4 ms·

But the fast and small alternative is skipping the web, e.g. set IMAP to a native app

by eviks 3y ago

kubb 3y ago
Exactly, a workaround exists and is already installed on your device.
forgotmypw17 3y ago
Using an IMAP client is not an option on many devices, especially when it is a public or borrowed device.
- rini17 3y ago
  It is incredibly inconvenient to log in on such device, especially if your primary one isn't available. I ended up writing down backup authenticator codes in my diary. Of course it kinda defeats the purpose and of course it's hard for users to figure out.
- seer 3y ago
  One of my employers disabled IMAP on gmail, siting security concerns… ended up pretty much not using email because of that (relying on slack mostly)
  - jowea 3y ago
    What's the security disadvantage of IMAP?
    - johnchristopher 3y ago
      I suspect OP employer didn't secure its IMAP configuration (no TLS) and simply relied on HTTPS in front of the webmail ?
      - seer 3y ago
        Apparently gmail’s IMAP implementation was considered “insecure” by the security experts… Forgot the details tbh
mftrhu 3y ago
If you can even do that, since they [e-mail hosts] go out of their way to make it difficult - even impossible, in some cases - to push people to use their own app.
crabbone 3y ago
Yeah... if only that worked with GMail. You cannot do proper authentication with GMail anymore. You need an elaborate dance, which will depend on how old your GMail account is (they became bolder with time and started to require more personal data from users), you will need to procure a special permit for your IMAP program to connect to GMail, and the way to do that changed over time. Also, newer GMail accounts cannot be registered without MFA, so you'll have to figure out how to deal with that. Having a very old GMail account, I still hold on to it, because I can still use IMAP in Gnus. But, should I lose that, or should Google finally curb my tiny freedoms... I'll have to look for alternatives too.

But the fast and small alternative is skipping the web, e.g. set IMAP to a native app

by eviks 3y ago

But the fast and small alternative is skipping the web, e.g. set IMAP to a native app

kubb 3y ago

Exactly, a workaround exists and is already installed on your device.

forgotmypw17 3y ago

Using an IMAP client is not an option on many devices, especially when it is a public or borrowed device.

rini17 3y ago
It is incredibly inconvenient to log in on such device, especially if your primary one isn't available. I ended up writing down backup authenticator codes in my diary. Of course it kinda defeats the purpose and of course it's hard for users to figure out.
seer 3y ago
One of my employers disabled IMAP on gmail, siting security concerns… ended up pretty much not using email because of that (relying on slack mostly)
- jowea 3y ago
  What's the security disadvantage of IMAP?
  - johnchristopher 3y ago
    I suspect OP employer didn't secure its IMAP configuration (no TLS) and simply relied on HTTPS in front of the webmail ?
    - seer 3y ago
      Apparently gmail’s IMAP implementation was considered “insecure” by the security experts… Forgot the details tbh

mftrhu 3y ago

If you can even do that, since they [e-mail hosts] go out of their way to make it difficult - even impossible, in some cases - to push people to use their own app.

crabbone 3y ago

Yeah... if only that worked with GMail. You cannot do proper authentication with GMail anymore. You need an elaborate dance, which will depend on how old your GMail account is (they became bolder with time and started to require more personal data from users), you will need to procure a special permit for your IMAP program to connect to GMail, and the way to do that changed over time. Also, newer GMail accounts cannot be registered without MFA, so you'll have to figure out how to deal with that. Having a very old GMail account, I still hold on to it, because I can still use IMAP in Gnus. But, should I lose that, or should Google finally curb my tiny freedoms... I'll have to look for alternatives too.