Secure encrypted email for gmail free#

Last but not least, S/MIME has to be enabled by a Workspace admin before it'll work. Like TLS, it also doesn't do anything to keep a message secured once it's reached its actual destination server (and so again, within Gmail, Google itself will be able to scan messages in its usual automated way). Like TLS, S/MIME works only if both the sender and recipient are using a service that supports it - and, in an extra layer of complication, only if both parties have exchanged keys in advance so that the encryption can be properly configured.

Secure encrypted email for gmail free#

It's available only for paid Google Workspace Suite accounts, so if you're using a regular free Gmail account, it doesn't apply to you.įor folks with enterprise-level Workspace setups, though, S/MIME (which may or may not have been invented by a mime) allows emails to be encrypted with user-specific keys so that they remain protected during delivery and can be decrypted only by the intended recipient. With paid Google Workspace accounts, administrators can opt to allow only messages with TLS encryption to be sent or received - though that'd come with its own set of undesirable consequences, as you could imagine, in terms of having your outgoing messages bounce or having certain incoming messages never reach your inbox.īeyond that basic form of encryption, Gmail supports an enhanced standard known as S/MIME - or Secure/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (gesundheit!). If the person with whom you're corresponding is using a mail server that doesn't support TLS, meanwhile, messages won't be encrypted at all. And if you'd rather not have those smart suggestion features in the picture, by the way, you can always turn them off in your account - though that won't have any direct effect on the Gmail encryption approach or when and how that extra layer of security is applied.)

(Google used to scan messages for ad targeting, too, but it stopped doing that in 2017. Google itself, for instance, has the ability to see messages associated with your account, which is what allows the company to scan your email for potential spam and phishing attacks - and also to offer advanced features like Smart Reply, which suggests responses based on an email's contents. It doesn't, however, guarantee that the message will remain private or available only to the intended recipient once it reaches the destination mail server. What that basically means is that it'll be incredibly difficult for anyone to look at a message while it's en route from point A to point B. As long as the person with whom you're emailing is also using a mail service that also supports TLS - which most major mail providers do - all messages you send through Gmail will be encrypted in this manner. Google's standard method of Gmail encryption is something called TLS, or Transport Layer Security. Ready to dive in? Gmail encryption: How Google protects most messages

If you're using Gmail for electronic communication - be it for business purposes, for personal use, or some combination of the two - it's well worth your while to know how the service does and doesn't secure your information and what steps you can take to make sure you're getting the level of privacy you need. And one of the places where encryption is most relevant and misunderstood is in the realm of email. Encryption may sound like a subject best left to hackers and tinfoil hat wearers, but don't be fooled: It's a critical part of contemporary life and something that's important for everyone, especially business users, to understand.