Enigmail, an email security extension for Mozilla Thunderbird email users, has released an update which fixes a couple of issues which potentially left encrypted emails exposed. Enigmail Project's Version 1.7.2 addressed "several important bugs" that the could have left emails sent in BCC unencrypted. The update also fixed another issue which caused saved plain text drafts of would-be encrypted emails to be exposed before being sent.

Mailtime is a new iOS app that makes email more like an SMS session. The app sorts an email user's inbox into a SMS-looking interface for quick views of conversations. The tool also proves useful with the ability to turn emails into task assignments and to do lists. The tool also integrates with Dropbox, so that users can access larger files.

Mailstrom, a Baltimore-based email filtering service owned by 410 Labs, is taking over services for former customers of The Swizzle. Swizzle users will be transitioned over to the Mailstrom platform over the next few weeks. "We've had a ton of fun bringing it to you - but our hopes of keeping it free have been dashed," Swizzle explained in a good-bye email. "It was designed to be advertiser supported but that just hasn't come to pass." Swizzle users will be able to test Mailstrom's service for a free trial period but will then be required to pay $4.95 a month …

Microsoft has been held in contempt of court for failing to deliver customer emails from its data center in Ireland, after a US judge demanded that the company do so. Microsoft has been fighting the judgement since July, arguing that the US government doesn't have jurisdiction over data centers in other countries. However, federal judge Loretta Preska upheld the lower court's ruling. This week, Preska has filed an order holding Microsoft in contempt for failing to comply with the ruling.

The Los Angeles Unified School District is reexamining its email archiving policy. The board will review how it will preserve older emails in light of updating its communications system with new software. The new technology will automatically destroy emails that are over a year old, but the board will consider if a process needs to be implemented to save older emails in the public interest.

Google has responded to yesterday's news that almost 5 million Gmail logins and passwords were exposed on a Russian online forum. The company reported that the breach was not a big threat, but suggested that users change their passwords just to be on the safe side. "We found that less than 2% of the username and password combinations might have worked, and our automated anti-hijacking systems would have blocked many of those login attempts," the company wrote in a blog post.

Animated GIFs have been picking up in popularity among email marketers. In an interview with Direct Marketing News, Matt Caldwell, VP of creative for at Yesmail Interactive, said that this tool works best when it helps to better explain a product that the marketer is trying to create or as a way to stand out. Caldwell pointed out that it is important for the files to be no larger than 125K, so that there are no technical problems with the image.

British finance site MoneySavingExpert has come under heat for sending out emails that violated the country's advertising standards. The emails for TalkTalk and Love2Shop were banned after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that the message was misleading to consumers. The email promoted a package mobile deal, but was not clear about additional charges that consumers would pay for all of the services being promoted. The ASA banned the email for using language that "contradicted rather than clarified" information around phone line rental and call costs.

Apple has plans to begin sending email security alerts to iCloud users in light of recent hacks which made headlines when nude photos of celebrities were compromised from their personal iCloud accounts. Apple CEO Tim Cook told The Wall Street Journal that hackers had gained access to the celebrity iCloud accounts by correctly answering security questions in order to access passwords or by obtaining a user's IDs and passwords via spam emails. In other words, none of the data was leaked from the company's servers. To prevent future issues, Apple has plans to send out emails and texts whenever an …

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper has issued a warning about a spam email in circulation that claims to come from Apple's iTunes. The emails ask the recipients to update their iTunes account information and instruct recipients to click on a malicious link. The landing page for the link asks the user to verify their identity and asks for their social security number.