Using FlowCrypt With Google Workspace (G Suite) and Non-FlowCrypt Recipients

Hello,

I am wondering if FlowCrypt is compatible with G Suite for Business? (Wasn’t sure if there would be any difference in compatibility between the free personal Gmail and paid Gmail for Work). Also, if I send an encrypted email to someone who does NOT use FlowCrypt, what is the process for the recipient to decrypt the email?

Thanks for your help!

Can you explain further what this means in practice for the recipient when you send a Gmail message secured by FlowCrypt and the recipient opens it on their PC, Mac, Android, iPhone, etc?

Thank you in advance for your help.

Best regards,

FlowCrypt is fully compatible with Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) as well as free personal Gmail accounts. There is no functional difference in encryption behavior between personal Gmail accounts and Google Workspace Gmail accounts. FlowCrypt operates at the Gmail account level and integrates the same way across all Google-hosted Gmail accounts.

How encrypted emails are delivered to recipients

There are two distinct encryption mechanisms, depending on whether the recipient is already known to use OpenPGP encryption or not.

1. Recipient has FlowCrypt or another OpenPGP-compatible solution

If the recipient’s public key is known, their email address will appear green in the FlowCrypt compose window.

In this case:

The message is encrypted using the recipient’s public key.
Only the recipient can decrypt the message using their private key and pass phrase.
The recipient must open the message on a device where FlowCrypt or another OpenPGP-compatible application is installed (PC, Mac, Android, iPhone, etc).
The encrypted message is transferred and stored by the email provider just like any other email, but remains unreadable to anyone without the private key.

2. Recipient does not use FlowCrypt or OpenPGP yet

If the recipient’s email address appears gray, it means no public key is known for that address.

In this case:

You will be prompted to create a message encryption password.
The message is encrypted using that password.
You must share the password with the recipient through a separate communication channel (for example, phone call or messaging app).
The encrypted message is stored temporarily on FlowCrypt servers (90 days by default for non-enterprise users).
The recipient receives an email containing a secure link.
By opening the link and entering the password, the recipient can decrypt and read the message in their browser, without installing FlowCrypt.

For full step-by-step instructions on sending password-protected encrypted messages to recipients who do not have FlowCrypt or other OpenPGP software installed, see the documentation on
Sending password-protected encrypted emails.

Learn more about sending and receiving encrypted emails

More detailed information about sending and receiving encrypted emails can be found in our guides:

For more details on how encrypted messages are handled and stored, please see our Privacy Policy. If you have questions or run into issues, feel free to contact us at human@flowcrypt.com.