Short presentation given at the OWASP Austin CryptoParty on January 25, 2022.

1. Tips for Improving Email Privacy
OWASP Austin CryptoParty, January 25, 2022

2. About Me
● Principal Quality Engineer at 443ID
● Just like Hillary, I run my own mail server
○ Unlike Hillary, I also manage it myself
● I have
○ Fought spam by fixing open mail relays, blocking access to them using DNS
and network routing tricks
○ Fought spam by configuring spam detectors, and using DNS-based
blacklists
○ Reported Email leaks to some big name financial institutions
● I am here to share some tips that even my grandma could
understand

3. Protect Your Account with Multi-Factor Authentication
● Typically: you get prompted
on a mobile device to
confirm a login attempt
● Also referred to as 2-step
verification, or two-factor
authentication
● Authenticator apps such as
Google Authenticator, Twilio
Authy, Microsoft
Authenticator, LastPass
Authenticator

4. Do Not Send Sensitive Information via Email
● Your Email may be seen by others
○ Emails are rarely encrypted all the way
from you to the recipient
● Avoid sending
○ Bank account, credit card, social
security numbers, passwords
● Signal to the rescue
○ Works on desktop computers as well
as mobile phones
○ Disappearing Messages removes old
chats automatically

5. Delete Old Mail - GMail
● By default, archives mails, does not delete them
● Deleted Emails are in the Trash folder for 30 days
● When removing unwanted Emails, check All Mail, too

6. iPhone, iPad, Mac Users - Protect My Mail Activity
● Introduced last fall
● Simple setting available in
○ Apple Mail (on Macs), and
○ Mail app (on iPhone/iPad)

7. Choose Email Provider with High Privacy Protection
● For example:
○ Fastmail
○ ProtonMail (Switzerland
based)
● Costs a few $ / month

8. Email Address Tricks
● Share a unique Email address with each
business
○ You will learn if they share the address
○ You can filter Emails for each unique address
● How to
○ Google Mail - add a + sign after your email
address: babs.jensen+owasp@gmail.com
○ Yahoo Mail! - create disposable addresses
■ See > … More Settings > Mailboxes
○ Apple - Hide My Email (paid)
■ Available to iCloud+ subscribers

9. Thank you
@bkolics
https://bertold.kolics.net
https://www.443id.com - We are hiring!