Encrypted pop3/imap/smtp connections to PN's servers?

[#1]

Are there any plans to offer encrypted pop3/imap/smtp connections to PN's servers? With so many people using unencrypted public access wifi hotspots, I am surprised this is not discussed more often. I know encrypted webmail can be used but this is not the point as more people use netbooks etc with full-blown email software.
Ideally, of course, PN would offer its subscribers VPN or something like that when they are on the road.

[#2]

I'm not aware of any timescale being published for this but the blog IronPort & the Future of the Email Platform contains the following paragraph:
[quote=http://community.plus.net/blog/2008/11/04/ironport_technical/]
Using IronPort for outbound email will bring with it a wealth of benefits. Firstly we’ll be able to introduce spam filtering on the outbound mail platform. This will drastically reduce support overheads where we have to ‘police’ the relay servers to make sure they’re not being abused by spammers. This is turn will reduce the likelyhood of us ending up on blacklists which can stop you from sending email to other people. The IronPorts offer support for DKIM which is a technique used to verify the authenticity of a particular email. This is good for the same reasons as outbound spam filtering and will help better the reputation of the Plusnet email platform. We’ll also be able to start offering secure SMTP over SSL which is something we know our customers have been asking after for a while. Moving to IronPort for outbound email allows us to further reduce the number of servers we’re using, and also takes traffic away from Sheffield which reduces bandwith costs (the IronPorts are based in our London data centres).
My bold.
It would seem sensible to offer secure POP3/IMAP as well as secure SMTP though I don't recall seeing any mention of the former.
David

[#3]

Thanks for that. Very strange SMTP is mentioned, but POP3/IMAP are left out. I would expect this to be the other way round. A major security issue, I think, is that if someone uses email software that checks email automatically when it (auto)starts, the moment they connect to a public hotspot, they are broadcasting their logon details without necessarily even realising it, in addition to sending/receiving in clear text. Among other things, great for injecting spam -- ah, could that be why PN prioritises SMTP security?

[#4]

I must agree with glocal.  Not using SSL is an increasingly serious security flaw, particulalrly with the increased use of devices like the iPhone.  I was astonished this wasn't supported - I even raised a ticket asking how to set it up becacause I thought *I* was doing something wrong!
Credential capture apart, I'm actually less bothered about some geek out on the net reading my stuff, than my employer.  Like a lot of companies, they do everything they can to snoop - and this one in particular is pretty expert at it.  People need to bear in in mind if they're accessing PN mail via the company network using IMAP or POP3, they might as well be CCing their IT department.  IMAP is particularly dangerous this stores emails on the server rather than the client device - so if you re-open something you'd previously looked at at home, it has to pass through the company's filters again.
Of course, there's always Webmail over HTTPS, but this is a bit of a PITA on an iPhone!

[#5]

Sounds like the best security you could have is dont do private work in you workplace, do it at home.  I had to do that 15 years ago

[#6]

I really find it amazing that ISPs insist on strong passwords, changing them regularly etc and then all I have to do to steal other people's logon details is to set up a public access wifi router with sniffing software, ideally at a central location. A train station would be perfect! I could routinely harvest passwords 24/7.
What I find even more amazing is that with so many people I see using smartphones, netbooks looking for a public wifi, this issues doesn't come up more often.

[#7]

Quote from: spraxyt

It would seem sensible to offer secure POP3/IMAP as well as secure SMTP though I don't recall seeing any mention of the former.

I think Bob Pullen indicated that this will be possible, when they get round to it, <a href="http://community.plus.net/forum/index.php/topic,66893.msg616526.html#msg616526">here</a>.

Quote from: hevey

Credential capture apart, I'm actually less bothered about some geek out on the net reading my stuff, than my employer.

One can get round that particular problem by ssh tunnelling through cshell. AFAIK, the path between cshell and relay is insecure, so it's not end-to-end, but it does get you past your work-place snoopers, if you're that concerned.
Gabe