Gmail business users can now send secure encrypted email to anyone

Google just gave the business tier of Gmail users a handy new cybersecurity feature.

In a company blog post, Google said that enterprise Gmail users can now send end-to-end encrypted emails to anyone. Not just people in their network and not just people who use Gmail, but people who use any email service. All they have to do is click "Additional encryption" when writing their message, and Gmail does the rest.

"This capability, requiring minimal efforts for both IT teams and end users, abstracts away the traditional IT complexity and substandard user experiences of existing solutions, while preserving enhanced data sovereignty, privacy, and security controls," the blog post said.

The way it works is pretty interesting.

As explained by BleepingComputer, Google encrypts the message on the client end prior to sending it to the cloud, which means that no one, not Google or any other entity beside the intended recipient, can read its contents. That keeps it in line with various data regulation laws. If the intended recipient doesn't use Gmail, they'll have to click a link that will take them to a gated version of Gmail where they're essentially a temporary guest user, giving them the ability to read the message.

Just be sure to actually, you know, turn this on before sending your super secret important corporate emails.