Secure Email Services and Providers

Email communication is the main source of interaction for most businesses. But having a secure email service is very important to protect data and information. But what is a secure email? How does secure email work?

The answer in one word is – encryption. The most prominent feature of secure email is to follow end-to-end encryption. This means that no one other than the sender and the receiver can read the text. Only the parties with the decryption key can access the email information.

PGP and S/MIME are known for their encrypting techniques. PGP works in the background to create a session key that will allow encryption. The sender sends this key to the receiver who in turn uses her private key to decrypt and read the message.

PGP uses a combination of symmetric and asymmetric encryption while S/MIME uses certificates by the authority for authentication. These methods prevent hackers and advertisers from looking into your personal/business information.

There is transport-level encryption that ensures message delivery on the web safely. It combines with other protocols like TCS, IMAP, HTTP to make the communication more secure. Read more about cybersecurity standards for a better understanding.

Benefits of Email Security

• Protection of confidential information
• Total email privacy
• Cost-effective
• Compliance with cybersecurity standards
• Protection from hackers and spammers
• Efficient
• Hides your metadata
• Doesn’t use your information for advertising

Features of Secure Email Services

1. End-to-end encryption

This is the most important part of email security. Though now most of the email service providers have this feature, it is always better to check. The end-to-end encryption allows only the sender and receiver to read the exact message. Pretty good privacy is the common way of end-to-end encryption for emails.

2. Two-factor authentication

This feature allows double-layer security to the users. Users can have their password for the primary log-in process and another authentication factor as well. This may be SMS, fingerprint, etc.

3. Stripping metadata headers

Metadata in email communication refers to the name of the web browser, device, and recipient. But in a secure email service, all these things are stripped to protect the sender’s and receiver’s privacy.

4. Server location/ Jurisdiction

Many countries don’t support privacy and have data-retention laws asking users to store personal data. The US, UK, Canada, and Australia are few examples that fall under this category. Many believe that these places are not suitable for registering a secure email provider.

5. Security and Privacy

Every provider follows different security standards and policies. It is better to research which regulations they consider and how safe they are accordingly.

6. Features and Key Features

They all come with multiple features. But some have additional features than others, becoming more attractive. Choose the provider according to its functionality and how that will help you in the future.

7. Open Source

There is open-source software for ensuring the availability of source code for users and developers. It to inspect and improve the email service and put trust in the developer’s integrity. These services are completely transparent and everything goes under the public’s knowledge.

8. Email Apps

The providers avoid using third-party email clients because of their encryption policies. But sometimes dedicated apps exist to guide users better.

Secure Email Service Providers

Some of the secure email service providers with the above features are –

1. Protonmail

It is a secure email service that supports all devices to share end-to-end encrypted emails. It respects confidentiality and doesn’t ask for any personal information for creating an account.

Protonmail follows inbuilt algorithms like AES and RSA. The service allows 500Mb storage space with the ability to send 150 emails a day.

2. Gmail

Gmail business is one the most famous emailing applications worldwide. GSuite allows companies to make their own room for employees to share secure ad-free emails. It comes with grammar and spell-checks functions which are active even offline by using the Google Chrome browser.

It offers up to 100 GB of storage according to the plan chosen. The application allows access to Google Meet and Chat on all devices. It has features to nudge the users, open attachments, etc. And it blocks phishing emails automatically.

3. Criptext

The users get control over email communications in this secure email provider. The server doesn’t save any email in this case. Instead, all the emails go to server storage locked with a unique key. It follows a signal protocol library for more security. Users can unsend emails within one hour and can track emails in real-time.

4. Hushmail

It is an email service provider protecting users from unauthorized content, identity theft, etc. It follows the Pretty Good Privacy program for email encryption. This means that all data follows automatic encryption with additional services like face ID two-step verification, and touch ID.

It is compatible on the web or smartphone and works smoothly with multiple accounts as well.

5. Luxsci

LuxSci is a mail portal that allows control over emails in all web browsers. It uses SecureLineTM VPN encoding and gets hosting from Office365 and G Suite.

Luxsci enables users to send and receive Electronically protected health information. It aligns with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act for protecting sensitive data and emails.

6. Mailbox

Mailbox offers a secure email service for business. It is a free service for secure and anonymous email communication.

Mailbox has secure communication threads with a push notification feature. It avoids data loss and generates links for downloads. Users can sync their contacts and manage more than one inbox from one window.

7. Thexyz

This email service provider has DNS hosting to send and receive secure emails. Users can restore deleted emails and import/export contacts as CSV files. They can also change their passwords using phone numbers and share files up to 50MB. It has a feature to alias the real email addresses.

8. Kolabnow

Kolabnow is a quick and efficient secure email provider that is compatible with all devices. It has an automated email response template and allows maintaining an address book. It uses CardDAV or ActiveSync to get contacts and doesn’t scan data for security.

9. SecureMac

It is a cybersecurity software tool to detect and remove malware and destroy privacy threats. It comes with many scanning features to meet security needs. There is drag and drop scanning and the ability to clear the hard disk by removing files. Users get complete control over scanning malware with 5X faster speed.

10. Tutanota

It is an online email sending app that is compatible with mobile, email, and desktop. It allows user anonymity by using two-factor authentication. There are no advertisements in between and all text and attachments are encrypted. Users can create an encrypted calendar and get daily and monthly views in it.

11. Startmail

It is a simple email service that allows sending encrypted messages protected by Dutch privacy laws. It follows one-click PGP encryption even if the recipient does not use it. The storage space is up to 10 GB which saves temporary emails as well. The service is compatible with the guidelines of SMTP/IMAP.

12. Vivaldi

Vivaldi is an email provider that is known for its feature to import email from another account. It is advertisement-free and allows users to maintain contacts and calendars. It uses the PGP key for email communication.

Vivaldi aligns with the guidelines of IMAPs, POP3s, and SMTPs. The higher size of attachment can be 20 MB and the storage size is 5 GB.

13. Countermail

This email service comes with a diskless server and is famous for protection against MITM attacks. They follow encryption policy and work the best with android mobile phones.

Windows, Linux, MacOS X, etc. are compatible with this provider.

14. Librem Mail

It is again an email service provider that follows encryption policy. It uses cryptography for data protection inside and outside the domain. The unencrypted automatically goes to the bin after 30 days. It is compatible with all types of devices.

15. Posteo

This service allows users to keep all of their data in an encrypted way. Even this service offers inbuilt spam and virus filters. They can encrypt data in a click and stay safe with two-factor authentication. It also allows anonymous monetary transactions and follows the guidelines of POP3 and IMAP. Users can attach files up to 50 MB under this service.

16. FastMail

It is an email service that offers 36 languages to its users. They can manage calendars, contacts, and emails using this service. All these features are also open for collaboration with an option to pin them. They can also select a virtual path identifier and customize their email address.

17. Mailfence

This email service comes with OpenPGP-based digital signatures and encryption. The users can remain anonymous and configure emails using IMAP and POPS. It doesn’t have any ads, trackers, and spam. Users can securely store email attachments and allow group creation.

18. Runbox

It is a famous secure email provider for businesses as it allows sharing files up to 100MB. It has an encryption policy and provides a full email domain. Users enjoy protection from viruses and spam by controlling domain and email hosting. They get 15 GB of email storage space and can communicate securely with anyone anywhere.

19. Scryptmail

It is a private email service that respects security and user privacy. It is compatible with Chrome and Firefox browsers.

Scryptmail supports HTTPS and prevents tracking third-party server scripts. It has a 256-bit key for encryption, given if users want to encrypt their text. They also have the option to encrypt attachments and folders.

20. SecureMyEmai

SecureMyEmail follows email encryption for security. It has a feature to create a secure contact list using social networks and then allows email communication with them.

SecureMyEmail is compatible with Gmail, Microsoft 365, Outlook, and Yahoo for business and personal accounts. It has a user-friendly dashboard and provides Pretty Good Privacy.

21. Vipre

It is an email client that offers endpoint security in the field of threat intelligence. Users enjoy protection against spam messages and malware. The email stays inside the mailbox for 90 days after passing 6 layers of scanning. They can archive emails and reject the ones they find suspicious.

22. Mailvelope

It is a browser extension that encrypts emails using the OpenPGP encryption standard.

Mailvelope is compatible with a webmail provider. It is like a free tool to prevent a data breach in Firefox and Chrome.

23. Soverin

This private email provider has a feature to choose a personal domain. It doesn’t have advertisements and filters out the email. Users can store 25GB of data and even access old messages. They can also maintain more than one mailbox with features like attachments, calendars, and dashboards.

24. Trustifi

It is an email service provider that works from Gmail and Outlook. It follows email encryption to protect from malware and ransomware viruses. HIPAA, GDPR, and FSA are compatible with this service. It allows users to open and receive emails in real-time and has blacklisting and whitelisting options. Users can block, change or set an expiration date for mails with a phishing detection facility.

25. Hornetsecurity

It is an online security management solution known to filter out spam messages. Users can easily avoid issues like ransomware and phishing as it uses PGP, S/MIME for encryption. There is also a feature for automatic digital signing allowing easy encryption and decryption. Users can auto-update this tool frequently to get the best features.

26. Proofpoint

It is a Proofpoint that protects your important emails from fraud by filtering spam. Its features are up to date to find and block threats. They can also create unique categories for the emails online.

27. Namecheap

It is an economical and faster email hosting system that allows business and personal collaboration. The system allows users to use multiple email accounts under one window. It provides span protection to users and works well with Windows and Apple devices. It aligns with protocols like IMAP, SMTP, and POP3.

28. Zoho Mail

It is a mail hosting provider that comes with a control panel to manage groups and add users. The email retention is for a few days and has an integration with Zoho CRM for managing sales. There are options to add comments, tag, and share files on both computers and mobile phones. It follows the guidelines of POP and IMAP.

Conclusion

These were some of the most secure email providers that are accessible to everyone. They all have distinct features and functionalities to support users in secure email communication. They can choose any of them according to their needs and affordability. It is a good idea to compare them before singing for a plan. This will help you save resources and efforts, and make a more efficient decision.