Encrypt Email in Microsoft Outlook easily with Gpg4win

Microsoft Outlook , or Outlook for short, is one of the most popular Windows Email clients and is trusted by many businesses and individuals. When sending sensitive emails or top secret documents, users will be concerned about the security of such content so that no one but the recipient can read it. Most email services today use SSL / TLS encryption technology because they are quite secure. However, they are only really secure when transferred over the Internet. Conversely, when it is in the sender's or recipient's mailbox, how can no one read this email?

To ensure that only the recipient can read the message, you should encrypt Email via GPG (GNU Privacy Gaurd) to use public or private keys when encrypting Email. The following article will introduce readers how to encrypt email in Outlook with GPG.

Encrypt Email in Outlook

To encrypt Email in Outlook, you can use a free software called Gpg4win that supports OpenPGP. When installing Gpg4win, the software will require a plugin to encrypt and decrypt messages in Microsoft Outlook.

After installation, search for " Kleopatra " in the Start menu and open. Here you can create your own private keyring and enter any public key if needed.

After opening Kleopatra, open the File section and select the New Certificate option .

In this window, select the first option Create a personal OpenPGP key pair and click the Next button .

Next, enter your name and the email address you want to create the keyring. This key pair must be associated with the registered email address.

At this point, you can review the certificate parameters and press the Create Key button .

Please enter a strong password for the key pair and click the OK button . You will be asked to enter your password again to continue.

Doing so will create a key pair containing both the private and public keys. When you press the Make a Backup Of Your Key Pair button, you can make a copy of the key pair for storage.

Public key (common key): used to encrypt Email. You can share this shared key at any time. When someone sends you an encrypted email, they need to use a public key to encrypt the email before sending.

Private key (private key): used to decrypt encrypted email. Never share this key and should only use it on your own. This is the only key to decrypt encrypted email using the generic key above.

To export the public key, select the certificate in the main window and click the Export Certificate button .

Select the destination and click Save . By default, File Fingerprint will be used as the file name. You can change later if you like.

After exporting and saving, users will publicize this key on forums, websites, chat groups ... so people can send encrypted email to you.

As mentioned above, if you want to send encrypted email to others, you must use their shared key to encrypt the message. Before that, you need to enter the recipient's public key. Please send request for a general key and download. In the main window of Kleopatra, click the Import Certificate button . You can now browse and select certificates.

The above operation will enter the public key. Before using it, you need to authenticate. Access the Imported Certificates tab in the main window, right click on the imported certificate and select Change Owner Trust.

Select the I believe checks are very accurate button and click OK .

Right-click on the certificate and select Certify Certificate.

Check both boxes and click Next .

Select the Certify only for myself button and press the Certify button .

You will be asked for the password you entered when creating this key pair. Enter the password and click OK .

At the confirmation screen shortly after, click Finish to close the window.

Once you've entered the shared key, you can always use it to encrypt emails for specific users via Outlook.

To encrypt Email, open Microsoft Outlook on your computer, then compose a new message as usual. After composing the message, open the GpgOL tab and then click the Encrypt button .

Immediately after pressing the encryption button, Gpg4win will encrypt the message if you use the public key for the destination Email address. After encryption, the message content will look like this. Users can decode the message with their own key.

When someone sends you an encrypted email with your public key, Outlook will ask you to enter the registered password when creating the key pair. Just enter the password, click OK and you can read the mail.

If everything is done correctly, you will see the decoded message in your Outlook.

Thus, sending and receiving encrypted mail in Microsoft Outlook is not a difficult job. Remember, you only share the sender of the public key (Public Key) and must secure your own private key to decrypt Email. I wish you successful implementation!