Cloud-based email is an email delivery and storage method hosted and maintained by an outside provider that allows organizations and users to securely send, receive, and store emails. Rather than managing email infrastructure on-premises, organizations leverage cloud email platforms provided by companies like Microsoft (Microsoft 365/Exchange Online) and Google (Google Workspace/Gmail).
Cloud email offers several advantages over traditional on-premises email systems
Scalability: Cloud email services can easily scale up or down to accommodate organizational growth or changes without requiring hardware investments.
Accessibility: Employees can access their email from any device with an internet connection, supporting remote and hybrid work environments.
Reduced IT Overhead: Cloud providers manage server maintenance, updates, security patches, and infrastructure, reducing the burden on internal IT teams.
Built-in Security: Major cloud email providers include native security features such as spam filtering, malware scanning, and phishing detection, though these protections have limitations against sophisticated attacks.
Disaster Recovery: Cloud email platforms provide built-in redundancy and backup capabilities to protect against data loss.
Cost Efficiency: Organizations avoid the capital expenses associated with on-premises email server hardware and software licensing.
While cloud email platforms include native security capabilities, they are not sufficient to stop all advanced threats, particularly socially engineered attacks like business email compromise (BEC), vendor email compromise, and sophisticated phishing. Integrated Cloud Email Security (ICES) solutions like Pangratis connect via API to cloud email environments to provide an additional layer of AI-powered protection that catches the threats built-in security misses.