Send and receive files securely with the council

Ealing Council no longer sends secure emails using Egress. You can continue to use Egress to send secure emails to us. We are able to reply to these emails also.

We are now using two options to send emails securely:

• Outlook encryption
• Microsoft OneDrive

You do not need a Microsoft account to view the emails we send you using these two options.

Outlook encryption

This will come through as an encrypted email. Select view message and then select the option of a onetime passcode. More information is available in the Outlook encryption guide for external recipients. (pdf)

Any replies you send to an Outlook encrypted email sent this way will also be encrypted.

While many organisations have been able to open encrypted emails and attachments, we are aware that some organisations have encountered issues, mainly with opening word document attachments. These issues seem to be related to the recipient’s email set up so cannot be resolved from our end.

If you are unable to view the email or attachment, there are a few options you can try:

• Download the attachment and then view it.
• If the document doesn’t need to be edited, ask for the attachment to be sent as a PDF.
• If you use Outlook, try and open on Outlook for web: https://outlook.live.com/owa/

If this fails, then council colleagues can try and send via the second option.

Outlook encryption guides to help you troubleshoot why you are unable to open outlook encrypted emails.

Known issues opening IRM-protected emails sent from users in other Microsoft 365 organizations - Outlook

Introduction to IRM for email messages

How do I open a protected message?

Send, view, and reply to encrypted messages in Outlook for PC

Learn about encrypted messages in Outlook.com

Message encryption - Microsoft 365 Compliance

Manage Office 365 Message Encryption - Microsoft 365 Compliance

Advanced message encryption - Microsoft 365 Compliance

Microsoft OneDrive

The council will use OneDrive to share files as an alternative to the outlook encryption. This will also be the primary way to send large files that exceed the size limit for Outlook encryption.

In this instance, you will receive a normal unencrypted email containing a secure OneDrive link. You will also need to request and enter a one-time passcode to view the document. Please see Receiving files using OneDrive for more detailed step by step guidance. (pdf)

Sometimes the code requested goes into your junk mail so be sure to check your junk folder if it does not come through.

If both options fail to work, contact your IT support (if you have one) or get independent IT advice.