What is De-Mail?
De-Mail has been available in Germany since 2012. But what is that anyway? We will show you what is the difference to normal email and whether de-mailing is really worth it.
The three most important facts about De-Mail
- What is De-Mail? De-Mail is an idea of the Federal Ministry of the Interior with the aim of creating a secure, legally binding and verifiable online communication tool. All De-Mail addresses have the uniform ending "de-mail.de".
- How does de-mailing work? While Deutsche Post no longer offers de-mailing, you can currently send emails from e-mail providers such as T-Online, GMX, Web-Mail and 1 & 1.
- What does a De-Mail cost? These emails are by no means free: there is usually a fixed basic contingent. You pay for further mails. Depending on the provider, the price is around 40 cents per De-Mail.
The advantages of De-Mail
- Additional features: In contrast to normal e-mail, you can send binding registered letters with De-Mails. You can also have receipt, delivery, mailbox receipt and collection confirmed.
- Proof of identification: In order to use De-Mail, you must identify yourself to the provider with your identity card. This also makes it possible to communicate with authorities via De-Mail.
Is De-Mail really secure?
Secure mailing is promised with De-Mail. This sounds attractive, especially in times of new data scandals. But De-Mail is not absolutely secure either:
- There is also no automatic and consistent end-to-end encryption for De-Mail. In plain language, this means that not only the recipient and the sender can read the De-Mails, but also the providers.
- That is why De-Mail is not worth much more in court than a conventional email. Both have little stock and are non-binding.
De-Mail is therefore not much safer, not more binding and also costs money. With classic email providers you are usually in good hands. We present the three best providers here.