Secure Email Project

When reviewing the requirements for this project, I didn't think it would be to difficult. But I had another thing coming! I complete my school work on a Macbook, so the steps were a bit different versus completing this on a PC. Everything was going smoothly until I had a download the certificate, which kept opening in Keychain Access. Needless to say, I have never worked in Keychain access and was unfamiliar with what this did. I finally realized that the certificate needed to be backed up through Firefox, but just had different steps than what was outlined for a PC.

I now understand why secure and encrypted emails are used within businesses. If you receive an email from an outside party with a digital certificate attached or it is encrypted, I would be much more trust worthy of that email.


After reading "Secure email today: extremely beneficial and incredibly convenient" located on Business Managements site, it seems that many businesses may  neglect to use secure email. After a survey was conducted in Germany only 27% of CEO's asked were encrypting their messages and only 36% were signing them. This article list multiple advantages for using encryption and signatures when emailing. 

• Reason #1- Business Requirement- many businesses should require these steps due to so many emails being sent around with time constraints and important material. This will ensure the data is coming from an accurate source. 
• Reason #2- Legal Requirements- There are some guidelines to using encryption's and signatures. Most businesses check to make sure they are within law. Some businesses even have procedures for sending emails to ensure the sender is accurate.
• Reason #3- Customer Trust- If a customer sees the encryption and signature, they feel much safer. Many hackers are using phishing as a means to invade privacy. This will give customers trust and it is a less expensive reassurance. 

Technology is always evolving and businesses much keep up to ensure progress. There are many hackers out there shifting through the internet trying to get in and find personal information. These steps will help prevent that. 

Here is a screen shot of my Thunderbird account: