. The computing platform may thereafter identify one or more training areas for the user based on the user selections received from the enterprise user device, generate a customized training module specific to the identified one or more training areas, and send the customized training module to the enterprise user device. Sending the customized training module to the enterprise user device may cause the enterprise user device to display the customized training module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2023
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventors: Jason R. Brubaker, Benjamin C. Blanchard
  • Patent number: 11810339
    Abstract: Aspects of the disclosure relate to anomaly detection in cybersecurity training modules. A computing platform may receive information defining a training module. The computing platform may capture a plurality of screenshots corresponding to different permutations of the training module. The computing platform may input, into an auto-encoder, the plurality of screenshots corresponding to the different permutations of the training module, wherein inputting the plurality of screenshots corresponding to the different permutations of the training module causes the auto-encoder to output a reconstruction error value. The computing platform may execute an outlier detection algorithm on the reconstruction error value, which may cause the computing platform to identify an outlier permutation of the training module. The computing platform may generate a user interface comprising information identifying the outlier permutation of the training module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2023
    Assignee: Proofpoint, Inc.
    Inventor: Adam Jason