Email Security – Banner FAQ
Find answers to common questions regarding our Email Assistant and banner in the categories below. If you have other questions not answered here, please contact us.
What is this email protection?
This email protection uses sophisticated machine learning and artificial intelligence to analyze incoming messages for signs of phishing, spam, and other email-based threats.
What's the phishing defence page for?
Part of our protection is the ability to perform real-time checks on any links you click. If enabled, clicking on links in a yellow or red bannered email will take you to a page reiterating that we found the message to be unusual or suspicious.
In some cases, a message that originally only had a gray banner contains a link that is later detected as a dangerous phishing URL. In that case, when you click the link, the real-time check will detect your click and you’ll be met with a blocker page alerting you of that fact.
Why am I seeing banners at the top of my emails?
The color-coded banners are inserted by our email protection services to alert you of any possible threats in your emails.
The banners also display the email sender’s address and mark if an email is internal (from someone in your organization) or external.
If you see these banners, it means that your IT support team has deployed advanced email protection tools for cybersecurity and compliance.
what does a grey banner mean?
A gray banner indicates that we did not find anything unusual or suspicious about the message.
Even though the message was not classified as threatening, you should always check the displayed sender address and the source type to be sure it makes sense (e.g., an external webmail address for a message from a colleague may be cause for concern).
what should I do if I receive a grey banner
No immediate action is required. This action is for helping reduce your email clutter and can be reviewed at your convenience.
Before disregarding, check carefully for additional warnings.
You can choose to:
- mark the sender as “never greymail” causing it to always appear in your inbox
- mark the sender as “always greymail” and have it delivered to a different folder.
what does a yellow banner mean?
A yellow banner indicates that we found something unusual about the email message. It is not necessarily phishing or dangerous but something you should be aware of.
For example, a request for sensitive personal information should be given extra scrutiny. Mail that seems out of the ordinary or is spammy in some way may receive a yellow banner.
what should I do if I receive a yellow banner
Look carefully at who the mail is from and whether it is from someone you trust. Be especially careful about clicking any links in the body of the email or opening any attachments.
Click “Details” to find out why it’s a warning
You can choose to:
- mark the email as “safe”
- mark the email as “spam”
- mark the email as “phishing”
- press “more” for detailed options
what does a red banner mean?
A red banner indicates that we think the message is suspicious and likely to be phishing or dangerous in some other way. This includes brand impersonations (e.g., a fake “account alert” email from your IT department), blocked phishing URLs, or attempts to spoof mail to look like it came from an internal company account.
what should I do if I receive a red banner?
In most cases, you can simply delete the message and move on. Your IT staff, security team, or email administrator, in some cases, will have configured your mail server to quarantine or delete “red-flagged” mail before it reaches your mailbox. In other cases, the mail will still be delivered with the banner telling you to be careful.
Click “Details” to find out why it’s a warning
You can choose to:
- mark the email as “safe” (beware)
- mark the email as “spam”
- mark the email as “phishing”
- press “more” for detailed options
Other Banners you might see . . .
what's a FIRST TIME SENDER?
The first time an email arrives from a specific sender you will be warned. Make a decision carefully about whether this is a legitimate sender. Future emails from this sender will be accepted without warning if you’ve accepted this.
Check all details carefully including sender email address and all attachments and links. Hold your mouse over each link to see where they go.
The Internal & External Banners
Having deemed the email safe, the source is identified as Internal or External and you can still choose to explicitly mark the email as SPAM or PHISHING.
INTERNAL emails can also be marked as Safe.
EXTERNAL email can also be marked as Greymail.
For both types, you can press More for other options.
The Sensitive Information Banner
When sensitive information is detected in an email, this banner will show and treat the email as potentially suspicious. Always heed these warnings and carefully check all details, content, and links. Sensitive information may be items such as passwords, account information, banking details, and others.
Check all details carefully including sender email address and all attachments and links. Hold your mouse over each link to see where they go.
What’s Greymail . . .
How greymail is handled?
Graymail refers to legitimate bulk emails—such as newsletters, marketing messages, or subscription updates—that are not malicious but can clutter your inbox and distract you from important work.
- Detection: INKY uses AI to identify non-threatening bulk messages based on patterns, headers, and content.
- Banner: These emails typically get a gray banner indicating they are safe but considered low-priority.
- Optional Folder Routing: You can enable a setting to automatically move Graymail into a dedicated folder, keeping your inbox clean.
- User Controls:
- Always Graymail: Mark certain senders so their emails always go to the Graymail folder.
- Never Graymail: Ensure important bulk messages stay in your inbox.
Key Difference: Greymail/Graymail is not Spam or Phishing. It’s safe, but we help you manage it so you can focus on critical emails.
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