Send encrypted email with Office 365

Much email communication is not secured by default. This causes problems when sending confidential email messages and for companies that must comply with legislation or contractual agreements regarding this. Sending encrypted messages can be the solution in many cases, as the message remains unreadable to unauthorized individuals. This feature can be easily used or added to your email system via Office 365.

Message encryption is part of Azure Information Protection, which manages encryption, identity, and authorization in an Office 365 Exchange Online environment. It is easy to use; no additional software or complex configuration is required, and all functionality is available via Outlook on the PC and Outlook Online.

How does encrypted sending work:

In Outlook, the user indicates when composing that the message should be secured; this can be done via the “Encrypt” option:

By default, various authorization levels are available:

• Unlimited access: The default setting, the message is not encrypted
• Encrypt only: The message is encrypted
• Do not forward: The message may not be forwarded
• [Company Name] – confidential: The message is intended exclusively for internal users; it may be modified but not copied or printed.
• [Company Name] – confidential – View only: The message is intended exclusively for internal users; it may not be modified, copied, or printed

In addition to this manual encryption by the user, the administrator can also set up rules whereby certain messages are automatically encrypted. In this way, the organization can enforce that messages containing specific keywords or a default are encrypted for certain domains.

The recipient of the email receives the encrypted email and can see that it is an encrypted message. If the recipient is also an Office 365 / Outlook.com user, the email is immediately readable:

If the recipient is not known to Microsoft, the message is not immediately visible and is hidden behind a link:

After clicking the link, the encrypted email is displayed in the browser. This can be done after logging in with, for example, a Google account, or by receiving a one-time password code that is then sent via a separate email.

Office 365 message encryption is a standard part of accounts linked to an Enterprise E3 or E5 license.

• Office 365 Enterprise E3
• Office 365 Enterprise E5
• Microsoft 365 Enterprise E3
• Microsoft 365 Enterprise E5
• Microsoft 365 Business Premium
• Office 365 A1
• Office 365 A3
• Office 365 A5
• Office 365 Government G3
• Office 365 Government G5

Message encryption can be activated for users with, for example, an Exchange Online, Office 365 Business Premium, or Office 365 Business Essentials license via an additional “Azure Information Protection” license.

We are happy to assist you with configuring the desired security options and the correct licenses to start using encrypted email.