209436 - (bettersmime) Implement enhanced S/Mime usability

Status: NEW

(MailNews Core :: Security: S/MIME, enhancement)

Description

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Several other bugs exists that ask for enhanced S/Mime usability.

Automatically select self's encryption and signing certificates by default,
based on the email address, with the advanced option to explicitly select the
desired certificates. This will restore the simplified behaviour that
Communicator 4.x used.

Allow the user to explicitly prevent other's from sending self encrypted
messages, in a more understandable way - even when self owns a personal
encryption certificate.

Allow sending of encrypted messages, even if one does not own any certificate.

Finer grained control when to send encrypted messages.

Allow to configure how Mozilla Mail will behave, when sending encrypted is not
possible. Either "ask whether to send anyway" (the more comfortable option used
by Communicator 4.x) or "do not send, go back to compose window" (the safer, but
less convenient option used by Mozilla 1.0 - 1.4.

Comment 1

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

This change requires replacing the current single S/Mime Mail Account Manager
preference panel with three new panels. I'm attaching screenshots of an early
implementation. The wording and layout might get improved, but I consider the
order and distribution of elements already fixed for the work I'm planning to do.

Comment 2

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - new "Sending Signed Messages" panel

Comment 3

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - new "Receiving Encrypted Messages" panel

Comment 4

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - new "Sending Encrypted Messages" panel

Comment 5

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Implementation of pref panels

This is an implementation of the new pref panels.
It does not yet provide the new application behaviour.

Comment 6

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

In this patch, I will break the "lock S/Mime prefs" functionality, it is left to
a future patch to fix it.

Comment 7

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

When the user composes a new messages, or the user replies to a mesage, the
encryption/signing flags for this message will be set based on the default
preferences.

Whenever the uses switches the "from address" of the message to another account,
a warning will be shown that encryption/signing flags might have changed.

Comment 8

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

As part of this message, signing newsgroup messages will also get enabled.

Because we will have three separate preference panels, it will be easy to allow
the specific configuration for news accounts.

The pref panels "sending signed" and "receiving encrypted" will be available for
newsgroup accounts.

The pref panel "sending encrypted" will not be available for newsgroup accounts,
because it does not make sense.

Comment 9

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - updated "Sending Signed Messages" panel

Comment 10

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - updated "Sending Encrypted Messages" panel

Comment 11

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - updated "Sending Encrypted Messages" panel

Comment 12

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Screen Shot - override encryption prompt

This prompt will be shown when sending the message using encryption is not
possible, and the user has configured to be asked whether to send without
encryption.

Comment 13

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Updated patch, work in progress

Comment 14

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

Attachment: Updated patch, work in progress

Comment 15

[Kai Engert (:KaiE:)]

I think I should include another preference, to control whether to encrypt
outgoing messages to self.