Why email remains the primary cyber security risk

Despite improvements in endpoint, network, and cloud security, email remains the most common entry point for cyber attacks. Phishing, malware-laden attachments, impersonation, and business email compromise continue to bypass basic protections and exploit human behaviour.

Attackers no longer rely on obvious spam or generic messages. Modern email threats are targeted, well-written, and often indistinguishable from legitimate communications. They are designed to steal credentials, deploy ransomware, divert payments, or gain a foothold inside an organisation for further attacks.

For most organisations, email is both business-critical and inherently exposed — making effective email security one of the most important layers in any cyber security strategy.

The modern email threat landscape

Email-based threats have evolved significantly in recent years:

  • Phishing attacks now use branding, language, and timing that closely match real business activity
  • Credential harvesting pages are hosted on legitimate platforms and change rapidly to avoid detection
  • Malicious attachments are often weaponised documents or links that trigger secondary payloads
  • Impersonation and spoofing target finance teams, executives, and suppliers
  • Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks focus on fraud rather than malware, making them harder to detect

Many of these attacks bypass traditional email filters because they contain no obvious malware or known bad indicators.

Why basic email filtering is no longer enough

Standard email security — often bundled with email platforms by default — is designed to block known spam and obvious threats. While this is useful, it is not sufficient on its own.

Common limitations include:

  • Reliance on reputation-based detection
  • Limited protection against new or targeted phishing campaigns
  • Poor visibility into user interaction with links and attachments
  • Minimal protection against impersonation and domain spoofing
  • Little or no ongoing tuning once deployed

As a result, organisations often assume they are protected while phishing emails continue to reach users.

What effective email security should deliver

A modern email security solution must go beyond basic filtering and provide:

Advanced phishing detection based on behaviour and intent

Real-time analysis of links and attachments

Protection against impersonation and domain spoofing

Visibility into email threats and user interaction

Continuous adaptation as threats evolve

Crucially, these controls must be correctly configured, actively managed, and aligned to how users actually work.

How BSAS approaches email security

BSAS delivers email security as a managed, layered service, not just a product deployment.

We start by understanding how email is used within your organisation, who is most at risk, and where existing controls are falling short. From there, we implement advanced email security controls designed to stop modern threats before they reach users.

Our approach focuses on prevention first — reducing the number of malicious emails delivered — while also limiting impact if a user does interact with a threat.

Key capabilities of BSAS email security

Depending on your environment and requirements, our email security solutions include:

  • Advanced phishing and malware detection
  • Real-time scanning of links and attachments
  • Protection against spoofing, impersonation, and domain abuse
  • Policy-based controls tailored to user roles and risk
  • Clear visibility and reporting on threats and trends
  • Integration with Microsoft 365 and wider security controls

These capabilities work together to significantly reduce email-borne risk without disrupting legitimate communication.

Why BSAS is different

Many providers sell email security as a licence and move on. Policies are applied once, alerts are ignored, and responsibility is unclear when something gets through.

BSAS takes ownership of email security by:

  • Correctly configuring protections from the outset
  • Tuning policies based on real-world usage and threat data
  • Monitoring and adjusting controls as threats change
  • Aligning email security with endpoint, identity, and user protection
  • Providing clear accountability and ongoing support

This results in stronger protection, fewer incidents, and better outcomes than a “set and forget” approach.

How email security fits into a layered strategy

Email security is most effective when it forms part of a wider, layered cyber security approach. When combined with:

  • Endpoint protection
  • Microsoft 365 security controls
  • Security awareness training
  • Backup and recovery
  • Network security

…the likelihood of a successful attack is significantly reduced, and the impact of incidents is far easier to contain.

Who this service is for

Email security is particularly important for organisations that:

  • Rely heavily on email for day-to-day operations
  • Handle financial transactions or sensitive data
  • Support remote or hybrid working
  • Have experienced phishing or email-based incidents
  • Want to reduce risk without placing the burden on users

Moving beyond email security

Email threats continue to evolve, and no single control can eliminate risk entirely. However, with the right combination of technology, configuration, and ongoing management, email can be transformed from a major vulnerability into a well-defended layer of your security posture.

BSAS helps organisations achieve this by delivering email security as part of a coherent, managed cyber security strategy.