Questions not covered in the FAQ

Elektra
Active Albatross
Posts: 188
Joined: Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:25 pm

Questions not covered in the FAQ

Tue Jun 07, 2016 10:27 pm

1. If using MailWasher can encrypted mails still be read in the preview pane whilst on the mail server?
2. Does EncryptUs work with 1 email address only (I have 22)?
3. When purchasing a license, does the quantity field refer to the amount of email addresses or computers you wish to use EncryptUs with?
4. For me, the biggest problem with PGP was that the recipient always had to have the same software installed at his end. EncryptUs doesn't seem to be any different so, unless I am missing something here, you are asking us to do all the advertising for you to our entire address books because if the recipient doesn't have the program also, we cannot send him an encrypted mail. This presents a couple of issues:
a) I need to do a sales job on everyone I mail to in order to convince him he needs to install this program. I don't have the time, nor the desire, nor do I wish people to think I'm trying to sell them something.
b) Due to business use, I send mails to people all over the world which means mails sent in many different languages. How do I convince anyone to install your program when your site is not multilanguage?
5. What if the recipient is already using another encryption program?
6. As anybody can get this program, can't a government agency use a team of geeks to reverse engineer it or access the decryption keys on your server? This question may be a little silly and comes from my lack of knowledge on the subject but I'm guessing I won't be alone in that regard.
User avatar
nick.bolton
The Big Cheese
Posts: 2468
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2008 4:02 pm

Re: Questions not covered in the FAQ

Thu Jun 09, 2016 8:04 am

Sorry for the late reply. Good questions!
1. If using MailWasher can encrypted mails still be read in the preview pane whilst on the mail server?
Yes, it intercepts the POP/IMAP mail stream and will decrypt it in Mailwasher on your PC so you can read your email there.
2. Does EncryptUs work with 1 email address only (I have 22)?
It works with unlimited email addresses
3. When purchasing a license, does the quantity field refer to the amount of email addresses or computers you wish to use EncryptUs with?
There's no limit on either, the quantity refers to perhaps if you wanted to buy licenses for individual users in a business or for a friend.
4. For me, the biggest problem with PGP was that the recipient always had to have the same software installed at his end. EncryptUs doesn't seem to be any different so, unless I am missing something here, you are asking us to do all the advertising for you to our entire address books because if the recipient doesn't have the program also, we cannot send him an encrypted mail. This presents a couple of issues:
Yes, this is a common complaint of email encryption, hence why we made it so that normal emails to other people are not affected. We do add a byline to the email footer of the free version which states they can install the software to have encrypted emails between each other. This can be removed upon buying a license. It's pretty passive, if they care, then they can install it, otherwise not. We're also thinking of adding a feature where you can send an encrypted zip, or some other file which will contain your email and the person opens it using a shared password. Not as secure, but a bit more usable although zip files in email are not so popular these days with viruses/cryptolocker using them.
a) I need to do a sales job on everyone I mail to in order to convince him he needs to install this program. I don't have the time, nor the desire, nor do I wish people to think I'm trying to sell them something.
Sure, that's why we made it free. Not everyone will install it, but it's there if they want it, otherwise you can still send/receive emails as you normally do.
b) Due to business use, I send mails to people all over the world which means mails sent in many different languages. How do I convince anyone to install your program when your site is not multilanguage?
Valid point, We don't really have the resouces to keep up with translations, so we've been looking at Google translate as a stop gap.
5. What if the recipient is already using another encryption program?
That won't matter.
6. As anybody can get this program, can't a government agency use a team of geeks to reverse engineer it or access the decryption keys on your server? This question may be a little silly and comes from my lack of knowledge on the subject but I'm guessing I won't be alone in that regard.
We're using standard Public/Private key cryptography and AES encryption, it's used because it's been proven secure and it all happens on your PC, not our servers. There are no decryption keys on our server, your private key remains on your computer. Your public key is the only thing on the server, and it's public so anyone can see it. If someone were to hack one and replace it, then since the public and private key have to match as a pair then the encryption/decryption wouldn't work - so it would be a pointless hack. We use best practices for security on our servers.
Elektra
Active Albatross
Posts: 188
Joined: Fri Oct 24, 2008 7:25 pm

Re: Questions not covered in the FAQ

Thu Jun 09, 2016 10:04 pm

Thanks for all your replies Nick.

Is the program itself supplied in multiple languages? If it isn't that could well be a problem for anyone that doesn't understand English, and like I said previously, as a business user many of my customers and suppliers are in other countries. Is encryption really necessary for business use? I would say ABSOLUTELY YES!!!

Regarding finding a method to get recipients to download and install the free version, it seems to me that the program could have an option to insert a signature briefly explaining the need for encrypted mails with links to download and get more info. Whilst you are already doing this with the free version, I feel it is in the interest of paid users also but appreciate it should be possible to turn it off if so desired. Another idea, which may not be feasible, would be to make the signature vanish if the recipient's PC already has EncryptUs installed.

As I am sure you are well aware, this product has enormous potential if marketed correctly. If it isn't, it won't be long before the Me2 gang come along with the necessary investment behind their product. Are shares available in your company?
User avatar
nick.bolton
The Big Cheese
Posts: 2468
Joined: Thu Aug 28, 2008 4:02 pm

Re: Questions not covered in the FAQ

Thu Jun 09, 2016 10:23 pm

The program is still only in English at this stage, but it will be able to be translated soon as we're replacing the user interface.

Regarding the uptake of it, with the promotional signature. At the moment it says this
Sent using EncryptUs: Free email encryption - Let's keep our emails private and secure
http://www.encryptus.com
So, we're hoping that will bring some users in.

And this can be disabled if a license is purchased. Anything is possible and we'll try out a few ideas.

I'm hoping that it will get very popular, but at the moment we've just done a soft launch to get a bit of feedback and iron out any issues. Sorry, it's all privatly owned :)

At the moment, aside from needing Mac, Linux and mobile versions, we need to have more useful features and feedback to the user that it's doing something.

Return to “EncryptUs”