How To Send Secure Confidential Emails To Customers

Staying connected with your customers is essential for your business's success. Email continues to be a potent tool in business communication, with an estimated 80% of users checking their inboxes every day.

The convenience and versatility of email are unparalleled. However, despite its widespread use, with around 3.4 million emails sent every second, email is not always the safest way to communicate.

Why Do Emails Need To Be Secure?

As a business, you often exchange sensitive information through emails that could be detrimental if accessed by unauthorised parties.

This includes data such as full names, addresses, phone numbers, and bank details of your customers.

Criminals with access to this data can exploit it for malicious purposes, such as:

• Using credit or debit card information to make purchases.
• Applying for credit cards or loans in the victim’s name.
• Submitting fake tax returns to claim refunds.
• Using health insurance details to access private medical care.
• Selling private information on the dark web.

For organisations that manage large volumes of data, maintaining customer trust is crucial.

A significant 33% of UK businesses that experience data breaches lose customers as a result. Therefore, securing emails against threats is imperative.

Why Are Emails Not Considered Secure?

Emails were originally developed as a local file-sharing system at MIT in the 60s. They were not designed with the robust security features needed for today’s usage.

This makes them vulnerable to cybercriminal activities such as:

Phishing: Attackers trick users into clicking on dangerous links, leading to harmful websites or downloading malware.

This can lead to your systems being compromised or your data and finances being stolen.

Interception: Threat actors position themselves between you and the data source, eavesdropping and gathering personal information like usernames and passwords.

Impersonation: By mimicking legitimate companies using deceptive email addresses, cybercriminals persuade individuals to share sensitive data.

Besides these threats, human error is also a significant factor in email security. Businesses are 61% more likely to send sensitive data to the wrong recipient than to fall victim to phishing attacks.

How Can You Make Email Secure?

Several strategies can help businesses secure their emails and safeguard their customers' sensitive information from cyber threats.

 Encryption

Encryption allows you to hide or disguise the contents of your emails and any attachments.

The process involves using ‘keys’ – unique character strings that lock your data, preventing unauthorised access.

Encryption is a strong defence against email interception.

Even if cybercriminals are monitoring your communications, they won't be able to decipher the encrypted content.

The most effective type of encryption for both you and your customers is end-to-end encryption, as it secures your emails at every stage.

To learn more about email encryption, check out our comprehensive guide.

 Identity Authentication:

Authentication is increasingly common across various sectors, with multi-factor authentication becoming the norm for business email protection.

Email authentication secures your messages by requiring recipients to verify their identity. This can be done through methods such as:

SMS: Send a text message with a code that must be entered to access the email.

Q&A: Ask a question only your customers can answer to unlock the email.

Biometrics: Use unique biological characteristics, like face or fingerprint scans, to grant email access.

 Message Revoke:

We’ve all experienced the accidental email send – sending a message to the wrong person or including the wrong attachment.

While authentication helps prevent unauthorised access, we need a solution to recall messages when the wrong attachment is sent.

Email revoke allows you to block access to an email, ensuring that any sensitive data doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

Outlook offers a native "recall" function, but it works only in specific situations and is not compatible with all email providers.

For a guaranteed revoke, advanced secure email solutions like Mailock provide an instant block function.

Secure Email

The best protection combines all the methods mentioned above. Our secure email solution, Mailock, includes:

• Military-grade, AES-256 encryption
• Multi-factor authentication
• Full message revoke
• Free read and reply for clients
• Read alerts and audit trails

References:

How Many Emails Does The Average Person Receive Per Day?, Earthweb

People Sent 74 Trillion Emails Last Year, Earthweb

What Do Hackers Do With Stolen Information?, Experian

RedSeal UK B2B Research Summary, RedSeal

Email: Ray Tomlinson and the History of Email, The Guardian

Reviewed By:

Sabrina McClune, 18.06.24

Sam Kendall, 18.06.24