US Patent 9015090 Evaluating a questionable network communication

Identifying a questionable network address from a network communication. In an embodiment, a network device receives an incoming or outgoing connection request, a web page, an email, or other network communication. An evaluation module evaluates the network communication for a corresponding network address, which may be for the source or destination of the network communication. The network address generally includes an IP address. The evaluation module determines one or more properties of the network communication, such as time of day, content type, directionality, or the like. The evaluation module then determines whether the properties match or are otherwise allowed based on properties specified in the white list in association with the IP address.