Recommendation Template

Courtesy Recommendation Templates for Technology Evaluators 

The intent of the following text is to provide a template for an information technology organization to prepare recommendations to their technology committee. The template below is should be customized to fit specific situations. RPost has prepared this as a courtesy for IT staff.

Recommendation for RPost's REGISTERED EMAIL Service

Summary

The Registered Email^® service by RPost^® (www.rpost.com) is a simple to use service designed to protect the sender in those instances where the sending, content or time of an email may be disputed, in addition to enhancing efficiency and cost-savings. In basic terms, Registered Email is legal proof for important email transactions -- proof that can save users, IT, and the firm time, money, and potential headaches. We currently do not have these capabilities and have exposure. We recommend wide-scale deployment of Registered Email services by RPost.

Current Status of Accountability within Firm Email:

In the case of a dispute over content, timing, sending or receiving of an email, the archiving of that email in electronic or printed form provides very little protection after the fact. With two clicks of the mouse, one could change anything in standard email and represent it to be the original email. Therefore, it is important to consider that the recipient of an important email transaction could alter the original email and then subsequently challenge the sender’s archived copy as being fraudulent. Also, the fact that something appears in a ‘sent’ folder does not mean that it was ever sent, as one can drag anything into that folder. Currently, as a firm, we have either no protection in an email related dispute, or we rely on server logs and forensics that are expensive, time consuming, and generally do not produce complete records (i.e. proof of the email content associated with the email logs).

Considerations for further implementation of Registered Email by RPost:

Registered Email messages hold far greater evidential weight than traditional mail, courier, fax, or email, and therefore, should provide the sender with protection that will stand up to scrutiny in a dispute resolution situation. Registered Email would provide the sender the upper hand in any legal discovery disputes. From the perspective of a mediator, arbitrator, or judicial officer, one looks first at the evidentiary value of what is submitted in gauging its trustworthiness. Evidential weight is about reducing uncertainty surrounding the evidence. The party with the greater evidential weight will win in most cases, or at least mitigate its liability. This is a commercially available, inexpensive, easily deployed, and widely used service. Use will show leadership to our clients, with a service that can protect the firm AND our clients. With this service deployed firm-wide, users will be more capable of complying with notice provisions faster, allowing our clients to react and take action better and faster.

Trends for Registered Email services by RPost:

Twenty bar organizations have endorsed Registered Email services by RPost as LEGAL PROOF for Internet email. Among those that have begun educating member attorneys include the Los Angeles County Bar, DC Bar, Puerto Rico Bar, Colorado Bar, and Denver Bar. This service is used by government attorneys in federal and local governments, as well as by global law firms such as Greenberg Traurig, global insurance companies such as Aon, among others. The service is used worldwide with concentrations of users in the Americas and Europe. 

Recommendation for Implementation:

Considering our current exposure to challenges around email transmission, the push to better archiving, our desire to ensure we are not at a disadvantage vis-a-vis our competitor firms, and our need to show our clients leadership in technology and business tools, we recommend widespread deployment of Registered Email services by RPost. We recommend deployment in the mail client “Send Registered” button, as well as set for use from the Blackberry devices and from server applications.

Additional Points for Recommendation of RPost's SECURE ENCRYPTED Email Service

The intent of the following text is to provide a framework for an information technology organization to prepare recommendations to their technology committee for situations where they are evaluating secure encrypted email solutions. The template below is should be customized to fit specific situations. RPost has prepared this as a courtesy for IT staff.

Comparison with Standard PDF Password Encryption

Scorecard
RPost: 7
Standard PDF password encryption: 0

Analysis Comparing Secure Encrypted Email Functionality

A. RPost is delivery direct to recipient inbox... SCORE EVEN (Note, if the PDF password encryption is 40bit which is easily crackable, then Score RPost)

• Feature: Straight-through 128bit end-to-end encrypted delivery directly to the recipient inbox -- no links to click, no accounts to create, and no software to download for the receiver; no third-party or ‘in-the-cloud’ email or attachment storage.
• Benefit: Highly secure, available, practical, and user friendly service means people use it and will encrypt more messages, reducing likelihood of a breach.

B. RPost proof of compliance. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Auditable proof of compliance with encryption requirements on a message-by-message basis.
• Benefit: Provides sender organization with proof that the information was transmitted in an encrypted manner to ensure you are not fined in the case of a breach by the receiver.

C. RPost has auto-delivery of passwords; a better method. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: No end-user encryption keys to manage for the sender or receiver. Auto-delivery option for decryption passwords.
• Benefit: Limited cost, limited complexity, and user friendly.

D. RPost has the capability of encrypted reply. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: One-click optional encrypted replies back to the sender.
• Benefit: Creates a secure, encrypted communications loop between sender and receiver without any software or complexity for receiver.

E. RPost has e-discovery process for password/decryption; a better method. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Auto-delivery of master password spreadsheet to company manager.
• Benefit: Permits the sending organization to decrypt messages that are subject to litigation e-discovery.

F. RPost has delivery proof regardless of any recipient actions; a better method. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Legal Proof^® records of delivery, content, and time, regardless of whether the receiver chooses to open the message.
• Benefit: Eliminates denial of receipt or disputes about email content or timing.

G. RPost has no requirement for the sender to have PDF writer software (expensive). SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Deployed as software as a service.
• Benefit: No expensive desktop software, no hardware or server settings, scalable, inexpensive to deploy.

H. Other Considerations.

In addition to the secure encrypted email functionality being compared here, RPost also provides, at no extra cost, an entire platform of email tracking, proof, signature, collaboration, and records management services -- all in one simple desktop installation for the sender. SCORE RPOST

Comparison with Store-and-Forward Encryption Systems

Scorecard
RPost: 6
Store-and-Forward Encryption Systems: 1

Analysis Comparing Secure Encrypted Email Functionality.

A. RPost is delivery direct to recipient inbox; Store-and-Forward systems have a click-back. Many users report to have migrated from encryption services where the receiver has to click on a link to retrieve the message as the open rate was as low as 40% rendering the tools virtually useless. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Straight-through 128bit end-to-end encrypted delivery directly to the recipient inbox -- no links to click, no accounts to create, and no software to download for the receiver; no third-party or ‘in-the-cloud’ email or attachment storage.
• Benefit: Highly secure, available, practical, and user friendly service means people use it and will encrypt more messages, reducing likelihood of a breach.

B. RPost has better proof of compliance. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Auditable proof of compliance with encryption requirements on a message-by-message basis.
• Benefit: Provides sender organization with proof that the information was transmitted in an encrypted manner to ensure you are not fined in the case of a breach by the receiver.

C. RPost has auto-delivery of passwords; a better method. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: No end-user encryption keys to manage for the sender or receiver. Auto-delivery option for decryption passwords. Benefit: Limited cost, limited complexity, and user friendly.
• Benefit: User simplicity means more sensitive information will be voluntarily sent encrypted, reducing risk of breach and inadvertent disclosure.

D. Both have encrypted reply capabilities. SCORE EVEN

• Feature: One-click optional encrypted replies back to the sender.
• Benefit: Creates a secure, encrypted communications loop between sender and receiver without any software or complexity for receiver.

E. RPost has e-discovery process for password/decryption; a better method. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Auto-delivery of master password spreadsheet to company manager.
• Benefit: Permits the sending organization to decrypt messages that are subject to litigation e-discovery.

F. RPost has delivery proof regardless of any recipient actions; a better method. SCORE RPOST

• Feature: Legal ProofВ^® records of delivery, content, and time, regardless of whether the receiver chooses to open the message.
• Benefit: Eliminates denial of receipt or disputes about email content or timing.

G. Both are often deployed as software-as-a-service. SCORE EVEN

• Feature: Deployed as software as a service.
• Benefit: No hardware or server settings, scalable, inexpensive to deploy.

H. Other considerations:

Some store-and-forward systems can be deployed such that there is a filter for sending encryption based on policies built in. If this is a requirement, RPost can do this via its partners like Sendmail, Axway or any existing appliance already installed in house that can filter outbound mail. The challenge is the filtering capability, but developing policies that are realistic and work. RPost's partners have policy schemas for use as required. SCORE some store-and-forward systems

In addition to the secure encrypted email functionality being compared here, RPost also provides, at no extra cost, an entire platform of email tracking, proof, signature, collaboration, and records management services -- all in one simple desktop installation for the sender. SCORE RPOST