Unfortunately, very few people are using encryption for e-mail, Baggett said. I tend to think people don t realize the importance of encryption. They may not realize how many servers it may pass through on the way to its destination. Or, they may not realize that information that they consider mundane may be really important to someone else. The best way to think of e-mail is that if it is unencrypted, it is like writing a message on the back of a post card.
Encryption is like putting a letter in an envelope.
Although he recommends caution, Baggett doesn t think e-mail spying is a widespread problem. He said it would take someone with a lot of time and resources to sift through the thousands of e-mails that can go through a server in a short period of time. But it is better not to take any chances especially with programs like PGP and GPG which are relatively inexpensive, Baggett said. Most e-mail programs do have an option to add this type of program. Baggett and Edmonson also advise people using e-mails to be careful what is said.