Encrypt Email Thunderbird with Enigmail

This updated guide examines Encrypt Email Thunderbird with Enigmail and organizes the essential facts, background, and practical takeaways in clear American English.

Jack Wallen

Enigmail is an essential extension for anyone who wants to secure their email exchange. The method is very simple to use, making it easy for anyone to use the program.

With Windows, you will have to install encryption software before installing Enigmail. As I just mentioned, the program we introduced in this article is GnuPG. Once GnuPG is installed, you can perform your next task of installing Enigmail.

Install GnuPG

GnuPG installation is very simple. You only need to download the version for GnuPG Windows operating system here to save it to your hard drive. Once the file has been downloaded, double-click the installation file to begin the installation process. Like most Windows applications, GnuPG installation process requires only a few clicks. However you need to choose your language and geographical location. In addition to those procedures, your task is just clicking the mouse.

When GnuPG is installed, you don't need to do anything at this time, but your task is to install Enigmail.

Install Enigmail

If you've ever installed an extension on Thunderbird, this installation process is quite similar. First, download the extension file by right-clicking the download link here and selecting ' Save Link As .'. Once the installation file has been downloaded, open Thunderbird , then click on the Tools menu and select Add Ons.

When the Add Ons window opens, click the Install button, navigate to the Enigmail extension file you just downloaded, and then click Open . When the countdown process finishes, the Install button has a positive status, so you can proceed to install Enigmail at this time. The final installation step is to restart Thunderbird so the add-on has just been installed (you will see a new menu item in Thunderbird called OpenPGP).

Create key pairs

The first step in setting up Enigmail is to create a key pair. Click the OpenPGP menu and select KeyManagement . This will help you open a new window (see Figure A), where you can create your key pair.

Figure A: This is where you create and manage all your key pairs

Click on Generate menu and select New Key Pair . You will then see a new window where you can enter all the necessary information for the new key (Figure B).

Figure B: If you want to keep this key pair, check the 'Key does not expire' checkbox.

After entering all the necessary information, click the Generate key button. It should be noted that the Generate key button may not appear immediately, but you do not need to worry about this delay. When the key is created, you will be asked if you want to create a revocation key. We also recommend that you do so because this operation will allow you to cancel your lock when the secret key is lost or has a defense when it gets into the wrong hands. With the revocation key, you will be asked to save an .asc file to the hard drive. Follow the reminders and save to a safe location. You must also enter the password you originally created during the key generation process.

At this point, your key pair will be saved and you will see it appear in the list in the key management window (Figure C).

Figure C: You can upload your key to a server by right-clicking your key and selecting Upload Public Keys to Server

Your key pair has been created and you are ready to start sending an encrypted email. However, before possible, any recipients of email code must have a public key, otherwise they will not be able to decrypt your message.

Create a public key (public key)

You can easily submit a public key by email. From the key manager window, select the key you want to use and right-click the key. A new menu will appear and in that menu, you will see an entry titled ' Send Public Keys By Email '. Click on this title and a Thunderbird message editing window will be opened with the pre-installed public key. Send that email to anyone who will receive your encrypted email. You are now ready to send an encrypted email.

Send an encrypted message

Sending an encrypted email is very simple. Click the New button to open the email editor window. Write your email but haven't sent it yet. Before you send this email, click on the OpenPGP menu and select Encrypt (or press Ctrl-Shift-P ), then your outgoing message will be encrypted. When you click submit the send button, you will be asked which key you want to use. Please select the key and click OK . Email will be encrypted and sent to the recipient.

You can set up Enigmail so that the utility always encrypts and signs messages. Click the New button to open the email editor window. Click the OpenPGP menu, then click Default Composition Options . From the new window (Figure D), select ' Encrypt messages by default ' if you always want to encrypt your email or deselect it if you don't want to.

Figure D: If you have multiple email accounts on Thunderbird, you can enable or disable Enigmail on accounts in this window.

Decode email

The first thing that you have to do is get the general user credentials before decrypting your mail. If the user sends you their key via email, then you will save it to the hard drive and you can import it into the Key Management tool by clicking the File menu, then clicking ImportKeys from the File . Once you have your key in the manager, you are now ready to decrypt the email.

By default Enigmail will automatically decrypt the email corresponding to the saved public key. You can also disable it by clicking the OpenPGP menu and canceling the selection of ' Automatically Decrypt / Verify Messages '.

Conclude

If you are looking for the best, solid, and easy to use tool, the encryption tool for your Thunderbird email needs to be the Enigmail add-on.