Encrypting/Decrypting Emails

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Encrypting an Email Message

Create an email message as usual, and then click on the Encrypt encrypt5 button. Genie will search amongst your public keys for an email address corresponding to the addressee. If it finds one, the message will be encrypted using that key.  Genie also encrypts it with your own public key so that you can also decrypt it again in case you need to change something.

 

If it doesn’t find a corresponding public key, Genie will offer to search for it on a key server. If you know where it might be you can proceed with the search.

 

Note: Genie will also encrypt any attachments to the email.

Encrypting to Multiple Recipients

If you are sending an email to multiple recipients, Genie will encrypt the message using all of their keys so that each recipient is able to decrypt it. However, if you don’t have a public key for each and every recipient, the message will not be encrypted.

Decrypting Incoming Mail

If you receive an encrypted email message, simply click on the Decrypt encrypt6 button in the main email window. Assuming it was encrypted using your installed public key, then the message will be immediately decrypted.

Trouble-shooting GnuPG Encryption

DISCLAIMER: Please note that GnuPG is not a product of Genie Solutions, and therefore is not supported by us. If you are unable to work out how to use it, there is a knowledge database, FAQs and email lists accessible from the SourceForge website (http://www.gnupg.org).

 

Keys Are Stored on Individual Machines

Because keys are stored on individual computers, you cannot create your own key pair on one computer and then encrypt from another computer.

 

You would first have to copy the keys to the other computer i.e. by exporting to a file, copying the file to the other computer, and then importing it on that computer. By the same token, you cannot import a recipient’s key on one computer and then send encrypted emails from another computer. Again, you need to import the key on any computers from which you want to email.

Make a Backup of Your Keys

You should make a backup of your public and secret keys in case you lose the originals. You can do this by exporting them and then copying them to a safe place.