How do you set up encrypted email?

Answer 1

HOW TO SET UP ENCRYPTED EMAILFirst get a GMail account. GMail is Google's email account. With GMail, you can use an email program called Thunderbird to download and send email. It's all Free.

• https://www.Google.com/

• Look for the option to 'Create An Account'.

• Enter the information to create your new Google account.

Get the Thunderbird EMail Program. It's all Free. Thunderbird is a program that will exist on your computer. It will run from your computer, as opposed to running from the internet.

• Do an internet search using the term 'thunderbird email'

• download the file and then install it

• When you add your GMail account to Thunderbird it is very easy. In fact, there is an option to choose GMail right inside of Thunderbird.

• Tools

• Account Settings

• Add Account

• GMail

• Next

Encryption Program It's all Free.

• http://www.gpg4win.org/download.html

• download the file and then install it.

Enigmail Addon To Thunderbird It's all Free. You must download and install Enigmail

• Do an internet search using the term 'Enigmail'

• Install Enigmail

• After you have installed Enigmail

• In Thunderbird, go to the Tool menu, and choose 'Add Ons'

• There should be an 'Add On' list that lists Enigmail

• Choose Enigmail and click 'Install'

• In Thunderbird you will have a menu item named, "OpenPGP".

• When you first installed Thunderbird, I don't think that menu item existed.

• Click "OpenPGP", and choose the "setup wizard".

• You will be asked to create a password. They call it a, private key I think.

• Make sure you can remember your passphrase (private key?) the passphrase CAN NOT be retrieved by any means. So you need to store it somewhere. I use the password manager: http:/keepass.info

• Go through the steps in the "OpenPGP" wizard to set up OpenPGP and create a public and private key.

Check to See if Everything is Set Up

• To create an encrypted email, you will be creating a public key and a private key. The public key can be shared with anyone. But keep the private key secret.

• If you went through the wizard, you will have already created the private and public key.

• In Thunderbird you will have a menu item named, "OpenPGP"

• Click the OpenPGP button and choose, "Key management"

• In the search box, type in the name that you gave the email account

• After typing a couple of letters, the "Key Pair" that you created will appear.

• If nothing appears, then you have not yet created a "Key Pair".

Other SettingsEnigmail encryption does not work very well with HTML email. So go to TOOLS, ACCOUNT SETTINGS, COMPOSITION & ADDRESSING, and Uncheck COMPOSE MESSAGES IN HTML format.

OR Don't do any of that and:

hold down the shift key as you click on "Write" in the Thunderbird window. That composes the email in plain text.