Pixel IT - PGP Desktop Email

PGP Desktop Email
Email encryption for desktops and laptops. Provides enterprises with an automatic, transparent encryption solution for securing internal and external confidential email communications. With PGP Desktop Email, organisations can minimise the risk of a data breach and comply with partner and regulatory mandates for information security and privacy.

Secure confidential information in email with a centrally managed, desktop-based solution

PGP Desktop Email provides enterprises with an automatic, transparent encryption solution for securing internal and external confidential email communications. With PGP Desktop Email, organisations can minimize the risk of a data breach and comply with partner and regulatory mandates for information security and privacy.

Email has evolved into the most important business communications system in the world, enabling organisations to efficiently interact with customers, clients, and business partners. Unfortunately, unprotected email poses a critical risk to an enterprise’s most sensitive data: customer information, financial data, trade secrets, and other proprietary information. Exposure of this information can result in financial loss, legal ramifications, and brand damage.

Powerful, End-to-End Email Encryption

PGP Desktop Email delivers all the encryption functionality necessary for protecting an organization’s email communications in a single, easy-to-use and easy-to-manage solution. It enables organizations to automatically secure email communications from the sender’s email client to the recipient’s - and at all points in between - using centrally defined, policy-based encryption. PGP Desktop Email supports the major email security standards and interoperates seamlessly with most popular email security solutions used by recipients. For recipients without email security, senders can encrypt documents into a bundle using PGP® Zip or PGP® Self-Decrypting Archive and send the protected file as a standard email attachment.

PGP Encryption Platform–Enabled

PGP Desktop Email is a PGP Encryption Platform–enabled application. The PGP Encryption Platform provides a strategic enterprise encryption framework for shared user management, policy, and provisioning, automated across multiple, integrated encryption applications. As a PGP Encryption
Platform–enabled application, PGP Desktop Email can be used with PGP Universal™ Server to manage existing policies, users, keys, and configurations, expediting deployment and policy enforcement. PGP Desktop Email can also be used in combination with other PGP encryption applications to provide multiple layers of security.

Easy, Automatic Operation

Once PGP Desktop Email is deployed, its operation is completely transparent—users simply continue to work as usual. The software automatically protects messages, ensuring that users never forget to secure email and attachments.

Automatic messaging security – Automatically encrypts, decrypts, digitally signs, and verifies email messages according to individual or centrally managed policies.
Secure clientless email delivery – When deployed with PGP Universal™ Gateway Email, delivers messages securely to external users that lack an email encryption solution.
Multiple ways to protect data – Protect sensitive data in transport using PGP Zip and PGP Self-Decrypting Archive and in storage using PGP® Virtual Disk.
Secure file deletion – Securely and permanently eliminates all traces of sensitive files from a disk.

Enforced Security Policies

Email policies can be set based on sender, individual recipient, recipient domain, keyword, or content, enabling confidential messages to be secured automatically with no changes required to user behaviour. Policy definitions can be set and audited using PGP Universal Server’s management console.

Offline Policy Controls – Administrators can now enforce policy for offline users by controlling what happens to email when the PGP Universal Server cannot be reached by PGP Desktop.
Client controls – Enable the organization to better meet security requirements by locking down which features are enabled, visible to the user, and enforced.
Strong authentication options – Provide two-factor authentication using smart cards such as the RSA SID800.

Accelerated Deployment

Used together, PGP Desktop Email and PGP Universal Server’s unified management console establish, enforce, and update email security policy in real time. This combination reduces the time and effort required to deploy end-to-end email encryption.

Rapid deployment process – Speeds deployment by automating the installation and configuration process.

Reduced Operation Costs

With PGP Desktop Email, no special training is required for end users. This approach accelerates deployment time, reduces training costs, and avoids any increase in help desk calls.

PGP Universal Server Management

PGP Desktop Email can be centrally deployed and managed when used with PGP Universal Server (optional), enabling organisations to easily set and enforce data security polices throughout the enterprise.

Centrally enforced security policy – Automatically enforces protection of sensitive data and email using security policies driven by an existing corporate directory.
Extensible protection – Allows management of PGP® Whole Disk Encryption, PGP® NetShare, or any other PGP Encryption Platform–enabled application.

General

What is PGP Desktop Email and why is it important?

PGP Desktop Email is an innovative desktop email encryption solution that automatically encrypts email based on policy using open standards. PGP Desktop Email operates as a proxy, increasing performance, removing the need for application- and version-specific plug-ins, and eliminating potential email application conflicts or incompatibilities.

PGP Desktop Email encrypts email as it is received and sent, without affecting the end-user email experience. PGP Desktop Email secures data sent in email from unauthorized access, including administrators with access to the mail server data store.

What business problem does PGP Desktop Email solve?

Email sent to and from an organization can contain the most sensitive customer, patient, financial, or intellectual property data. PGP Desktop Email allows organizations to meet audit and compliance requirements while securing their brand. Because PGP Desktop Email does not affect the end-user email experience, it does not impact productivity.

What are the key benefits of PGP Desktop Email?

PGP Desktop Email provides organizations with the following benefits:

Easy, automatic operation–Protects sensitive email without changing the user experience.
Enforced security policies–Automatically enforce data protection with centrally managed policies.
Accelerated deployment–Achieves end-to-end email encryption using the existing infrastructure.
Reduced operational costs–Results from centrally automating email encryption policies.

How does PGP Desktop Email work?

PGP Desktop Email operates as a local, desktop mail proxy service, automatically encrypting/decrypting messages according to policy. PGP Desktop Email supports the two global email encryption standards, OpenPGP and S/MIME, automatically discovering keys and certificates. When centrally managed by PGP Universal™ Server, the PGP Desktop Email key management, policy, and software updates are managed by PGP Universal Server.

What is the end-user experience?

For end users, PGP Desktop Email operates in the background, processing email messages based on policy. If allowed by policy (or if not managed by PGP Universal Server), end users can adapt email encryption policies and change configuration through the PGP Desktop Email application interface. When encryption or digital signature operations are performed, the PGP Desktop Email notifier window alerts users that an operation is being performed and its status.

What's new in PGP Desktop Email 9.9?

New features in PGP Desktop Email 9.9 include the following:

Offline Policy Controls–Administrators can now enforce policy for offline users by controlling what happens to email when the PGP Universal Server cannot be reached by PGP Desktop.
Expanded client controls–Enables the organization to better meet security requirements by locking down which features are enabled, visible to the user, and enforced.*
Increased authentication options–Perform two-factor authentication using smart cards such as the RSA SID800.
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) support–Protects encryption keys against unauthorized access.
Rapid deployment process–Speeds deployment by automating the installation and configuration process.

*Requires PGP Universal Server 2.9

What languages (localization) does PGP Desktop Email support?

The PGP Desktop Email user interface is localized in English, German, and Japanese.

Is the product source code available for download?

Yes. To validate the integrity of its products, PGP Corporation releases all product source code, including PGP Desktop Email, for peer review. For more information, see PGP® Source Code.

How does PGP Desktop Email fit into the PGP Encryption Platform architecture?

PGP Desktop Email is a PGP Encryption Platform–enabled application managed by PGP Universal Server. Account management, key management, and policy and software update distribution are automated for all PGP Encryption Platform–enabled applications.

Technical

What operating systems are supported?

PGP Desktop Email is supported on the following operating systems:

Microsoft Windows Vista (all 32-bit and 64-bit versions, including Service Pack 1)
Microsoft Windows 2000 (Service Pack 4)
Microsoft Windows Server 2003 (Service Pack 1 and 2)
Microsoft Windows XP Professional 32-bit (Service Pack 1,2 or 3)
Microsoft Windows XP Professional 64-bit (Service Pack 2)
Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 (requires attached keyboard)
Microsoft Windows XP Home
Mac OS X 10.4.x and 10.5.x (Intel and Power PC)

What email clients are supported?

PGP Desktop Email has been tested to interoperate with the following email clients:

Microsoft Outlook 2007 SP1 (Outlook 12)
Microsoft Outlook 2003 SP3
Microsoft Outlook XP SP3
Microsoft Outlook 2000 SP3
Windows Mail 6.0.6000.16386
Microsoft Outlook Express 6
Mozilla Thunderbird 2.0
Lotus Notes 6.5.6, 7.0.3, and 8.01
Novell GroupWise 6.5
Apple Mail 2.1.1 and 3.3
Microsoft Entourage 2008

What encryption algorithms are supported?

PGP Desktop Email supports the following public key and symmetric key encryption algorithms:

Symmetric Key Algorithms:

AES (up to 256-bit keys)
CAST
TripleDES
IDEA
Twofish

Hashes:

SHA-2 (up to 512-bit hashes)
SHA-1
MD5
RIPEMD-160

Public Key Algorithms:

Diffie-Hellman
DSA (1024-bit keys only)
RSA (up to 4096-bit keys)

How does PGP Desktop Email integrate with directory systems?

PGP Desktop Email supports automatic OpenPGP key and X.509 certificate discovery by searching LDAP directories, PGP Universal Servers, the PGP® Global Directory, and PGP® keyservers.