Gmail improves network security for clients
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Secure HTTP access to Google's free Gmail service is now active by default, the company announced earlier this week, making Gmail messages less susceptible to unauthorized access.
Google says that the new functionality will help protect users who have not already switched to HTTPS. The company wrote on the official Gmail blog that they had carefully weighed the tradeoffs between security and speed, since HTTPS data transfers tend to move slightly slower than those sent without encryption.
The option to use HTTPS for Gmail connections has been present since 2008, but it was turned off by default. Users will still be able to use Gmail over standard HTTP, but Google says that only those users confident in their network security settings should disable HTTPS.
PC World speculates that the move may have been prompted by the recent hacking attempts by Chinese cyber criminals to gain access to the email accounts of human rights campaigners. The attack has also provoked a decision by Google to stop filtering search results for its Google.cn portal, which is likely a signal of the end of the company's presence in China.
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