The Internet giant has finally added the security layer that everyone was waiting for

Jan 8, 2014 07:38 GMT  ·  By

Yahoo has finally switched to HTTPS for all users of its Yahoo Mail service, something that was promised back in October.

During her keynote speech at CES, Marissa Mayer, Yahoo CEO, let everyone know that starting today, Yahoo Mail is officially more secure.

This means that whether you access Yahoo Mail over the Web, mobile Web, mobile apps, IMAP, POP or SMTP protocols, the extra layer of security will be there. According to the company, the encryption is protected with 2,048 bit certificates covering all content within Mail, including attachments, contacts and calendar entries.

Yahoo has received some heavy criticism over the past months following an extensive Mail outage that the company failed to apologize in time for. When Marissa Mayer finally took to the company blog, people were already vowing to migrate to other mailing services.

The HTTPS change was promised several months back after another round of criticism following Yahoo’s failure to make its mailing service secure for users. Given the context of international uproar over the NSA scandal and the agency’s efforts to break all encryption, the fact that Yahoo offered no such option for users made it stand out.

“Yahoo is fully committed to keeping our users safe and secure online. As we promised back in October, we are now automatically encrypting all connections between our users and Yahoo Mail. Anytime you use Yahoo Mail - whether it’s on the web, mobile web, mobile apps, or via IMAP, POP or SMTP- it is 100% encrypted by default and protected with 2,048 bit certificates. This encryption extends to your emails, attachments, contacts, as well as Calendar and Messenger in Mail,” Jeff Bonforte, SVP of communication products, wrote on the company’s blog.

“Security is a key focus for us and we’ll continue to enhance our security technology and policies so we can provide a safe and secure experience for our users,” he concluded the announcement.