Is Your Email Secure?

Email Security Software

Comodo AntiSpam is a free solution that integrates with Outlook, Outlook Express and Windows Mail to provide inbound email security. If the sender's email address is not in your address book or your "blocked" list, AntiSpam will place the message on hold. A request for confirmation with a graphical passcode is sent to the sender, and if an actual human responds with the correct passcode, the message is delivered to your inbox. Since almost all spam, email viruses and phishing emails are sent by automated systems, this works very well to protect your inbox.

SpamTitan Anti-Spam is an award-winning email security suite that, in tests, stops over 98 per cent of spam emails. Its multi-layered anti-spam analyses produce less than 0.03 per cent false positives. Two anti-virus engines (ClamAV and Kaspersky) screen email attachments for viruses. User-definable content filters can block messages containing specific language. SpamTitan scans both inbound and outbound email. SpamTitan is an email gateway product, not designed for end users. The software is free; customers pay for ongoing support and software updates.

Websense claims to deliver "three times the email security at half the cost." Another gateway product, Websense Email Security excels at blocking Web attacks buried in email. It also features intensive scrutiny of inbound email for viruses and phishing attacks.

Google Postini Services blocks email-borne threats using the same patented technology that protects Google GMail users. It protects sensitive email in transit using the SSL or TLS connection encryption protocols. It works with an existing email system and costs only a dollar per month per user.

Protecting Outbound Mail and Hosted Anti-Spam Services

Protecting outbound email from prying eyes is a major concern for businesses and many individuals. Comodo Secure Email is free for home/personal use. Integrating seamlessly with popular email clients, it provides public-key encryption and digital certificate signatures. Encryption ensures that only a recipient with the right software key can read an email, while a digital signature confirms the identity of the sender.

Symantec Corp. offers both gateway-level and desktop email security solutions for Windows, Mac OS X, Windows Mobile 6, and Blackberry email clients. Symantec's email encryption relies on the PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) protocol, a trusted name in email encryption.

McAfee SaaS Email Protection is a "cloud-based" solution that antivirus maker McAfee acquired in its merger with MX Logic. It protects business networks from spam and phishing attacks, particularly threats from unknown senders or those who try to disguise their identities. It also scans for viruses, and allows content filtering and attachment blocking. McAfee's Global Threat Intelligence network provides protection against threats as they are discovered around the world. The company claims that they can block "over 99 percent of spam, viruses, worms and harmful content."

RedCondor.com offers two types of email security solutions designed for small businesses and other organizations that don't have a large IT staff. To use its hosted service, customers redirect their email domains to RedCondor's server. That server scrubs out spam, viruses, objectionable content, and phishing attempts, then forwards the "good" email to the customer's email server. The same capabilities are available in a gateway appliance, a box that plugs into the customer's network and is kept up to date by RedCondor.

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