In today's world, we are more aware of many risks. We have access to information and more knowledge about everything around us. We would expect that we, therefore, make better choices and that our lives are simpler. Let's take plastic, for example. At one point, man became aware of how harmful it is to the environment. We've done a lot of damage so far. But did that knowledge make us aware of using it? Still, we use it every day, ignoring inconveniences. In almost every field, email is the same as plastic. A beautiful interface and simplicity of use - emails should indeed be one of the best ways to share files. But is this so or are we using them in an unsafe way, out of habit, because nothing bad has ever happened? So far.

Are emails easily compromised?

The history of emails started in 1971 when the first-ever electronic mail was dispatched launching a wave of transformation in how people communicate digitally. In recent decades, electronic mail has become a mainstay in both social and professional communication as it is easy to use, convenient, and reaches out to users globally. But even as email offers a lot of benefits, it was never meant to be secure. Its basic protocols have remained the same and mostly unchanged for over fifty years, exposing people to data breaches and a wide range of privacy issues.

Vulnerabilities of Emailing

It’s the fundamental architecture of email delivery that exposes the data first. The conventional email that we use now operates through a simple email transfer protocol( SMTP), which does not encrypt messages automatically. It signifies that messages sent as emails are sent in clear text, which is prone to interception by 3rd parties whenever there is a transmission over public networks. Emails, when sent, are forwarded through many servers before reaching the recipient. This means that there are several points for a message to be intercepted. The absence of encryption puts the users at risk of middleman attacks in which hackers can easily capture and read data sent as messages.

This risk is made worse by public Wi-Fi, which is usually found in such areas as cafes and airports. Simply logging onto a public Wi-Fi network to check one’s emails allows anyone using that same network to read that individual’s emails. However, unless a user is connected through a Virtual Private Network (VPN) or is accessing an HTTPS-encrypted website, messages are easily intercepted and seen by other users. Recent advances have made it easier for people to use encryption and VPNs, but the use of such technologies is not common among email clients. As a result, a large number of emails are sent every day without low levels of security.

Sadly, email also has its hazards relating to the content of the message. After being transferred from the sender, the email gets lodged on permanent locations—servers—which may or may not apply end-to-end or at-rest encryption to secure their contents. Most popular email service providers care more about ease of use and benefits across millions of users so that any information, including messages and attachments, is often stored and transferred in its original form as files such as text on servers, and only accessible to authorized personnel. Such a vulnerability is very alarming to both enterprises and individuals constantly exchanging sensitive information as there are no assurances that those messages are secure even after delivery.

As if it was not difficult enough, email clients are also very often targeted by phishing attacks and malware. Users often fall prey to phishing emails that impersonate messages from trusted sources and often even ask users for login details or to click links that may be harmful to their devices. Once an email account is compromised by an attacker, they can destroy it all, view documents, and even send out emails from the compromised account. In our high-speed digital society, the mistake of an individual such as sending an email with information to the wrong person, is all too common and in fact, poses a danger of data exposure that may not be reversible. As frightening from a consumer point of view, once information is out there, it is more than likely that over time it will be used.

As encouraging as it is, providers like Tutanota, CounterMail, and StartMail promise to bring about a shift in the trend where emails are not secure. The problem however is that email was never built with security in mind. Such services are of assistance but do not wipe away the prominent issues facing email, especially, as many email services’ business model is clogged with advertising. For users who place a premium on security, they need to look for dedicated platforms that have very specific purposes and in this case, are aimed at secure and safe file sharing.

How Sprend Protects Your Data?

Service built for the people who value their privacy, security, and ease of use. In other words, with Sprend, users don’t have to worry about compromising the security of their files when sharing them across different platforms. Zero-knowledge encryption is another feature that stands out. If you upload a file to Sprend and check the password option, of course the file is encrypted, now only you and the people you sent the file to can see it. It is important to note that not even the system of Sprend is able to see the content of your files since the passkey which is your password is only known to you and the person or persons with whom you shared your password. Such difference in the way the password is used is one of the many differences between Sprend and the email providers that have already existed.

While account privacy is a huge concern for the company, it is enhanced by other factors that go beyond just encryption. Sprend is completely ad-free, which is unique compared to other websites to start with. It has no ad-based revenue to fund and does not sell information about its customers, nor does it seek to profit from spying on its clientele. This is why ads on Sprend’s webpage and applications do not mind customers—because Sprend offers a better experience without cluttering the interface with ads. Sprend has a tireless resolve that most websites lack: to sell nothing but its product and, therefore, not to mine customers’ data and sell it to other entities.

Another area where Sprend is different is customer service. Numerous tech companies put AI technology in the forefront as their first line of defense empowering their technical support to automated chats. With Sprend, we will never be using bots or AI chats with our customers. This decision is essential as far as Sprend’s approach to privacy and personalization is concerned. Unlike AI systems, which can store and analyze user interactions to perform better in the next, Sprend’s human-only support model assures complete anonymity of users as their interaction is not recorded. Questions and complaints are solved straightforwardly and effectively as in one-to-one engagements, therefore the risks of having automated data processing are ruled out. There are no tapes, no intrusion of data, and no risk of the information being kept for machine learning as well as other practices – just easy, fast, and human-wide assistance.

However, the commitment of Sprend to ensuring data security goes beyond that. All the shared files via the platform are kept on servers in Sweden, which is considered to be one of the countries with the highest standards when it comes to protecting personal privacy. Swedish regulations introduce strict measures regarding user privacy and data security for all enterprises dealing with private data of individuals. With Sweden being an EU member state, the EU Regulation of 27 April 2016, No. 2016/679 (GDPR) is also observed by Sweden which guarantees the protection of personal data and privacy of every individual residing within the EU. Furthermore, the fact that Sprend has servers in Sweden also ensures that it is not subject to certain international data laws like the U.S. CLOUD Act, which permits U.S. authorities to access data held in American servers. Most importantly, with Sprend, users can be assured that their data is private as it is subjected to a higher threshold of protection offered under European regulations.

Nonetheless, in the current climate of data breaches and privacy issues, there is a rising need for a service like Sprend that allows the safe sharing of confidential data and information. Instead of forcing customers to choose between security and ease-of-use, Sprend is taking a different approach where both would be part of the package. As more individuals concentrate on privacy and the relentless advertising of their products, spreading unencrypted files or providing human tech support are no longer effective ways to use Sprend. This, coupled with strong servers, puts Sprend at the forefront of secure file transfer.

Email is perhaps the most convenient way to send information, but with all of the inclusion of spam and data phishing, emails are outdated. These days, it is not only individuals who want to have secure communication and file exchange but corporations as well. It is offered by Sprend because this company places a focus on ensuring proper security and privacy while file sharing. It is especially important today when convenience often plays a bigger role than security; with Sprend’s services, you are guaranteed that the files shared remain secure and private.

And that file sharing is not just about sharing files; it’s about safeguarding files.

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