Patent ID: 6988199

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for securely delivering a document from a sender to a recipient, the method comprising an operations center (OC) performing the steps of: registering the sender in a sender registration record and associating a sender public-private key pair for the sender with the sender; receiving a communication encrypted by the sender using a sender private key selected from said sender public-private key pair; recalling a sender public key selected from said sender public-private key pair from said sender registration record; authenticating the sender by using the recalled sender public key to decrypt the communication sent from the sender; establishing a first secure connection between the sender and the OC in response to authenticating the sender; associating the recipient with a recipient public key from a recipient public-private key pair, wherein said recipient public-private key pair is distinct and separate from said sender public-private key; storing an escrow encryption key separate from said recipient public key and from said sender public key for selectively encrypting communications to the recipient in place of the recipient escrow encryption key; and encrypting a delivery to the recipient using the recipient public key if said recipient public key is stored in the OC and encrypting the delivery to the recipient using the escrow encryption key when said recipient public key is not stored in the OC, and subsequently sending the encrypted delivery to the recipient after encryption of the delivery by one from a group comprising a recipient public key and an escrow encryption key, the delivery comprising at least the document.