The email that you are using is based on a technology developed 39 years ago. It is the SMTP protocol, which was published as RFC 788 in November 1981. RFC788 is the design and theory, Sendmail is the software which was released 1983. In 1996, approximately 80% of the publicly reachable mail-servers on the Internet are run on Sendmail !!
Why we mentioned history here? It is because we met with clients recently suffered from email-based phishing attacks due to design faults in SMTP. Fake emails were sent using their email company domain names. In another case, email password was transmitted in plaintext. It was all because the SMTP and Sendmail were not designed to deliver mission-critical and highly sensitive information in a hostile network. After all, the first-generation Internet in 1980s was designed for university researchers to share information.
We are solving 2020 problem with 1983 technology. There are some patch works, like SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail). But looking at the wide spread of email phishing and data breaches, it is obviously that both cannot solve the root cause.
Emails are still widely used for password reset, payment confirmation and even tax! We have to be more adaptive to the ever evolving world and learn how to use email system smartly. Hoplite Tech is working on an email hygiene guide for non-tech users. If you like to have a preview, please register HERE.