Personal Security Phrase Information

Why is the Personal Security Phrase important?

A Personal Security Phrase is a short phrase that is meaningful to you. When you register with an organization's secure email system, you create a Personal Security Phrase that will be known only to you and to the organization. The Personal Security Phrase helps you to ensure that the Secure Message is from the organization, and not a fraudulent 'password phishing' attempt.

If you have received a message unexpectedly, and you think that the message might be fraudulent, contact the organization from which the message appears to be sent.

How do I enable my Personal Security Phrase?

There are two ways to enable your Personal Security Phrase:

  • Select the "Enable my Personal Security Phrase" check box on the Secure Message.
  • Select the "Enable my Personal Security Phrase" check box on the Edit Profile page on the secure email site.

Why is my Personal Security Phrase not shown and how do I enable it?

There are several reasons why your Personal Security Phrase may not be displayed:

  • Your Personal Security Phrase is only shown if you have previously enabled your Personal Security Phrase on this computer. See "How do I enable my Personal Security Phrase" for instructions. Using the "Enable my Personal Security Phrase" option makes opening secure messages easier and more secure. How does this work? We do this with something called a persistent cookie. A cookie is a small piece of information stored by your browser to help identify who you are.
  • Your Personal Security Phrase is only shown when you click on the password field.
  • No Personal Security Phrase will be shown if you did not create a Personal Security Phrase at registration time. We recommend that you log in to the Cisco Secure Email Encryption Service site and edit your profile to create a Personal Security Phrase.
  • No Personal Security Phrase will be shown if you use a browser that does not support JavaScript.
  • If you checked the "Remember password for this Secure Message" option, then your message will be automatically decrypted when you view it again, without showing your Personal Security Phrase.