Glossary
Learn the terminology of email privacy and security.
What is Email Spoofing?
Email spoofing is when a sender forges the From address to appear as someone else. Learn how it works and how to protec…
What is Phishing?
Phishing is a cyber attack that uses deceptive emails to steal sensitive information. Learn to recognize and avoid phis…
What are SPF Records?
SPF records are DNS entries that specify which mail servers can send email on behalf of your domain to prevent email sp…
What is DKIM?
DKIM adds a digital signature to emails that verifies the message was not altered in transit and confirms the sending d…
What is DMARC?
DMARC is an email authentication protocol that builds on SPF and DKIM to protect domains from unauthorized use in email…
What is a Disposable Email Address?
A disposable email address is a temporary email that auto-expires after use, protecting your real inbox from spam and t…
What is an Email Alias?
An email alias is an alternative address that forwards to your primary inbox, letting you manage multiple identities fr…
What is Email Forwarding?
Email forwarding automatically sends incoming messages from one address to another, useful for consolidating or protect…
What is a Catch-All Email Address?
A catch-all address receives all email sent to any address at a domain, useful for businesses but a potential spam magn…
What are Email Headers?
Email headers contain metadata about a message including sender, recipient, routing path, and authentication results fo…
What is SMTP?
SMTP is the standard protocol for sending email across the internet. Understanding SMTP helps you grasp how email deliv…
What is IMAP?
IMAP is a protocol for accessing email on a server that syncs messages across multiple devices without downloading them…
What is POP3?
POP3 is an older email protocol that downloads messages to a single device and typically removes them from the server a…
What is Email Encryption?
Email encryption scrambles message contents so only the intended recipient can read them, protecting sensitive informat…
What is PGP Email Encryption?
PGP uses public-key cryptography to encrypt and sign emails, providing end-to-end message privacy and sender authentica…
What is S/MIME?
S/MIME is a standard for encrypting and digitally signing email using certificates issued by trusted authorities for en…
What is TLS for Email?
TLS encrypts the connection between email servers during transmission, preventing eavesdropping on emails as they trave…
What is SSL?
SSL is the predecessor to TLS that establishes encrypted connections between computers. Modern email systems use TLS bu…
What is a Spam Filter?
Spam filters use algorithms to identify and block unwanted emails before they reach your inbox, examining content, send…
What is an Email Blacklist?
An email blacklist is a database of IP addresses and domains known to send spam, used by mail servers to block incoming…
What is an Email Whitelist?
An email whitelist is a list of approved senders whose messages bypass spam filters and are always delivered to your in…
What is Email Bounce Rate?
Email bounce rate is the percentage of sent emails that fail to deliver, classified as hard bounces for invalid address…
What is Email Authentication?
Email authentication uses protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify that emails genuinely come from the claimed sen…
What is an MX Record?
MX records are DNS entries that specify which mail servers accept email for a domain and in what priority order to try…
What is DNS and How Does It Affect Email?
DNS translates domain names to IP addresses and hosts email-critical records including MX, SPF, DKIM, and DMARC configu…
What is Email Harvesting?
Email harvesting is the automated collection of email addresses from websites, social media, and databases for spam and…
What is Email Tracking?
Email tracking uses invisible pixels and link redirects to monitor when recipients open emails and click links within t…
What is Pixel Tracking in Email?
Pixel tracking embeds a tiny invisible image in emails that notifies the sender when you open the message and records y…
What is Email Open Rate?
Open rate measures the percentage of recipients who open an email, tracked via pixel tracking and used to gauge campaig…
What Does Unsubscribe Mean in Email?
Unsubscribe is the process of opting out of an email mailing list, legally required by CAN-SPAM for all commercial emai…
What is the CAN-SPAM Act?
The CAN-SPAM Act is a US law that sets rules for commercial email including unsubscribe requirements and penalties for…
What is GDPR for Email?
GDPR is a European privacy regulation that requires explicit consent for email marketing and gives recipients control o…
What is CCPA for Email?
CCPA is a California privacy law giving residents the right to know what personal data is collected and to request its…
What is a Data Broker?
Data brokers collect and sell personal information including email addresses to marketers, creating profiles from your…
What is Zero-Knowledge Privacy?
Zero-knowledge architecture means a service provider cannot access your data even if compelled, providing the highest l…
What is End-to-End Encryption?
End-to-end encryption ensures only the sender and recipient can read a message, with no access possible by the service…
What is Two-Factor Authentication?
Two-factor authentication adds a second verification step beyond your password, significantly reducing the risk of acco…
What is Social Engineering?
Social engineering manipulates people into revealing confidential information through psychological tricks rather than…
What is a Man-in-the-Middle Attack?
A man-in-the-middle attack intercepts communication between two parties, potentially reading or altering emails and sen…
What is a Brute Force Attack?
A brute force attack tries every possible password combination to break into an account, making strong unique passwords…