Yes, we can!

That’s what I tell my clients when they ask me that question. That is the simple answer. The long answer has to depend on many factors such as:

- How secure do you want the transfer to be?
- How transparent do you want this security to be?

You see, security means different things to different people. To some, it can mean authentication before starting the file transfer. In other words you prove to the “door man” who you are, and once you pass that security check point, you are free to do whatever you want. The authentication idea works well as minimal security. It protects your system from “unauthorized” use.

Then the second layer of security comes into play, which is with encryption. Encryption allows data flow to be protected. But a number of times, encryption provided by some vendors or protocols only allow data channel to be encrypted and not the command channel. What this means is that the client sends the password to the server in clear text, whereas then the file is transferred encrypted. This defeats the purpose of having the encryption in the first place. So systems that encrypt both the command and data channels are inherently more secure.
Also the last part of the equation has to do with transparency of this security. How transparent do you want the security aspect? Sometimes you want the file transfer to be done in the easiest possible way. This means that the security is seamless and non-intrusive.

How does FileCatalyst Webmail handles the security issue?
FileCatalyst Webmail, the solution provided by Unlimi-Tech Software address all the issues I raised earlier. First off all, it has multiple levels of authentication. It guarantees that the sender is who he says he is. This is done through IP/domain filtering as well as password verification. What I find really cool with Webmail is that we also have LDAP and Active Directory support. This means that only one username/password is used by the sender. Makes account management a lot easier.

Using a SSL certificate you as the administrator can also provide Webmail with enhanced encryption by routing all traffic over HTTPS. Not only does this make the data and command channels encrypted, it also provides for a firewall and proxy friendly transfer. Most of my clients find this as one of the best added advantages of Webmail. They don’t need to worry about clients behind stringent firewalls that have almost all ports blocked other than HTTP or HTTPS traffic.

Remember the seamlessness part that I was speaking about before? Well all the things until now that are provided by Webmail are pretty much non-intrusive. The security is provided in the network without the user needing to do anything about it. But for even additional security, FileCatalyst Webmail can password protects each individual file package. This means that sensitive information can be further protected for downloads. FileCatalyst Webmail also uses a propriety system to guarantee that only the intended recipient is the one who gets to download the files. This is based on the recipients email address.

Such levels of security can be layered on top of each other to provide a system that best fits with the client’s needs. As I said earlier secure file transfers mean different things to different people.