How Microsoft 365 Encrypts Company Emails for Complete Security

Introduction

The fact that Microsoft 365 is encrypted by default — without needing to configure anything, and without turning to third-party services — is often seen as one of the service’s strong points. The TLS (Transport Layer Security) protocol that Microsoft 365 enables automatically was revolutionary when it first emerged, but today, it’s ubiquitous.

If you want complete control over the security and confidentiality of your company emails (and you do, because the results of a breach could be devastating), you do have a few additional encryption options within Microsoft 365’s ecosystem. Enabling these more advanced security protocols does not require the use of third-party services, although that, too, is an option for companies who wish to do so.

Company Email Encryption Options Within Microsoft 365

Office 365 Message Encryption (OME)

Microsoft 365’s native encryption protocol is a secure and easy way to send company emails to outside parties — and it enables users to use strong encryption regardless of the email provider recipients use. OME works, for instance, with the top email provider gmail, as well as with any smaller email provider.

Transport rules are determined by admins, and confidential emails are forwarded in the form of a HTML document that users access through a web portal that requires credentials or a one-time password. No special software is needed to make it work.

IRM

IRM is a next-level security protocol that additionally allows admins to prevent confidential company emails from being forwarded to outsiders or being printed.

S/MIME

S/MIME, or Secure/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions, is an encryption system that requires a public as well as private key, and this ensures that only the intended recipient can view the contents of the email.

Benefits of Advanced Email Encryption Options in Microsoft 365

Each of the encryption options Microsoft 365 offers serves a specific purpose. OME is, for instance, recommended in situations where confidential information is sent to third parties — like clients or patients. This protocol doesn’t require the recipient to use a Microsoft 365 account. IRM prevents confidential information from leaking as a result of recipients forwarding or printing confidential information, while S/MIME is most commonly used for extremely sensitive information, such as communication with government agencies.

While the configuration of these company email encryption options requires a skilled admin, they offer an additional layer of security that all but guarantees that your emails are as confidential as you need them to be.

Data at rest is, meanwhile, protected through Bitlocker Drive Encryption, preventing malicious actors from accessing your sensitive data while your data is not in transit.

What Settings Should Be Enabled for More Secure Company Email?

To further protect confidential company emails, users should be required to enable MFA, or multifactor authentication. Microsoft 365 pairs beautifully with secure hardware tokens such as Yubikeys, which offer more security compared to 2FA text messages.

Mailbox audit logging should be enabled, as well as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to stop would-be impersonators in their tracks. POP3 and IMAP4 and automatic forwarding options should be disabled. Most importantly, employees should be given regular security awareness training — because no email encryption option can be impenetrable on its own, and human error will always pose a threat unless your workforce is kept up to date.

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Jason Fruge

Consulting Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)

Jason Fruge is an accomplished Consulting Chief Information Security Officer at Secutor Cybersecurity, bringing over 25 years of deep expertise in information security. His storied career includes leading and managing robust security programs for Fortune 500 companies across retail, banking, and fintech sectors. His current role involves providing strategic guidance and advisory services to clients, focusing on security governance, risk management, and compliance.

Apart from his consulting responsibilities, Jason is an active member of the global cybersecurity community. He is a Villager at Team8, a prestigious collective of senior cybersecurity executives and thought leaders. Additionally, he serves as an Advisor at NightDragon, an innovative growth and venture capital firm specializing in cybersecurity and enterprise technologies.

Jason’s tenure as a CISO is marked by a proven track record in developing and implementing comprehensive security policies and procedures. He adeptly leverages security frameworks and industry best practices to mitigate risks, safeguarding sensitive data and assets. His expertise encompasses incident response and root cause analysis, where he has notably managed cyber incidents to prevent breaches and minimize business disruption and customer impact.

A key aspect of Jason’s role has been the creation and facilitation of executive and board-level cyber risk committees, ensuring organizational alignment and awareness. His responsibilities have extended to maintaining compliance programs for standards such as PCI and SOX, as well as leading privacy and business continuity programs. Holding prestigious certifications like CISSP, QSA, and QTE, Jason is also a recognized thought leader, contributing articles on cybersecurity to InformationWeek.

Jason’s passion lies in driving innovation and fostering collaboration in the cybersecurity field. He is currently seeking an executive CISO role in a leading retail, finance, or fintech organization, where he can continue to make significant contributions to the cybersecurity landscape.

Jennifer Bayuk

Cybersecurity Risk Management Expert

Jennifer Bayuk is a highly esteemed cybersecurity risk management thought leader and subject matter expert at Secutor Cybersecurity. Her extensive experience encompasses managing and measuring large-scale cybersecurity programs, system security architecture, and a wide array of cybersecurity tools and techniques. Jennifer’s expertise is further deepened with her proficiency in cybersecurity forensics, the audit of information systems and networks, and technology control processes.

Jennifer’s skill set is comprehensive, including specialization in cybersecurity risk and performance indicators, technology risk awareness education, risk management training curriculum, and system security research. Her academic achievements are noteworthy, holding Masters degrees in Philosophy and Computer Science, and a Ph.D. in Systems Engineering. This strong academic background provides a solid foundation for her practical and strategic approach to cybersecurity challenges.

Certified in Information Systems Audit, Information Systems Security, Information Security Management, and IT Governance, Jennifer is a well-rounded professional in the field. Her credentials are further enhanced by her license as a New Jersey Private Investigator, adding a unique dimension to her cybersecurity expertise.

At Secutor, Jennifer plays a pivotal role in steering cybersecurity initiatives, aligning them with organizational risk appetites and strategic objectives. Her ability to educate and train in the realm of technology risk has been instrumental in raising awareness and enhancing the cybersecurity posture of our clients. Her dedication to research and continual learning makes her an invaluable resource in navigating the ever-evolving cybersecurity landscape.

Jennifer Bayuk’s blend of academic prowess, practical experience, and certifications make her an indispensable part of our team, as she continues to drive forward-thinking cybersecurity solutions and risk management strategies.

Steve Blanding

CISO Consultant

CISSP, CISA, CGEIT, CRISC

Steve is an IT management consultant living in Dallas, TX. Steve has over 35 years of experience in executive IT leadership, IT governance, risk and compliance (GRC), systems auditing, quality assurance, information security, and business resumption planning for large corporations in the Big-4 professional services, financial services, manufacturing, retail electronics, and defense contract industries. He has extensive experience with industry best practices for adopting and implementing new technologies, IT service management frameworks, and GRC solutions that have dramatically improved customer satisfaction while reducing cost.

Industry Experience

  • State Government: 5 years
  • Retail: 5 years
  • Defense Contract: 5 years
  • Manufacturing: 2 years
  • Health Care: 2 years
  • Local Government: 2 years
  • Public Accounting (Big 4): 7 years
  • Insurance: 3 years
  • Financial Services: 5 years

Key Career Accomplishments

  • Conducted a full-scale ISO27000 audit 4 times over the past 6 years.  Also, conducted a “light” ISO27000 review of a small Dallas-based company in 2007.
  • Developed and authored a comprehensive IT security policy manual, incident response plans, training programs, security contingency plans and configuration management plans for FedRAMP regulatory compliance.
  • Conducted multiple DR and operational backup and recovery IT risk assessments of critical business systems on mainframe, LAN, and distributed system networks located across North America.
  • Conducted data centers audits for Tyco Corporation (Brussels, 2005 and Denver, 2006), Farmers Insurance (Los Angeles, 2006), Zurich Financial Services (Chicago, Kansas City, and Grand Rapids, 2006), and Convergys Corporation (Dallas, 2010, 2011, and 2012).
  • Led a project to remediate segregation of duties and streamline user access system security and HIPAA compliance administration across 5 regions in North America, resulting in cost savings of $700,000 per year (Kaiser Permanente).
  • Implemented Sarbanes-Oxley Section 302 and 404 IT general and application controls, reducing security administration costs and improving operational performance by 50% or $500,000 annually (Tyco Corporation).
  • Led the global SAP business-IT alignment, process re-design implementation initiative for financial accounting, materials management, production planning, quality management, sales and distribution, warehouse management, and plant maintenance, which resulted in creating $2,000,000 in cost savings.
  • Engaged by Arthur Andersen in Houston to transform the local IT organization and then direct 3 organizational mergers/consolidations, which resulted in a 25% reduction in operating costs, or $3,250,000, while improving customer satisfaction by 30%, and improving employee morale, technology availability and the quality of IT infrastructure and service delivery.
  • Assigned by Arthur Andersen global leadership to lead global project teams responsible for data center and customer support call center consolidation, which resulted in annual operational cost savings of 45% or $4,000,000.
  • Implemented ITIL service management practices for problem management, incident management, help desk, project management, and operations management.
  • Conducted SOX 404 audits at Duke Energy (6 months), Red Hat (3 months), Tyco (9 months), Zeon Chemicals (4 months), and Convergys (2 months). Experience includes control design/documentation and effectiveness testing.

Publications:

Author, various articles in EDPACS and Auerbach’s IT Audit Portfolio Series, 1981 – 2001

Author, various articles in the Handbook of Information Security Management, 1993 – 1995

Editor, Auerbach’s Enterprise Operations Management, 2002

Editor, Auerbach’s IT Audit Portfolio Series, 2000 – 2002

Consulting Editor, Auerbach’s EOM Portfolio Series, 1998 -2001

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