Setting Email Encryption as Your Default
Published, February 4, 2015
Department of the Navy policy requires emails containing personally identifiable information (PII) to be digitally signed and encrypted. Most DON employees rarely send PII via email, so it makes sense for them to encrypt email messages on a case by case basis. However, some organizations within the DON handle PII on a regular basis and it makes sense for them to make encryption the default and unencrypt emails when not required.
The procedure to set encryption as the default is below:
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Open Outlook.
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Click on the "File" tab at the upper left of the screen.
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Click on "Options" above "Exit" on the far left of the screen.
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Click on "Trust Center" at the bottom on the far left of the screen.
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Click on "Trust Center Settings..." on the far right of the screen.
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Click on "E-mail Security" on the far left of the screen.
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Check the box next to "Encrypt contents and attachments for outgoing messages" at the top of the page.
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Select "Ok," then "Ok" again.
In addition, view the article "Customize Your Email to Make Signing/Encrypting Messages Easier," for more tips on encrypting email messages.
Using these two processes in conjunction with each other will reduce unnecessary PII breaches due to human error.