Email Service Protocols
SMTP
ü SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. SMTP is used when Email is delivered from an Email client, such as Outlook Express, to an Email server or when Email is delivered from one Email server to another. SMTP uses port 25.
POP3
ü POP3 stands for Post Office Protocol. POP3 allows an Email client to download an Email from an Email server. The POP3 protocol is simple and does not offer many features except for download. Its design assumes that the Email client downloads all available Email from the server, deletes them from the server and then disconnects. POP3 normally uses port 110.
IMAP
ü IMAP stands for Internet Message Access Protocol. IMAP shares many similar features with POP3. It, too, is a protocol that an Email client can use to download Email from an Email server. However, IMAP includes many more features than POP3. The IMAP protocol is designed to let users keep their Email on the server. IMAP requires more disk space on the server and more CPU resources than POP3, as all Emails are stored on the server. IMAP normally uses port 143.
Configuring an Email Server
ü Email server software like Post cast Server, Hmailserver, Surge mail, etc can be used to convert your Desktop PC into an Email sending server.
ü HMailServer is an Email server for Microsoft Windows. It allows you to handle all your Email yourself without having to rely on an Internet service provider (ISP) to manage it. Compared to letting your ISP host your Email, HMailServer adds flexibility and security and gives you the full control over spam protection.
Email Security
ü Now let’s check how secure this fast mean of communication is. There are so many attacks which are applied on Emails. There are people who are the masters of these Email attacks and they always look for the innocent people who are not aware of these Email tricks and ready to get caught their trap.
ü You have to make sure that you are not an easy target for those people. You have to secure your Email identity and profile, make yourself a tough target.
ü If you have an Email Id Do not feel that it does not matters if hacked because there is no important information in that Email account, because you do not know if someone gets your Email id password and uses your Email to send a threatening Email to the Ministry or to the News Channels.
ü Attacker is not bothered about your data in the Email. He just wants an Email ID Victim which will be used in the attack. There are a lots of ways by which one can use your Email in wrong means, i am sure that you would have come across some of the cased where a student gets an Email from his friends abusing him or cases on Porn Emails where the owner of the Email does not anything about the sent Email.
