Patent ID: 8782402

Claim:
A method comprising: determining, by a financial institution communication system, whether performance of an encryption process for an electronic communication is desired including determining whether the electronic communication includes an indicator specifying that the electronic communication is to be encrypted; in response to determining that the electronic communication does not include the indicator, sending the electronic communication without performing the encryption process; in response to determining that performance of the encryption process for the electronic communication is desired: determining, by the financial institution communication system, a first recipient address of the electronic communication; determining whether the first recipient address is external to an internal financial institution network in which a source device of the electronic communication is operating; and in response to determining that the first recipient address is external to the internal financial institution network, encrypting at least a portion of a message of the electronic communication prior to sending the electronic communication to the first recipient address, otherwise, sending the electronic communication to the first recipient address without encrypting the at least a portion of the message of the electronic communication.