AKO Email Digitally Signing

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To digitally sign or encrypt emails you will need to:

  1.  Enable the S/MIME (Secure/Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) option on your AKO/DKO webmail.
  2.  Have your internet browser configured to work with S/MIME. Using Internet Explorer as your browser requires having your ActiveX Controls enabled and permissions to install them. If you use Firefox then you must download the DoD Configuration add-on. This can be found through the Mozilla homepage by searching for the add-on. Other internet browsers may require the use of add-ons or another method. You may have to consult your local IT administrator for assistance with permissions if you are on a government system.
  3.  Log into your AKO/DKO account with your CAC to use S/MIME to sign and encrypt your emails.

Steps for Webmail Classic:

  1. Log into your AKO/DKO account.
  2. Click on the ‘My Account’ tab.
  3. Click on ‘Mail Preferences’.
  4. Click on ‘Mail Options’.
  5. Put a check in the box next to “Enable S/MIME”.
  6. Click on the ‘Submit’ button.
  7. Log out of AKO/DKO
  8. Close IE
  9. Reopen IE
  10. Login to AKO/DKO with CAC
  11. Open AKO/DKO Webmail.
  12. Click on ‘Options’.
  13. Click on ‘Settings’.
  14. Scroll to the bottom. Now you will need to use the drop down box to select a “Signing Certificate”. Note: you may need to be logged into AKO/DKO webmail with your CAC to select a “Signing Certificate”.
  15. To have all emails digitally signed or encrypted, please check the boxes next to these options.
  16. Click on ‘Save’.
  17.  Check the box ‘Enable S/MIME,’ and Save Preferences.

Steps for Webmail 2.0:

Log into your AKO/DKO account.
Click on the ‘My Account’ tab.
Click on ‘Mail Preferences’.
Click on ‘Mail Options’.
Put a check in the box next to “Enable S/MIME”.
Click on the ‘Submit’ button.
Open Webmail 2.0.
Click ‘Write’ on the horizontal toolbar.
Click Security
Place a checkmark in Digitally Sign and/or Encrypt and select the certificate from the Signing Certificate dropdown.

*If you do not have the option to choose a signing certificate, do the following:

  1. Clear your temporary internet files (cache). On your internet browser bar, go to Tools àInternet Options àBrowsing History àDelete.
  2. Close all internet browsers, open back into Webmail 2.0, and try again.
  3. Add https://*.us.army.mil to the browser’s trusted sites. Tools à Internet Options àSecurity. Select Trusted Sites and click on the button for Sites.
  4. If this does not work, please try Webmail Classic. Signing and encrypting works intermittently if you are in Internet Explorer 7.

You can also use the following link for instructions on how to set up digital signature/encryption in Webmail 2.0: https://www.us.army.mil/suite/doc/21185653

Once you’ve enabled S/MIME on your account, you can choose to digitally sign or encrypt emails when you are in the compose/reply/forward window within the AKO/DKO webmail, if you do not want this done automatically.

Setting up your AKO/DKO webmail to use S/MIME can make the loading time for webmail slower depending on your connection.