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Living in the digital age has its advantages and its dark sides. Compromised data, hacked systems, and theft of personal information are common occurrences.
This is a major concern for many people when it comes to email. Attackers can intercept, read, and manipulate your email, compromising your sensitive information.
In this article, I’ll explain what SSL email protection is, why it’s necessary, and is it enough?
Stuff a SSL Email?
Let’s start with the terms. TLS and SSL are commonly known as just SSL. You can use the terms more or less interchangeably unless you are referring to a specific version of the protocol.
SSL It represents secure socket layer. In short, it is a standard security technology to protect data that is transferred between two systems. It prevents hackers from reading and modifying the transmitted information.
TLS It represents Transport Layer Security. It is a newer and updated version of SSL.
SSL certificates are the standard for securing websites (HTTPS). And if you’ve ever received a “Your connection is not private” warning for a website, it means the certificate is missing. But aside from this vital function, SSL is also used to protect emails.
Popular email clients, like Gmail, previously encrypted with SSL, but now use TLS.
What Is email secure and why do you need it?
Email is essentially unencrypted communication sent by mail clients to a receiving server. Its limitations leave the content of the message open to interception during transit. Email is often susceptible to this when connected to public hotspots or even your IP. Spyware is an additional threat to your emails.
Email certificates help solve this problem by encrypting the broadcast message from one certified mail server to another. This result is a secure email that protects your data.
SSL and TLS email
The differences between an SSL certificate and an email with a TLS certificate are minor. They both perform the same encryption function for data exchanges. However, TLS is preferred as it is the updated version of SSL. That doesn’t mean SSL is any less secure, and if your email software uses SSL, you get pretty much the same protection. Only a very technical person will spot the differences.
Whether SSL or TLS, it is essential to take into account the version of the protocol. Older versions continue to reveal vulnerabilities over the years. Most modern browsers display security warnings when they encounter a web server that uses outdated protocols. This is because they are considered dangerous. For these reasons, it’s best to take advantage of only the latest SSL and TLS protocols.
If you are technically savvy enough to set up an email server for your business, you should install software that supports the latest version of TLS. This ensures that the connections are as secure as possible.
Are your emails protected with SSL/TLS?
If you use traditional services, like Gmail, in most cases you don’t have to do anything. These email clients already use the latest TLS protocols to protect your emails. This way you get a free secure email certificate with no setup required. But there’s a problem.
Emails are only secure if both sender and recipient use SSL/TLS. Since all reputable services use email encryption certificates, it is rare that you will send or receive communications from someone using an unsecured email service.
It’s called the standard form of TLS used by Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, and others. opportunistic TLS and it works by protecting email wherever possible.
However, when the destination mail server does not support TLS, the sender’s server will use an unencrypted channel to deliver the email, giving priority to delivery. As such, there is less chance of a message not being delivered. However, you accept a high security risk by sending and receiving unencrypted emails.
In a nutshell, delivery is more important than security with opportunistic TLS.
Another TLS configuration for email encryption is TLS forced, where safety is the priority. Servers using forced TLS will only attempt to establish an encrypted tunnel that sends a message securely. But in cases where this is not possible, the email will simply not be sent.
It is typically used for communication between institutions and organizations at higher risk of being hacked rather than for daily email exchanges with clients, family and friends.
In a nutshell, safety is more important than email delivery with forced TLS encryption.
Weather you will not be able to use forced TLS on your regular mail accountPaid corporate email services like Microsoft 365 Exchange Online and Google Workspace offer this feature. Any service chosen for this purpose will have documentation on how to configure forced TLS in the connection security options. You can find Microsoft 365 Exchange Online instructions here and Google Workspace here.
To wrap
This article covered what a security certificate is, the difference between SSL and TLS, and what is SSL email? Everything you need to know to keep hackers at bay when it comes to your online correspondence.
All major email providers and ISPs use the latest versions of TLS. And while regular Gmail or Yahoo accounts are already protected by TLS, they’re not 100% secure. Filling these spaces means using forced TLS. This comes at the expense of deliverability and is only used in niche situations, such as internal communications for larger organizations and companies.
Forced TLS is not the best option unless you need security regarding delivery. Setup can be technical and you’ll need to delve into your provider’s documentation.
The digital email certificate that comes with standard free email services should be enough for everyday users. Just make sure it’s a reliable provider.
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