I have had several emails approach me asking if I would like them to write up something for my blog. They are companies that want to advertise their products. Most times I tell them, "no, thanks", but there are two that I want to post because they are about computer security and I think they might be helpful to you. Here is the first one. It talks about Encryption, which is a big computer word, but is important.

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Hackers are violating people’s privacy every day via email. You may not realize it, but there is a lot of sensitive information in your email account. From banking details to personal information, you want to be sure your data is protected. Even if you are protecting your passwords, there’s a chance that someone especially crafty can get by. 

One way to protect yourself is by encrypting your emails. Email encryption is a way of disguising the content of the message to protect them from any unwanted eyes. With encryption, each person has a public and private key. The public key encrypts emails you send while the private key is used to decrypt emails you may receive. 

Some email providers such as Gmail and Outlook already have an email encryption feature built-in using the encryption protocol called S/MIME. Others like Yahoo or AOL need apps to enable the PGP/MIME encryption protocol. 

To help you understand how email encryption works, Panda Security has an infographic on how to encrypt email that details what you need to know about email encryption and notes some secure apps that can help you.