Comcast wants to encrypt email for security
By Chris Lacey
The cool thing right is for technology companies is to encrypt everything, as this is one way to increase security.
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Google is attempting the lead the way in this, and now they might have a follower. Comcast, the largest provider of Internet for homes and businesses, said earlier this week it would begin encrypting email.
This happened after Google called out various email providers, including Comcast for not using encryption.
According to WSJ, Google on Tuesday publicized for the first time the share of its email traffic with other providers that remains encrypted.
They said that fewer than 1% of Gmail messages that were sent to Comcast.net addresses remain encrypted on a sample day last month.
A spokesman for Comcast Charlie Douglas said the company is testing encryption and would begin using it more broadly on customers’ email “within a matter of weeks.” He said Comcast is “very aggressive about this.”
Google started encryption messages from Gmail by default in 2010. This process uses math to turn messages into a jumble of numbers and letters that can only be read with a key.
The main obstacle is that it only works if both side are doing it. So naturally that’s why Google called out email providers don’t use encryption.
We can only hope that in the future more email providers will encrypt messages, as this is one way to keep information away from prying eyes.
[H/T: WSJ]