More than 144 millions are sent per second across the globe. Businesses have a great dependence on email services to communicate within or outside the workplace. Needless to say, many emails contain sensitive information critical to the business which needs protection from unauthorised access and control. A reliable email client, therefore, is a prerequisite for businesses, especially those sending and receiving highly confidential data over the internet. Zimbra Collaboration Suite (ZCS), is a highly secure and cost-effective email solution for business. Continuing the discussion, the blog post lists 6 key identity and access management features of Zimbra webmail that make it a safe and secure email communication solution. Take a look.
Pic Courtesy – Zimbra
Zimbra Webmail Identity & Access Management Features –
1. Identity Lifecycle Management
Organizational security largely depends on understanding user rights and privileges on computing systems. Zimbra Collaboration Suite utilizes a native LDAP directory for typical user administration functions, including Create, Read, Update, and Delete operations. Though an external LDAP directory can also be used, key attributes of Zimbra Collaboration should preferably be stored and managed through the native LDAP directory.
2. First-factor Authentication
The username and password denotes primary authentication in Zimbra mail clients, whether collaboration suite or external. Generally, the user store in Zimbra Collaboration suite is leveraged to store the login credentials. If a native LDAP directory is used, user authentication takes place within Zimbra Collaboration, making for enhanced security. A salted hash of the password is automatically stored in Zimbra collaboration and used to authenticate the salted hash of passwords entered by users – deciding whether the login goes through or gets rejected.
Related read – Zimbra vs. Gmail: An Unbiased Comparison
3. Mobile Device Authentication
Zimbra Collaboration Suite leverages cutting-edge technology to prevent unauthorised access on mobile devices. It checks if the mobile device is compliant with ActiveSync mobile security policies before granting access. The policies have a number of functions to safeguard user data and protect it from email identity theft, including pre-configured timeouts, identification numbers, and local device wipe outs. If a mobile user enters a wrong password, mobile device authentication prompts them to enter a personal identification pin to access the mailbox. Once the user inputs incorrect pins a number of times, (a preconfigured number), the device performs a local wipe out; however, the data remains intact when the user accesses it with authorized credentials.
4. Single-Sign On
The Collaboration suite allows the administrators to set up email services with “Federated Identity Management” (FIM) and “Single-Sign On” capabilities. This, in turn, reduces identity breaches across the organizations through a more streamlined approach to password handling. While FIM eliminates the need to remember passwords, Single Sign On allows users to access multiple applications without the need to authenticate their credentials each time. To achieve the objective of SSO, Zimbra utilizes either Kerberos or a pre-authenticated LDAP key.
5. Multi-Factor Authentication
Two-factor authentication, also known by the acronym TFA, is an integrated feature of Zimbra collaboration suite and can be used to add an additional level of security to access mail and other applications. In the mechanism, the user not only needs the default username and password credentials to access the email, but should also have something only they can have, such as a physical token. By utilizing the power of multi-factor authentication, Zimbra ensures that unauthorized persons cannot gain access to your email and the underlying folders. Coupling the need for default credentials with “user-specific” identity protects sensitive organizational information from the prying eyes of intruders.
Related read – Zimbra Collaboration Suite: More Than Your Average Business Email
6. Authorized Access
After connecting to Zimbra Collaboration Suite, authorization processes take over and decide on the data visible to the user and the functions they are entitled to perform. There are a number of attributes, policies, and permissions in Zimbra to govern typical email functions, from folders, accounts, tasks, and calendars. Zimbra takes email security to an entirely new level, as it allows administrators to assign permissions to shared folders and a number of email elements, including tasks and calendars. Moreover, there are password based provisions that can be set, so that users have limited rights on the mailbox.
The Bottom Line
The importance of email security cannot be underestimated. Every business needs to ensure that their email solution is secure from cyber attacks and also has features to control the level of access each person has in the organization. To fulfil the objective, i2k2 Networks offers Zimbra Webmail hosting service packages to ensure a secure email communication environment. To learn more, fill out our contact form, and we will get in touch with you, shortly. You can also call us at +91-120-466 3031.