In composer, show message encryption "configuration"
Categories
(MailNews Core :: Security: OpenPGP, enhancement, P3)
Tracking
(Not tracked)
People
(Reporter: KaiE, Unassigned)
References
(Blocks 1 open bug)
Details
See also the comments in meta bug 1595226.
This is about the encryption "configuration" for the current message.
This means, if the user said "do not encrypt" this message or said "require encryption" for this message.
The "require encryption" setting could have also been triggered by an automatism. We set this flag when replying to, or when forwarding an encrypted message.
This encryption "configuration" (what we want to do) is different from the encryption "status" (Status means, what we can or cannot do, like we cannot encrypt if there are missing recipient keys. I will file a separate bug for visualizing the "status".)
Currently, we still do what was done in the past: If "require encryption" is selected, then we show a padlock status bar icon.
Is the status bar the right place for this? Maybe it's not ideal, because:
- encryption affects the recipients, so maybe the padlock icon should be shown next to the recipient list?
- there are multiple encryption aspects of a message. For example, the message subject might not be encrypted. We could consider to show an icon next to the subject, that indicates if subject encryption is enabled or disabled.
When designing this, we should consider the potential future addition to offer an automatic "encrypt if possible" mode. When using an "encrypt if possible" default configuration, we should display this configured mode, too. Maybe show a blurred padlock? Note, even if the weak mode "encrypt if possible" is configured - when replying to an encrypted message, we'd probably use the stronger "require encryption" configuration for the individual reply/forwarding message.
I consider this a lower priority, because we already have a status display for the encryption configuration.
Feedback from me as a rather normal simple user:
I have now exchanged keys with a (absolute non-technical) mail partner.
It would be reasonable good, if now when I compose a mail to that partner which public key I have and classified as fully trusted (compared key fingerprint on telephone), encryption is automatically enabled and that is visible right in the compose windows, so I see: All nice.
I think first it is needed, that the encryption status is shown directly in the compuse window.
See my "meta" bug 1658065 about this.
Currently with TB 78.6.0 it is very poor: You have not visible feedback in the compose window if encryption is enabled or not, you have to click the security menu and enable "always encrpyt" (which is confusing), than again you have no visible feedback in the compose window that anything changed and encryption is really enabled.
My wish would be: If the recipients key is known and trusted, encryption should be enabled automatically and be visible in the compose window.
Currently, I guess for my non-technical partner the current situation is not usable, too complicated to select the non-feedback encryption mode.
The partner will just not do it and the key exchange is practically useless.
Well, this seems to be requested already in bug 135636 19 years ago.
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Reporter | |
Comment 4•3 years ago
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Marking this as dupe of 1627956.
As nf said, we've decided to show a encryption status button/icon in the email composer toolbar.
And encrypt-if-possible is separate, and we already have a tracking bug for that (postponed).
Description
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