Email masking is a method of changing email addresses to keep sensitive information from being abused. In most cases, a disguised email address retains its original format and cannot be traced back to its source. Email masking is often a part of a larger data masking process that hides sensitive data. The objective is to keep the true information hidden from prying eyes. Email masking can be used for a variety of purposes, such as:

  • To test software or shuffle real user data.
  • Ensure the security of any user data being shared with other parties.
  • Observe privacy regulations and safeguard data in accordance with the standards.
  • Entering masked email addresses on platforms you don’t trust.

In the end, it comes down to whether you want to disguise your personal email address or whether you have a database of user addresses that need to be hidden. Regardless of the reason, this includes the data you keep as well as any copies you make of it. And there are lots of good reasons to make new copies of your users’ information.

The two most frequent techniques of data masking are as follows:

  • Static email masking: Allows you to duplicate a database with data that is identical to the original one. The copied data is then transformed into a new set of data using SQL queries. The objective is to produce realistic records without exposing critical information, as it will be used mostly for testing and development.
  • Dynamic email masking: No copies are generated. Production data is protected with additional layers of security. The major purpose is to ensure role-based database security.

Even though you use the most advanced techniques for concealing genuine email addresses and spend hours modifying your data, something could go wrong at some point. You might miss some records in your database or submit the wrong contacts unintentionally. Some emails may be mishandled by the masking method, and inaccuracies may be difficult to detect in huge data sets. You can mask emails from within your email client if you don’t want to utilize any additional software.

Gmail: Gmail has two features that might be useful:

To begin, add words after the ‘+’ symbol to create aliases of your actual email account. The email address abcdefg@gmail.com, can have the following aliases:

abcdefg+breakingnews@gmail.com

abcdefg+important@gmail.com

You can also send emails from a different address using Gmail.

Outlook: Free aliases and a customizable “From” field are also available in Outlook. To make an alias, go to the Add an alias option and establish a new Outlook.com account. An existing email account can also be used as an alias. Send and receive emails to and from your personal Outlook account. You may send emails from this alias or the account you just added, just like you could with Gmail:

  • Open the Compose window, select “Send From” from the three dots.
  • Then, from the list, choose the required email address.
  • Open ‘Settings’ -> ‘View all Outlook settings’ to alter the default “From” address.
  • Choose ‘Sync email’ from the ‘Mail’ section of the ‘Options’ pane.
  • Finally, in the ‘Set default From address’ section, select the desired email.

You can unmask any email address you want at any time and resume sending from your original account.

Centex Technologies provide cybersecurity and web application services to clients. For more information on protecting your data, call Centex Technologies at (254) 213 – 4740.