No, you’re not paranoid. Hackers are everywhere these days. They're waiting to intercept sensitive emails before they get to their destination, and they could be on the receiving end of an email you’ve sent. They could be watching you read this right now…
Honestly, when you're sending sensitive emails, it's good to be a little paranoid. You should be making sure your sensitive emails and attachments are kept safe from ne’er-do-wells.
Securely sending files over email can get a lot more complicated if you can’t find the attachment you’re looking to secure. If you’re an account executive, for example, you probably have to wade through spreadsheets, invoices, contract agreements, and other collateral in order to find the sensitive files you need for a specific client.
Teamstand can help you find the important attachments you need much faster by automatically organizing and presenting your files right where you’re already working. Once you’ve found the files you need, you can send them securely over email using one of the following methods.
Password, Please
One of the best ways to send files securely over email is to secure the file themselves using password-protect. Many programs let you create a password that you can share with your receiver to make sure they are the only ones that can open it.
Unfortunately, Google Workspace doesn't offer a way for you to password-protect its files. There are some third-party methods you can try, but none of them are official, so we’re not going to recommend them. Changing the Share settings in Google Workspace does offer a kind of protection.
Different types of files have different ways of using password protection, with the two most common being PDF and MS Office files.
Protecting your PDFs
Password-protecting PDF files is pretty easy. However, it’s done differently on Macs and on Windows.
If you’re inWindows and trying to password-protect a PDF file:
- Open the PDF in the most suitable Microsoft Office program
- Open the “File” menu and click “Info”
- Click “Protect Document”
- Select “Encrypt with Password”
- Enter a password and re-enter to confirm it
- Save the file as either a file for your MS Office program or a PDF using the “Save as Adobe PDF” option from the “File” menu
Also in Windows, Microsoft Office programs can be used to create password-protected PDFs:
- In your Microsoft Office program, Open the “File”menu and click “Save As”
- Change the file type pulldown menu to “PDF”
- Click “More options…”
- Click “Options…”
- Click “Encrypt the document with a password”
- Enter and re-enter a password and confirm it
If you’re working on a Mac, password-protecting a PDF is easy with the Preview application:
- From the “File” menu, click “Export”
- Choose a file name
- Click “Encrypt”
- Enter and re-enter a password to confirm it
Making MS Office Files Safer
The way that you password-protect Microsoft Office documents also depends on whether you’re using a Windows PC or a Mac. If you’re using a PC, you can pretty much do the same thing you would do to save a password-protected PDF: From the “File” menu, click “Info”, then “Protect Document,” and finally “Encrypt with Password.”
If you’re using a Word on a Mac:
- Click “Review”
- Select “Protect”
- Click “Protect Document”
- Enter and re-enter a password to confirm it
If you are regularly password-protecting your files and then sending them off, it can be hard to keep track of all those important documents. By providing files right where you’re working, Teamstand helps you quickly find the files you're looking for so you can quickly send sensitive information to your co-workers—keeping all our important projects humming along.
Use Gmail to Send Password-Protected Emails
Gmail offers a great way to securely send files with password-protected emails, something it calls “confidential” emails. Gmail not only lets you set the password, but also an expiration date that automatically revokes access after an established time frame. To send confidential emails:
- Click “Compose”
- At the bottom of the message window, click the “Toggle Confidential Mode” icon
- Choose an expiration date and passcode
- If you choose “NoSMS passcode,” Gmail users can open the email directly, while people who use other email platforms will get a passcode email
- If you choose“SMS passcode,” you need to enter the recipient’s phone number, where a passcode will be sent
- Click “Save”
If you want to revoke access, just go into your Sent folder, open the confidential email, and click “Remove access.”
Send, Find, and Secure Files Faster with Teamstand
Securing your files is only half the battle. You have to find them first. Available as a Chrome extension, Teamstand automates the organization of your Google Workspace to reduce the amount of time you spend searching for your most sensitive files.
Our app presents organized lists of important files in a collapsible panel within Google Workspace, bringing critical assets to where you’re already working. The app automatically organizes your files by company and by sender. You can also use the tagging and advanced search functions to make your inbox a fully operational command center.
Like the best apps, Teamstand is intuitive and simple to use. Contact us today to get free access to Teamstand and learn more!
