XADM: Sending Encrypted Mail to Users with Different Encryption Levels

• Microsoft Exchange Server, versions 4.0, 5.0, 5.5

SUMMARY

Using the Microsoft Exchange Key Management Server, users have the ability to encrypt messages. The North American version of the Exchange client can encrypt messages using a 64-bit encryption key. This level of encryption cannot be exported out of the United States and Canada; therefore, international Exchange clients are only enabled with 40-bit encryption.

This article describes what happens when a user with 64-bit encryption tries to send a messages to other users, some of whom have 64-bit encryption and others have 40-bit encryption.

MORE INFORMATION

The level of encryption that a mailbox is enabled with is stored in the Exchange directory. When you send a message to a user, it is possible to determine what level of encryption that user has.

When a user with 64-bit encryption sends an encrypted message to a mixed group of users with 40-bit encryption and 64-bit encryption, Exchange uses the strongest encryption level that all recipients have in common. In this case, it selects 40-bit encryption. A 64-bit client can read a message encrypted with a 40-bit key.

If any one of the recipients is not security-enabled, then the Exchange client displays a message asking the sender either to send the message without encryption or to remove the users who are not security-enabled from the list of recipients.

Keywords          : kbusage XADM 
Version           : WINDOWS:4.0,5.0,5.5
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbinfo 

Last Reviewed: March 31, 1999