SAFEmail- Protective Marking, Confidentiality and Integrity for Microsoft Outlook

One of the major challenges facing Homeland Security agencies is ensuring the security and integrity of email messaging systems. The requirement to assign and manage the classification, distribution and retention of sensitive email messages intra- and inter-agency and across international borders, is essential. Key to this is:

Preventing the inadvertent release of sensitive / classified information internally or externally
Ensuring unauthorised individuals cannot read message content, especially whilst it is travelling between agencies over public networks
Guaranteeing the integrity of the message to ensure it cannot be altered en-route, the recipient has proof it was sent by the correct authorised individual, and the sender has proof it was read by the intended recipient.

One of the most effective ways to mitigate against these risks is through protectively marking messages and setting user clearance authorisation by using SAFEmail from Boldon James.

About SAFEmail

SAFEmail extends the basic message functionality within Microsoft Outlook to support a specific agency’s requirement to monitor and manage who is able to receive messages. It supports a robust security subsystem to guarantee the confidentiality and integrity of the message and ensures compliance with country specific protective marking schemes and legislation. In addition, it enables selective archiving of high value messages and provides an enhanced level of administrator management.

Before sending the message, the sender uses customised forms to assign an appropriate protective mark or label such as ‘Classified’, ‘Secret’, ‘Personal’, ‘Medical-in-Confidence’ etc., to the message. SAFEmail then checks that the recipient has the correct clearance to view the message according to its protective mark. SAFEmail’s user security checks work for both internal and external email recipients to ensure that sensitive / classified information can only be viewed by those authorised to do so.

Using the optional Security Module, SAFEmail can be configured (if required) to allow the user to apply a digital signature and/or encryption to messages. This capability supports the confidentiality and integrity functions required in a formal messaging system.

outlook labelling tool

The label dialog that appears asking the user to apply a label whilst sending a Microsoft Outlook message

Key Features

Label Creation - Prior to sending the message, SAFEmail sets a protective mark or label to the message. This is via a simple dialogue to the sender offering a choice of configurable marks.
Send Checker - Once the protective mark has been set, SAFEmail checks that the intended recipients are cleared to receive a message at that classification, thus preventing information being sent to an unauthorised individual.
Message Encryption (Security Module) - Message encryption is used to ensure message confidentiality, especially across public networks. Server-to-server encryption allows more operational flexibility.
Integrity of Content, Reader and Sender (Security Module) - Digital signatures are used to guarantee the message’s integrity has not be altered since it left the sender’s desktop, that it was sent by the named individual (i.e. no spoofing), and that it was definitely read by the intended recipient.
Configuration and Admin Tool - The client component can be centrally configured and deployed using a centrally scripted installation process. Options include the number of marks supported, the wording and positioning of the marks within the message, and the wording of any messages encountered due to a mark and recipient clearance mismatch.
Mail-guard Integration - By adding the security mark to either the message’s Subject Field or First Line of Text (FLOT), compatibility is guaranteed with the most popular email compliance and border control guards.

Key Benefits

Prevents inadvertent distribution of sensitive / classified information to unauthorised individuals
Enables message confidentiality and integrity
Intuitive user interface requires minimal training
Compliance with international security labelling policies and legislation such as the UK Government Protective Marking Scheme and Sarbanes-Oxley
Configurable to conform with international military communication standards such as P772 and NATO STANAG 4406
Provides for easy storage, search and retrieval according to the protective mark
A configurable and centrally managed system
Full seamless integration with Microsoft Active Directory, Outlook and Exchange.

Further information

A PDF version of this information is available in our reference library. Alternatively please contact us with your questions