Email encryption explained: Why your company needs encrypted email
From confidential contracts, communications, and employee records, unencrypted emails put your business at risk. Here’s why companies must ensure emails are end-to-end encrypted by default.
Tuta Mail is the trusted European email provider that offers end-to-end encryption by default to professionals and businesses.
Why is encryption important for a business?
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Protect against data breaches
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Keep confidential communication private
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Secure all sensitive data
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Regulatory compliance: GDPR / HIPAA
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Enhance company image & reputation
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Reduce data collection
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Minimize risks of human error
7 reasons your business needs to encrypt its communications
1. Prevent data breaches
Without end-to-end encryption, your mailbox is accessible to the email provider, therefore it’s a lot less secure and not private. As companies deal with confidential matters such as financial documents, employee data, or customer data via email, ensuring it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands must be a priority. With truly secured and private communications through end-to-end encryption, companies greatly reduce the risks of data being exposed in a data breach.
In addition to choosing a mail provider that offers a zero-knowledge architecture, and encrypts as much data as possible, it’s also advised to choose an email service that offers additional security measures like additional login protections using two-factor authentication (2FA). All of these extra layers of security help reduce the risk of confidential data getting leaked online.
Tuta Mail is a perfect example as it combines all these factors and already offers quantum-safe encrypted emails. When companies choose Tuta Mail they are guaranteed that their email is protected from future threats.
2. Keep confidential communication private
Popular big-tech email providers like Gmail or Outlook do not end-to-end encrypt emails by default. These providers usually encrypt your email while in transit, but the emails are still accessible as clear text to the provider – meaning they can be read by external parties. If it is possible for emails to be accessed by unintended parties you cannot ensure they remain truly private, and the risk of emails falling into the wrong hands is greater.
That’s where end-to-end encryption comes in.
When you use email with end-to-end encryption, only the sender and the intended email recipients who have the decryption keys can decrypt the email and access its contents.
When companies opt for an email provider, like Tuta Mail, they are guaranteed that business matters remain truly private and confidential. Tuta end-to-end encrypts more data than any other email provider, and it only stores encrypted data on the servers based in Germany.
Last year Tuta Mail released the world’s first post-quantum encryption protocol for email. With Tuta’s post-quantum encryption, your business email is secure today, and from future threats.
3. Keep all data secure
For companies in industries that deal with client data and private information like medical records or banking documents, ensuring that the customer’s information is stored and sent securely is mandatory. Without end-to-end encryption, companies cannot guarantee the highest degree of security and privacy for this data.
4. Regulatory compliance: GDPR / HIPAA
Tuta Mail ensures GDPR compliance for businesses.
Companies have regulatory standards set in place to protect user data and privacy. In addition, businesses must comply with regulations depending on where they are based, for instance, with the GDPR or HIPAA. These regulations define how a company must handle, transmit, and store personal data. These regulations are different for each country and industry.
As a company, you have to comply with these privacy protections, which often require companies to use an encryption protocol. In Europe, the General Data Protection (GDPR) ensures that companies operating within the EU adhere to strict security and privacy standards when it comes to handling user data. In the United States, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is an act in place that aims to keep medical data safe and ensure data privacy.
If a company chooses Tuta Mail as its encrypted business email - like the German IAGO GmbH, a German business consultancy, did - it can have peace of mind that its email is in compliance with the EU’s GDPR.
5. Company image & reputation
It’s no secret that companies are at high risk of being targets of cyberattacks. One way to reduce the risks of a company falling victim to a data leak or hack is to ensure you have a robust mail solution that uses the highest security and privacy standards.
An easy investment of migrating to a privacy-focused mail provider with end-to-end encryption might sound unnecessary, but when it comes to protecting your company’s image and reputation, it truly is worth it.
Additionally, by using an email provider known for its encryption and privacy, you build a positive brand image and trust with others you communicate with. This is especially important for gaining consumer trust when it comes to sending sensitive information via email.
6. Reduce data collection
For business and personal use, when it comes to email or any other online service, it’s always worth remembering that popular big tech services like Google make their profits from advertising. In short, they follow your online movements, collect a lot of user data, and sell it to third parties who in return target you with ads.
Any company wouldn’t want its private accounts to be snooped on or for any kind of data to be collected. That’s why by opting for an end-to-end encrypted email provider, much less data can be tracked and collected.
If you opt for a business email address with Tuta Mail, your company benefits from the email provider’s strong focus on data minimization principles.
7. Minimize risks of human error
As a company, it’s important to make your workforce aware of the cyber risks that could potentially lead to problems in operations, negatively affect your brand, or user trust. Unfortunately, human error will always be a risk that companies need to consider, especially when phishing emails can seem so real and hard to distinguish.
For companies, one way to reduce the risk of human error causing problems is by choosing an end-to-end encrypted email provider. Because of the E2E encryption, any sensitive information in the email is best protected.
Tuta Mail: best email encryption for business use
There’s no denying that all businesses, no matter how big or small, need to use E2E encryption for a number of reasons. Popular providers do offer E2E encryption but not by default, for example with Outlook, setting up end-to-end encryption takes some technical steps and time.
Tuta Mail is the perfect end-to-end encrypted solution for businesses. As a privacy-focused company, Tuta encrypts as much user data as possible, ensuring your company communications are private and secure.
Tuta is a privacy-focused mail provider that offers affordable business encryption with a user-friendly interface – allowing you and all your employees to send emails as usual - but with the added security of E2E encryption by default.
Tuta is a German-based email and calendar provider that started eleven years ago as the world’s first end-to-end encrypted mail service. In 2024, Tuta released the world’s only post-quantum encryption for email.
Beyond top-notch encryption, Tuta offers many great features and functionality.
Tuta Mail’s business features
With a team of privacy experts working together to make the web a more private place, companies and individuals are promised the highest quality encryption, security, and privacy standards for their email, calendar, and contacts.
- Quantum-safe encryption protocol for email
- End-to-end encryption by default
- Email import & export
- Send password-protected emails
- No tracking & no ads
- Open source code
- Unlimited aliases
- Unlimited users
- Multiple business domains
- GDPR Compliant
- Whitelabel your business mailbox
- Includes unlimited encrypted Tuta Calendar
- Encrypted contacts
- Unlimited search
- Two-factor authentication support
- Smart filters (inbox rules) to automatically sort incoming emails
- Protection against spam, phishing & tracking
- Custom templates
- Autoresponder
Coming soon:
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HIPAA compliance
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Tuta Drive: quantum-safe encrypted cloud storage
Tuta Mail is available on the device of your choice with free desktop clients for Windows, macOS, and Linux. You can also access your encrypted mailbox wherever and whenever with its mobile apps for Android and iPhone or via web browser.
Frequently asked questions
Why is email encryption important?
Email encryption, specifically end-to-end, is important for personal and business communication because it ensures emails remain private, secure, and confidential. When an email is encrypted end-to-end, only the sender and the intended email recipient have access to the email contents. In addition to keeping emails private, end-to-end encryption also helps prevent security threats.
Is encryption required under the GDPR?
Encryption is not mandatory under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), but it is encouraged that all companies secure their business communications with end-to-end encryption. When businesses choose end-to-end email providers like Tuta Mail, they ensure that sensitive communications and employee and customer data are secure and private while also being compliant with the GDPR.
