What to do if an email with a confidential attachment was sent to a masked SAP address and needs to be recalled?

Key findings

• Limited recall: Email recall features are generally only effective within the same enterprise email system and may not work if the email has already been delivered to a recipient, especially outside your organization. There is no universal method to remotely delete a message once it's delivered.
• Delivery uncertainty: If the sender hasn't received a bounce or rejection notification, it's highly probable the email was delivered. However, it might be in a spam folder, quarantine, or still in transit.
• Masked domains: Using a masked SAP domain (like xxx-email.com) complicates tracing the email's exact path, as it's an alias for your true company domain.
• Investigation is key: To understand what happened, a thorough investigation involving your Outlook setup, SAP administration, and SFMC support is essential. This can help determine if the email was delivered and potentially mitigate reputation damage.

Key considerations

• Immediate action: Contact relevant IT departments and your email service provider (SFMC in this case) immediately for assistance. Time is critical for potential mitigation and forensics.
• Data breach protocol: If the attachment was confidential, treat this as a potential data breach. Follow your organization's incident response plan and legal obligations.
• Log analysis: Request email logs from your Outlook system and SFMC to confirm delivery status, recipient, and any errors. This data is crucial for understanding the incident.
• Preventive measures: Review internal policies and sender education to prevent future accidental sends. Consider improving sender reputation through ongoing training and stricter email sending protocols.

Key opinions

• Recall limitations: Marketers frequently express that once an email is sent, particularly to an external address, recalling it or deleting attachments is largely impossible. The general consensus is that the 'cat is out of the bag' if a rejection isn't received.
• Delivery status is crucial: Understanding whether the email was actually delivered, or if it ended up in a spam or quarantine folder, is the primary concern for marketers.
• Masked domains add complexity: The use of masked domains (like those set up via SAP/SFMC) makes it harder for marketers to immediately determine the actual recipient and the delivery path, complicating self-service troubleshooting.
• Vendor support necessity: Despite a reluctance to engage with support for complex issues, marketers often conclude that contacting their email service provider (like SFMC) and internal IT/SAP administrators is the only viable option to gain insight into delivery logs and system behavior.

Key considerations

• Holistic investigation: Marketers should consider the entire email flow, from the sender's Outlook client to the SAP/SFMC setup, to piece together the delivery narrative.
• Leveraging internal teams: Engaging with internal Outlook administrators and SAP teams will provide the most accurate data regarding the email's fate.
• System configuration: Understanding how masked email addresses are configured within SFMC is vital. Marketers need to know if these addresses are designed to receive mail and, if so, where that mail is routed. This can also help in preventing future reputation issues.
• Proactive measures: For sensitive information, marketers should advocate for processes that limit the ability to send confidential attachments externally without proper checks, similar to dealing with other email mistakes.

Key opinions

• Unreliable recall: Experts universally agree that email recall features are unreliable for messages sent outside the sender's immediate organizational email system. Once an email hits an external mail server, it's considered delivered.
• Log analysis is paramount: The only definitive way to determine if an email was received is by checking mail server logs, both on the sending side (Outlook/SFMC) and if possible, the receiving side. Absence of a bounce indicates probable delivery.
• Data security risk: Accidental exposure of confidential data via email is a significant security incident. Experts advise engaging the security and legal teams immediately, treating it as a potential data breach.
• Complex routing: Masked domains and complex email routing through platforms like SFMC add layers of complexity, requiring specialized knowledge to trace the email's journey and understand policy implications.

Key considerations

• Incident response: Implement or refine your organization's incident response plan for accidental data exposure. This should include steps for containment, assessment, notification, and remediation.
• System audit: Conduct a thorough audit of email sending policies, especially concerning attachments and external recipients. Ensure logging mechanisms are robust enough to track all sent mail.
• Understanding SAP/SFMC: Deep dive into the specific configuration of masked domains within SAP and SFMC. Understand their mail routing rules, potential for unintended delivery, and how these might interact with sender reputation and blocklists.
• Legal and compliance: Consult with legal counsel regarding disclosure requirements for accidental data exposure, especially if the confidential attachment falls under regulatory compliance like GDPR or HIPAA.

Key findings

• Recall limitations: Email standards (e.g., RFCs) do not define a mechanism for universally recalling or deleting an email from a recipient's inbox once delivered. Any 'recall' functionality is proprietary and effective only within specific, tightly controlled environments.
• Logging and auditing: Enterprise email systems and marketing platforms are designed to log email delivery attempts, status, and associated errors. This data is critical for auditing and compliance, providing the best available evidence of an email's fate.
• Masked domain routing: Documentation for SAP and SFMC outlines how Sender Authentication Packages (SAPs) or similar features are used to mask domains for sending purposes. These systems typically handle outgoing mail, and their behavior for incoming mail to these masked addresses depends on specific configurations, such as whether a return path is established for replies or bounces.
• Data security and compliance: Official guidelines emphasize the sender's responsibility for securing confidential data and adhering to privacy regulations. Accidental sends are often classified as security incidents requiring formal handling procedures.

Key considerations

• Consult vendor documentation: Refer to the specific documentation for your Outlook client, SAP, and SFMC setup regarding email routing, logging capabilities, and any features related to handling misdirected emails or managing masked domains. This can help with troubleshooting delivery issues.
• Review email policies: Examine internal email usage policies and security protocols, especially concerning sending confidential information. Ensure they align with best practices and regulatory requirements.
• Data retention: Understand the data retention policies for email logs within your organization and with SFMC to ensure that audit trails are available for necessary investigations.
• Automated safeguards: Explore implementing automated safeguards, such as data loss prevention (DLP) solutions, to prevent confidential attachments from being sent to unauthorized recipients in the first place.