There is a high chance that only a small portion of the emails you receive require action. The rest mostly fill up your inbox and 

, resulting in a cluttered email environment. You may also use one account for different purposes, and manually sorting your mail into corresponding folders is quite inconvenient.

You can eliminate all of the above issues by using Gmail filters to

 automate mundane, repetitive email management tasks

. You’ll then learn about Gmail’s shortcomings to help you decide whether setting up different filters is worth it.

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The term “filtering” can refer to two actions:

Using the search bar to find specific emails

Creating automatic filters (also known as rules) that sort incoming mail

 use the search function to highlight specific emails

Let’s assume you want to create a filter that automatically 

 that appears in most of them, such as “unsubscribe.”

, so you can click the filter icon on the right side of the search bar and go to ‘

’ to access the automatic filtering option, as shown in the following image:

You can also access this feature from settings

Click the gear icon in the upper-right corner of the main screen

Whichever approach you take, you’ll see various options that let you 

decide on emails you’ll filter and actions Gmail should take

The first step toward creating a Gmail filter is to 

 for the email you wish to automate. The aforementioned example has the keyword “unsubscribe” as the criterion, but you can play with the feature using the so-called operators.

Besides the self-explanatory operators like 

 that lets you filter messages by sender, 

other common options include the following

fine-tune the conditions and target specific emails

. Once you do that, follow these steps to finalize your action:

Choose what you want Gmail to do with the emails that match the criteria

The new filter will regulate all incoming mail, but you can apply it to everything currently in the inbox by checking ‘

Also apply filter to matching conversations

How to filter emails to a folder in Gmail

 automatically is the most common use of filters. Some users struggle with this option because no available filter actions mention folders.

For simplicity’s sake, let’s assume you want to separate personal from 

The new labels will show up on the left side of your inbox

, and you can take the following steps to apply them automatically:

Set the conditions as explained above (e.g., you can choose to filter emails from family members)

’ box ensures the email goes straight to the chosen folder. Otherwise, it will appear in your main inbox despite being labeled.

How to edit filters in Gmail and delete unused ones

You may need to add new conditions or actions to your filters as your correspondence evolves. In this case, you can take the following steps to update them:

Change the conditions (if applicable) and click 

If you no longer want to use the filter, click the ‘

.’ Note that while deleting a filter removes it from the affected emails, 

it doesn’t reverse any action taken while it was active

—it won’t restore your deleted emails.

 based on features, which explains Gmail’s popularity. It offers a solid email experience and valuable features at no cost. Unfortunately, the platform falls short when it comes to the most important aspects of emailing—

. This measure makes it seem like your correspondence is safe from malicious parties like 

 because there’s no attack surface they could exploit.

If you scratch beneath the surface, you’ll realize this isn’t necessarily true. While Gmail does 

, a robust algorithm that comes with a significant drawback—

Google creates and stores the encryption keys

, which means they can decrypt and read your emails at any point.

Besides, a compromised server can result in the attacker obtaining the keys and 

With this in mind, handy organization features aren’t worth the 

 of exposing your data to internal and external threats. The good news is that there doesn’t have to be a trade-off, as you can find 

Skiff Mail offers advanced filters alongside robust privacy features for an organized and secure email experience

Choose safety and feature variety

Why you should use a privacy-first email service

 services are relatively scarce, but there are still enough options for 

 alike. While each provider has unique selling points, they all share a crucial feature—

E2EE gives you control over your privacy in the following ways

It secures your correspondence at all points between you and the recipient

as they are created and stored on your device, where the emails are encrypted before you send them

It factors out server-level decryption, as only the recipient holding the decryption key can decipher the message

 and can rest assured third parties and your provider can’t see plaintext copies of your emails. The only way a hacker could access them is if they stole the encryption keys from your device, so as long as you keep them safe, 

If you need a provider offering this level of protection, 

Shield your correspondence with Skiff Mail

 that gives you complete control over your personal data and correspondence. It does so by implementing two separate keys:

—Encrypts the message and is shared with the recipient

—Decrypts the email and remains safely stored on the user’s device

, which means not even their team can’t see your emails—they’re only readable to the recipient.

For additional privacy, Skiff Mail lets you 

sign up without leaving any personal information

, thanks to the zero-knowledge login feature. Once you 

, the Secure Remote Password algorithm will 

alongside other critical account information and encryption keys.

 to protect your account in case someone gets ahold of your login credentials. Skiff implements 2FA through the Authenticator app, so 

Stay productive and create a secure workspace

Skiff Mail is equipped with various email organization features—the rich 

A comprehensive guide to a clean inbox with Gmail filters

Email attacks make up the biggest percentage of 

, resulting in billions of dollars in losses for individuals and 

 each year. This makes the question, “What is a 

?” relevant to everyone—not only cybersecurity professionals.

 for personal or professional reasons, this concise guide to email security will teach you about:

Upgrade to Skiff Mail's end-to-end encryption for the highest level of email security

Create a safe environment for online communication

 belong to one of the following four categories:

 impersonating a familiar correspondent, institution, or company

are called phishing. They are the most common types of email fraud. In phishing attempts, cybercriminals ask the target to share sensitive data, such as:

, address, full name, phone number, date of birth

—Bank account details, credit card number

—Username and password for your email or bank account

—Intellectual property, internal data, and similar confidential information

There are various types of phishing attacks, depending on their goals, targets, and methods. Here’s a breakdown of the most frequent ones:

Hackers often make phishing attempts on popular email clients, targeting millions of people simultaneously. 

Named after the malicious software they employ, malware attacks use email as a delivery method for viruses—usually hidden in a download link or 

The following table highlights the most common malware types and their purpose:

 helps attackers install malware on your system

, providing them with sensitive information and unauthorized access to your device.

With integrated ecosystems like Google Workspace, your email security depends on other apps too. In one instance, hackers accessed 

 after users installed a ransomware-infested Google Chrome extension.

Generally, spam is less harmful than other email threats. In its most benign form, it’s an unsolicited commercial message, more annoying than dangerous, designed to advertise questionable business opportunities, products, or services.

spam emails can also distribute malware or attempt phishing.

 Even without viruses, spam messages can quickly overwhelm your inbox, which makes managing emails from actual senders challenging.

This type of cybercrime combines phishing techniques with spam and malware to compromise employee email accounts. BEC is one of the most damaging email attacks as the FBI estimated it caused a 

The scam typically involves a phishing attack on an employee’s email account by making 

Attackers often impersonate company lawyers, CEOs, or other executives, to trick employees into providing confidential information. They even target HR representatives to steal executives’ personal information and use the data to leverage further attacks.

A well-prepared BEC attack can fool even Big Tech players that invest billions in cybersecurity. In 2019, 

 by pretending to be a Taiwanese tech manufacturer.

What is a secure email? Standard security measures

 to protect the contents of your messages. The main ones are:

Providers store your emails on their servers, making them obvious targets for hackers and a vital defense point in any cybersecurity strategy.

As a user, you have two choices regarding email servers:

the provider has access to the contents of your emails.

 In the past, companies like Google have scanned emails for ad targeting and training machine learning models.

 server means you don’t have to worry about your provider accessing your private messages. You decide what security measures to use—additional firewalls, spam filters, and encryption.

The problem with private email servers is the cost and effort required to set up and maintain them. You’d need in-depth 

 Most people make that compromise and rely on the security measures provided by their email clients.

Weak, previously used passwords are the most common security hole

 might not be enough, considering the number of people who get their passwords stolen via malware or phishing attacks.

Two-factor authentication (2FA) ensures no one can access your account but you, even if they obtain your login credentials.

With 2FA, login is followed by an additional prompt asking for 

a verification code sent to your trusted device.

 Even if someone knows the password for your email account, they won’t be able to access it without the one-time code.

 support 2FA, but it is most effective when used in combination with other email security measures.

The rules that define and standardize email exchange are called email security protocols. Two of the most widespread are:

Secure/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (S/MIME)

TLS is the default email security protocol 

for Google, Yahoo, and other popular providers.

It protects your emails in transit between servers but 

leaves messages vulnerable while they rest

S/MIME is more advanced because it provides security for emails at rest and in transit between servers. This protocol isn’t without its flaws, as your 

email service provider generates and stores the encryption and decryption keys. 

 and security depend on your provider’s server security.

Mainstream providers approach S/MIME compatibility differently. While Outlook offers S/MIME to all users, 

Google only provides this level of protection to 

 Both platforms require you to obtain a S/MIME security certificate and install it manually, making the process tedious even if you’re tech-savvy.

In terms of email security, the best measure is protecting your messages at the device level before they’re ever uploaded to a server. End-to-end encryption (E2EE) is the only way to do it.

the encryption and decryption keys are generated at the device level and accessible only to senders and recipients.

 Your provider does not have access to the keys.

 end-to-end encryption solves the server security problem. 

Hackers cannot read your messages even if they access the servers because the decryption keys aren’t stored there.

No one can scan your emails for ad targeting or other purposes, including your provider.

Skiff's E2EE security features go beyond traditional email providers, offering you peace of mind 

Opt for full protection with Skiff Mail

Many standard measures have common vulnerabilities, and hackers have learned to bypass them. To ensure maximum email security, you should:

To protect your emails from unauthorized access, refrain from using obvious and weak passwords. Hard-to-crack passwords are longer than eight characters

Make your passwords as random as you can and 

never use personally identifiable information

 like your name, address, date of birth, etc. Hackers could use your social media and other online sources to crack the password.

Reusing old passwords from other accounts is also dangerous. If hackers compromise one of your accounts, they can access your emails as well. Modern-day cyber criminals have developed software that automatically cross-references one password with your other accounts.

Password reuse is a huge problem for corporate cybersecurity. 

When employees are allowed to set their passwords for business email accounts, they often reuse personal passwords, which may have already been 

While it won’t protect your emails from every type of attack, it’s an excellent secondary line of defense when combined with E2EE and other security measures.

Don’t open email attachments or links from unknown or suspicious senders, as they may be phishing attempts or contain malware.

More elaborate phishing attacks come as emails from familiar institutions or people

, so don’t click on hyperlinks and attachments, even when messages appear to come from trustworthy sources.

Here are some things you can do to check if a link is safe without opening it:

Check for any spelling mistakes within the link

Copy the link and paste it into an URL checker

Hover over the link to see more information about the source

Check the sender’s email address to verify it’s legitimate

Malware may end up on your computer even with the appropriate level of caution. Antivirus software is your last line of defense, so update it regularly. Hackers constantly develop new malware, and antivirus updates contain the information required to recognize these threats automatically.

 Gmail has an antivirus scan for attachments, but it only works on certain file types up to 25 MB in size. Keep the antivirus software on your device updated in case your provider’s scans fail to detect a threat.

What is a secure email? A detailed guide to email safety

, the average data breach costs global businesses and organizations over $4.3 million. Since cybercriminals carry out most of these attacks through emails to individuals, learning how 

To answer the question, “What is email security?” you need a deeper understanding of how to achieve safety and privacy in email communication.

 This guide will help by exploring the most dangerous email threats and the technologies and best practices we collectively call email security.

Skiff's rock-solid encryption and privacy-focused features provide a superior defense against email threats

Achieve security without breaking a sweat

 use the following techniques to compromise email accounts:

Cybercriminals constantly improve their methods to stay ahead of cybersecurity professionals. As a result, 

it’s impossible to create a conclusive list of all email security threats

In practice, most criminals use a combination of common techniques. We’ll explore each one to help you understand 

Cybercriminals conduct unauthorized data transfers via:

Data loss through remote access is more common

, as it’s much harder for criminals to obtain someone’s device physically, especially if the target is a company or organization.

The easiest way to obtain unauthorized remote access is

via email because it’s the default communication method for professional correspondence. 

 to collect confidential data from the target

, making data exfiltration one of the biggest email security threats.

Countless unsolicited emails arrive in our inboxes daily—according to Statista, around 

Besides unwanted ads for shady businesses, spam messages may carry significant security threats. Here’s a breakdown of the most common issues junk emails can cause:

 providers protect clients with advanced spam filters 

that automatically delete unsolicited messages. The problem is that these filters can be overly aggressive, often misidentifying and discarding legitimate emails as spam.

Cybercriminals deceive victims into disclosing sensitive information by pretending to represent well-known companies.

Service impersonation is the most common subtype of brand impersonation. This attack targets existing product or service users by imitating the associated brand's customer service department.

Criminals hiding behind fake email accounts use templates carefully designed to spoof the real brand and lead you to believe you’re communicating with their representatives. 

Scammers sometimes include another step, such as a 

 with forms asking you to enter sensitive data.

A key part of most online scams involving fake emails is domain impersonation. Hackers try to pass off fraudulent email domains

The most common way to achieve it is through typosquatting. Hackers buy email domains that 

, except for one differing letter, similar to a harmless typo.

Most recipients only glance over the senders’ email addresses, especially from familiar contacts—which is what hackers count on.

, while hackers might use support.mail.microsoft.com or mail.support.microsoftt.com.

Abbreviated from 'malicious software,' malware refers to different computer programs with one common trait—they harm your device and compromise your safety.

You may unknowingly install malware with other software, such as browser toolbars or even fake antivirus software. 

Hackers still prefer email as a malware delivery method

, as people are more likely to open an email link or attachment than download and install software from unknown websites.

Here’s a quick guide to the most common types of malware:

Up-to-date antivirus software will lower the risk of being infected

 with one of these programs, but no solution guarantees 100% security as hackers constantly create new malware.

Arpeet Kale