Setting up PGP encryption on Windows

To encrypt emails with MS Outlook on Windows, we recommend the software Gpg4win.

Download Gpg4win and install it on your Windows PC. All necessary programmes are included in this package.

According to the manufacturer, the software is currently compatible with the following systems:

• Gpg4win runs on Windows 10 and Windows 11.
• The Outlook plug-in GpgOL is compatible with Microsoft Outlook 2021, 2024 and Office 365 (both 32-bit and 64-bit).
• The use of MS Exchange Server is supported.

Please check the information on the manufacturer’s website.

Gpg4win was developed on behalf of the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and is the first choice for PGP on Windows. On the manufacturer’s website you will find a detailed guide that explains PGP and the setup of a PGP key pair. For this reason, we do not provide a separate description here.

If you use a compatible Outlook version, you can encrypt and decrypt your emails directly from Outlook after installation.

Furthermore, you can also use S/MIME encryption. You can find out how to set it up and what options are available at the following link: S/MIME for Outlook

By the way: A good alternative to Outlook is the email client Mozilla Thunderbird - OpenPGP encryption is already built into Thunderbird.