409256 - Support sending encrypted email without owning a personal certificate

Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 230576

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

Description

[tlauck]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1.11) Gecko/20071127 Firefox/2.0.0.11
Build Identifier: version 2.0.0.9 (20071031)

Using one computer and email account, I sent a signed email to a second email address, using a Persona cert signed by an authority built into Thunderbird. I received this message from the second email account on a second computer, and Thunderbird correctly authenticated the message. In the process of authenticating it correctly and transparently installed two keys, an intermediate key issued by the certification authority and a user key for first email account.

I then attempted to reply to this email using the second computer. I was told this was not possible until I first installed my own certificate.



Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. send signed email from one account on computer 1 to second account
2. retrieve and read email from second account on computer 2 (new profile-no keys)
3. compose reply message, select encryption and then attempt to send message

Actual Results:  
Was told to install a certificate

Expected Results:  
The reply would have been encrypted, sent, received and successfully decrypted.

This happened with the default setting, which would have left an un-decryptable copy of the message in the SENT folder. (But see bug 280588) It also happened after the account was set up to keep no local copies nor send no bcc.

It should not be necessary to generate and install a certificate before sending encrypted mail.  Thunderbird should require installation of a personal certificate only when actually required, e.g. when signing email. Users wishing to remain anonymous or unwilling/able to generate or obtain their own keys should still be able to gain the partial benefit of sending encrypted mail.

Comment 1

[Kai Engert [:KaiE:]]

I think this is a duplicate, but I can't find the older bug right now.