The Problem with IMAP

By Neil Griffiths|5th August 2020

Think IMAP is “fail safe” for e-mail? Think again!

Yes, using POP3/SMTP is no longer secure and should not be considered for business use any more. See my previous DCS blog post on email

Simply moving to IMAP/SMTP for business email maybe more protected in terms of email transport and password security, but this does not guarantee that any existing email accumulated using POP/SMTP is safe and secure…

As previously mentioned, by utilising POP/SMTP for email transport, the mail is transferred (moved) from the server to the client machine, be that a smart phone, laptop or desktop computer. Once the email is no longer on the server, it remains on that client machine until it gets deleted or forgotten about. The problem in moving to IMAP/SMTP does not mean that any previous email downloaded using POP/SMTP will automatically appear in the IMAP Inbox. In most cases, it cannot. If the chosen email provider offers IMAP for email transport, they probably offer the same limited space for email storage on the IMAP server for free. This usually coincides with the same limited storage as they did for POP/SMTP on their server.

POP/SMTP accounts are limited in storage space because the provider needs you, the customer, to move email off the server. Once you do that, your email becomes your responsibility. It remains on the client device but importantly, unless any extenuating measures are taken, it is NOT BACKED UP. This then frees up space for new email to be temporarily stored until it is delivered. By using this technique, email for POP/SMTP storage is usually capped at 1 or 2GB of space. Of course, the provider may offer increased storage space for a price of course, but that’s a different story.

By using Office 365 for email, DCS customers get 50GB of storage to start with (subject to licence terms). This can be further increased depending on your requirements. Until you reach the upper limit of email storage, there is no pressure on any Microsoft customer to move email off the server permanently. This means that when you experience problems with a cached mailbox on any device (*up to 5 devices per licence), ultimately that cached copy can be deleted, and your entire mailbox is simply copied down into Outlook and restored once again. Hey presto! Your email is back where it should be.

For more information on Office 365 Business – https://www.deansplc.co.uk/cloud-solutions/ or contact your account manager

The Problem with IMAP

DCS 40^th Anniversary Easter Competition Terms & Conditions

· As the competition runs up to the 14th of April the prize will be sent out asap, however, the winner will most likely receive the prize after the Easter weekend.

· The Promotors competitions with entry via Twitter and/or LinkedIn are open only to residents of Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland). One (1) winner will be chosen at random from all entrants and across all platforms.

· No purchase is necessary. Winners will not be required to pay to enter the competition.

· Entrants must be over 18 years old on the date of their entry.

· Employees of The Promoter are not eligible to enter.

· Twitter or LinkedIn are not in any way affiliated or involved in the competition.

· Only one entry per social platform per person will be accepted.

· The Prize will be awarded to a randomly selected winner who has entered on Twitter or LinkedIn, using a random number generator. The Promoter will not be held liable if the named prize becomes unavailable or cannot be fulfilled.

· The Promoter will not be held liable for any failure of receipt of entries. The Promoter takes no responsibility for any entries which are lost, delayed, illegible, corrupted, damaged, incomplete or otherwise invalid.

· To the extent permitted by applicable law, The Promoter’s liability under or in connection with the competition or these terms and conditions shall be limited to the cost price of the Prize in question.

· Prizes are non-negotiable, non-transferable and non-refundable. No cash alternative is available. Where a Prize becomes unavailable for any reason, the promoter reserves the right to substitute that prize for a prize of equal or higher value.

· The name, address, email address and phone number of the winner must be provided to The Promoter if requested and will be shared to enable the fulfilment of the Prize.

· In the event of unforeseen circumstances beyond The Promoter’s reasonable control, the promoter reserves the right to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the competition or these terms and conditions, either in whole or in part, with or without notice.

· The Promoter’s decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into.

· The winner’s name and social media username may be posted on the social media profiles of The Promotor after the winner has been selected.