Communication For the 40th birthday 
of the email

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In August 1984, the first email was delivered, today it is indispensable as a means of communication. But with that, cyber attacks are also increasing. Fortunately, protective measures are also improving.

On August 3, 1984, a new digital age began in Germany: The first email to arrive in Germany reached the then University of Karlsruhe. This established, for the first time, an Internet connection between the American network CSNET (Computer Science Network) and the new Karlsruhe CSNET server. Today, 40 years later, the network is no longer in use, but the e-mail is an indispensable communication tool in our everyday life.

Since email reached Germany 40 years ago, digitization has changed a great deal. The CSNET network was primarily used for communication between researchers in the early 1980s. Today, emails are used by almost everyone and in all areas of life.

Prof. Volkamer

According to Statista, approximately 350 billion emails were received and sent worldwide every day in 2023. This data exchange is not least attractive to cybercriminals: At the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Professor Melanie Volkamer and her research group Secuso (Security • Usability • Society) deal with the security of emails and possible threats.

Email is more vulnerable to fraud today

For example, in 2023, 80 percent of the population in Germany used email as a means of communication—whether in a business environment, in the education sector, or privately. "Many email addresses are available on websites or can be constructed from name-surname. All this makes emails more susceptible to fraud attempts. They are particularly used for social engineering attacks to either gain access to sensitive information or distribute malware," Volkamer explains.

"In the past, an email was very simple: without attachments, formatting, or links. Even around the 2000s, one could easily recognize a fake email from its design, the many grammar and spelling mistakes, or the sender like the typical 'prince who has a lot of money to distribute'," explains Volkamer. "Last but not least, the experience of the hackers has also increased, who have been able to deal with this for the last 40 years. The latest trend are emails that are automatically generated using artificial intelligence methods and look strikingly real in both speech and design."

Around the year 2000, one could still easily recognize a fake email by its design, the numerous grammar and spelling mistakes, or the sender like the typical 'prince who has a lot of money to distribute'.

Prof. Volkamer

Tips for using email

Today, emails are no longer used on the computer as they were at the beginning, but mainly on smartphones, especially by the German population under 36 years of age. "The most important tip is not to rely on the text nowadays, but to always look at the URL behind a link before opening it. The URL is displayed in the status bar or tooltip in the common email clients on the computer," explains the IT security expert. "However, fake emails or dangerous links are harder to detect on the phone. The stored URL is harder to retrieve and it happens easily that one does not first display the URL, but accidentally opens the link. Therefore, I recommend examining allegedly dangerous emails on the computer and checking the link there."

"Cyber attacks continue to increase, but at the same time the protective measures against them are getting better and better. It is especially important not just to develop security systems in the technical area, but also to sensitize people in dealing with emails. This should start at school," says Volkamer. "We at Secuso started developing, implementing, and evaluating the sensitization concept No Phish a few years ago. We rely on knowledge about reliable security indicators, so that sensitized people by us can also discover dangerous emails generated by generative artificial intelligence." An overview of tools and tips for cybersecurity in email traffic is provided by Secuso on their website.