Recently in the month of April 2018, Gmail users got a whole new design which had a clean new user interface and a swathe of new features including the ability to snooze a message, auto-generate smart replies and self-destruct emails in the brand new “Confidential Mode”. Here’s what exactly Gmail’s ‘Confidential Email’ feature is.
It gives recipients of such emails access to protected content sent by another Gmail user – these emails can’t be forwarded, copied, downloaded or printed. Other features include timed-expiry or self-destructing emails, two-step authentication, and more.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reportedly issued an alert on the “potential emerging threat… for nefarious activity” with the Gmail redesign, the report said. Central to these fears was the new “Confidential Email” feature that can require users to click a link in order to access these messages.
If you’re a Gmail user using the official Google Mail website then the “Confidential Email” appears when you click to open it. It shows a date for when the content will expire and informs the users that the email can’t be forwarded or downloaded.
However, its different if you’re a Gmail user viewing the message as a third-party client or a non-Gmail user who receives a confidential email. In those cases, instead of the message appearing in their browser, users have to click a button to view the email. And this is where the security fears lie.
eScan suggests following preventive measures that will save you from falling prey to such attacks:
- Identify phishing emails, such emails are filled with countless grammatical errors and are often written in awkward English.
- Never respond to emails or messages from an unknown sender that have “undisclosed recipients” in the address line.
- Do not click on the link mentioned in the mail, if required type it in another browser tab to see what it contains.
- Never provide information related to your credit card, bank account numbers or passwords to any unknown site or a fake site.
However, for complete protection from spam and phishing emails get the free trial of eScan Total Security Suite with Cloud Security.
