12.5 Secure eMail

Secure eMail allows PECOS P2P to encrypt an eMail before it is sent to the supplier. The Supplier then decrypts the eMail on receipt, ensuring that the eMail is secure and cannot be intercepted and understood by a third party.

You should make your suppliers aware that a secure eMail option is available and request a digital certificate from them if they would like to migrate to this method of purchase order transmission.

The process flow for the Secure eMail is as follows:

Each Supplier who will utilise PECOS P2P’s encrypted eMail order delivery facility must provide Elcom with an encryption certificate, also known as a ‘Digital ID’.

Further information on Cryptography and PKI Basics can be found at:
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ee663293(v=vs.85).aspx
An Introduction to Certificates can also be found at: https://technet.microsoft.com
These certificates can be obtained from a number of external certifying authorities. Example of security providers include (but are not limited to): http://www.verisign.com and http://www.thawte.com

Note that this list is not exhaustive and does not represent any endorsement by Elcom. (Elcom does not recommend using the free personal certificates available from a number of vendors, as they are only valid for 12 months from date of issue and many are restricted for personal use only.)

Once a digital certificate has been received by Elcom Support, a system option will be set to allow the Secure eMail Transmission Type to be displayed in the supplier profile. As digital certificates are received by Elcom Support the individual supplier Transmission Methods will be updated to Secure eMail (.pdf) accordingly.

eMail notification will be sent to the Supplier indicating the change. From this point forward, all eMails sent to the supplier will be encrypted.

Further information on setting up Secure eMail from a supplier perspective may be found in the ‘Supplier Guide to Secure eMail’ document which may be obtained from Elcom Support or the Knowledgebase.