Worried about sending personal or financial data over email?
You're right to be cautious - email isn't secure by default, but it can be.
Whether you're a consumer, financial professional, or IT team, protecting sensitive emails is essential.
Most email services only encrypt data in transit. Once a message lands in someone's inbox, it's often readable by others with access.
Below are the main ways to send a secure email, how they work, and when each fits - including a step-by-step guide to sending a secure message with recipient identity checks.
Why Secure Email Matters
Many reported data breaches still involve mis-sent or intercepted emails.
Email is not secure by default - encryption is needed to protect sensitive information.
Whether it's personal ID, bank details, or client information, sending it unprotected could break trust - and the law.
Regulations like the UK GDPR and the FCA's Consumer Duty require businesses to take appropriate steps - including encryption - to secure data in transit.
Even consumers are encouraged to take precautions when sending documents like passports or payslips. UK research on email security habits suggests many people still underestimate everyday risks.
Email is convenient, but without encryption, it's like posting a letter without an envelope.
Ways to Send a Secure Email
1. Use an Encrypted Email Platform
Secure email platforms like Mailock offer end-to-end encryption combined with advanced features to protect against risky email mistakes.
Only the sender and intended recipient can open the message. Add recipient authentication, and access is tied to the person you meant to reach.
Email and attachments are encrypted at rest and in transit
Verify the recipient (e.g. SMS code, security question)
Revoke or track email access
Best for: financial services, customer communications, regulated data.
2. Rely on TLS (Transport Layer Security)
Most modern email providers encrypt messages in transit using TLS. This protects against interception between mail servers, but not at rest in the inbox.
No setup needed - works automatically with most providers
Stops eavesdropping in transit
Compatibility issues can lead to breaches if not set up correctly
Doesn't prevent access once delivered
Best for: day-to-day, low-sensitivity communications.
3. Send a Password-Protected File
Encrypt the file (e.g. PDF or Word doc) with a password before attaching it to an email. Share the password separately - never in the same message. Password-protected documents can add a layer of control, but only for the attachment itself.
Quick workaround if you lack a secure email tool
Limited to the attachment, not the email itself
Often leads to compatibility problems for recipients
Risky if passwords are weak or shared insecurely
Best for: one-off personal use with trusted recipients.
4. Use PGP or S/MIME
Built-in encryption standards for advanced users. These protect email content using digital certificates or keys, but require manual setup.
Strong end-to-end encryption
Often used in corporate or government settings
Tricky to configure and not ideal for casual users
Must be combined with recipient authentication to protect against the most common data leaks - emails sent to the wrong people
Best for: experienced users or managed IT environments.
How to Send a Secure Email With Mailock
Mailock makes encrypted email simple. Here's how it works:
End-to-end encryption ensures only intended recipients can read your message.
Write your message: Compose the email and add attachments in Outlook or using Mailock online.
Choose a verification method: Set a challenge question or SMS code.
Hit send: The email is encrypted and locked to the recipient's identity.
Recipient opens: They verify themselves to access the secure message and any attachments. They can also securely reply.
"We designed Mailock to make secure communication effortless - encryption and identity checks, built into the tools people already use."
For professionals in financial services and regulated industries, secure email is especially critical.
The FCA expects firms to protect consumers and their data under the Consumer Duty.
"When sensitive information leaves your firm by email, the question is who can open it and what evidence you have afterwards. Secure email helps answer both."
Paul Holland, Founder and CEO, Beyond Encryption (Mailock)
Using encrypted, auditable communication tools like Mailock helps demonstrate compliance and safeguard trust.
Tips to Stay Secure
Double-check recipient addresses
Use multi-factor authentication on your email accounts
Never send passwords or sensitive info unprotected
Ask intermediaries (financial advisers, mortgage advisers, brokers) and providers (banks, insurers) to send you info securely
FAQs
What Are the Main Ways to Send a Secure Email?
The article compares encrypted email platforms, TLS, password-protected files, PGP, and S/MIME.
When Is a Password-Protected File Not Enough?
It can leave the password-sharing process exposed and may not verify who opens the document.
What Should Secure Email Add?
Look for encryption, recipient checks, secure replies, revoke options, and evidence that the message was accessed.
Sam Kendall works on digital marketing at Beyond Encryption, helping build B2B marketing activity around research, first principles, and sustainable growth. He writes about marketing effectiveness, positioning, customer communications, and digital culture, with longer-form work published at ATNL.
Sam Kendall
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