A protocol for protected email transmission using micropayments and a segregated inbox in which protected emails are displayed. The protocol also involves authentication of the sender to defeat phishers and an opt out protocol which can be used to block protected emails from sources from which the user no longer wishes to receive emails even if the source has made a micropayment. Branded email is also taught wherein a sender of protected emails can pay extra to have a miniature version of its brand logo or trademark displayed with its email in the segregated inbox. A white list is maintained on the protected email server (along with the opt out black list) so that recipients can designate specific senders who may send email to that recipient without paying a micropayment and still have the protected email displayed in the segregated inbox.
A method is provided for validating one entity, say a business or job applicant, for another entity (the requesting entity), say another business, that includes the steps of, classifying the entity type to be validated based on one or more predefined classifiers of an entity, applying one or more validation rules based on the classification for the entity type to produce a validation request, providing a validation request to one or more validation entities that perform at least a portion of the validation in accordance with the validation rules, and providing a validation outcome to the requesting entity that allows the requesting entity to assess the business or job applicant based on the validation rules and the source of the validation outcomes. Such a system and framework allows businesses to perform checks in a more structured and efficient way and allows for the sharing of validation outcomes amongst like entities.
