What is Email Encryption?
Email encryption involves encrypting, or disguising, the content of email messages in order to protect potentially sensitive information from being read by anyone other than intended recipients. Email encryption often includes authentication. When emails are sent over unsecured, or public, Wi-Fi networks they can be particularly vulnerable. Encryption renders the content of your emails unreadable as they travel from origin to destination, so even if someone intercepts your messages, they can’t interpret the content.
What Encryption Options are Available?
Encrypt-Only
The “Encrypt-Only” option will allow for sending an email chain that is encrypted from end to end and allows for all recipients included on the chain, internal or external, to forward and add recipients to the chain with each response and forward maintaining encryption with each new step.
Do Not Forward
The “Do Not Forward” option will allow for sending an email chain that is encrypted from end to end for all recipients on the chain, internal or external, however, once the initial email is sent, communication is restricted to only those recipients on the original email. No recipient will be able to forward the email to anyone else whether that recipient is an internal NorthStar employee or an external recipient. Encryption is maintained with each new reply in the chain.
NorthStar Group Services, Inc. – Confidential
The “NorthStar Group Services, Inc. – Confidential” option will allow for sending an email chain to internal recipients only. Any attempt to forward or otherwise send the message outside the NorthStar email system will not allow for viewing of the message, forwarding to other internal recipients will be allowed and the message will be able to be viewed as normal.
NorthStar Group Services Inc. – Confidential View Only
The “NorthStar Group Services, Inc. Confidential View Only” option will allow for sending an email chain to internal recipients only. Any replies in that chain will not allow for the modification of the original text of the message. Recipients will also be able to forward the original message to internal recipients but those recipients will receive a read-only message that cannot be replied to or forwarded.
How do I send an Encrypted Message?
Outlook 2016
- From Outlook 2016 either on your NorthStar issued laptop or from within Citrix create a new message.
- Select the “Options” ribbon at the top of the window followed by the downward facing carrot under “Encrypt” to see all the encryption options
Due to varying versions of Outlook in our environment, you may see a “Permissions” button instead of an “Encrypt” button. When you click this button you will have to first allow Outlook to grab the Encryption options from the server:
The available options will now appear:
- Create your email message as normal and then send
Webmail
- From Office 365 Outlook create a new message
- From the top of the new message select “Protect”
- From the new message that pops-up
- Select the encryption type from the dropdown and select OK
- Create your email as normal and then send.
What will an Encrypted Message look like?
Outlook 2016
In your folder view, the message will have the below “Lock” icon
In the message view, you will see a mail tip explaining that the message is encrypted
External Recipient
An external recipient will receive an email with a link to the secure message viewer
They will then have the option of signing in with the account the email was sent to (gmail in this case) or to receive a one-time passcode to view the message
Once they authenticate they can view and interact with the message to the set permissions within the secure message viewer
If an email is forwarded outside permissions they will receive the below error