Vendor comparison

Avamboo Encrypt and Conbool

Both send confidential email as an AES-256 encrypted PDF that the recipient opens with a password and a PDF reader. Avamboo Encrypt does this as an extension in the Outlook of each workstation, Conbool does it centrally for the whole company.

View demoRequest a quoteAs of September 2026

In short

How they differ

Avamboo Encrypt is an Outlook extension by the IT service company Avamboo GmbH from Kissing, Germany. It is installed on every workstation and sends email as a password-protected PDF. Conbool SecureMail can produce the same PDF, but decides centrally by rule when to encrypt, and adds S/MIME, PGP and a message portal through which recipients reply encrypted. If desired, recipients choose their password themselves instead of hearing it on the phone.

Five questions that come up in every evaluation

Side by side, with a source for every statement about the competitor.

Where does encryption happen?

Conbool

Either in the mail flow or in the add-in for Outlook and Thunderbird. In the mail flow, encryption applies to every client and device without installing anything on the workstation. Rules match on sender, recipient or attachment, and a keyword in the subject triggers them manually.

Avamboo EncryptAvamboo Encrypt

The extension is installed into Outlook with AvambooEncrypt.exe and lists Outlook 2013, 2016, 2019 and Office 365. According to the manual, the toolbar only appears in a separate compose window; replies in the reading pane have to be popped out first.

As of 17 September 2026, retrieved from avamboo.de and the Avamboo Encrypt manual.

If you use Outlook on the web, smartphones or Mac, you need encryption that does not depend on a Windows workstation.

How does the recipient get the password?

Conbool

Three ways, depending on configuration: a fixed password, a password entered by the sender in the add-in with minimum strength requirements, or the recipient sets a password once in the portal. Until then the message waits; afterwards every further email is encrypted with it automatically.

Avamboo EncryptAvamboo Encrypt

The sender sets a password when sending and is asked to pass it on in person, by phone or by letter. A password manager stores it per recipient combination and can reuse it next time without asking.

As of 17 September 2026, retrieved from avamboo.de and the Avamboo Encrypt manual.

Every password someone has to pass on by hand costs time and is a source of error.

Where are stored passwords kept?

Conbool

Encrypted in the tenant's database, valid for all senders in the company. Nobody has to share a file or set the same password on every computer.

Avamboo EncryptAvamboo Encrypt

The password database is a file on the workstation. For team use it is placed in a shared folder, and every workstation needs the same database password. On request, the management view shows passwords in plain text.

Avamboo Encrypt manual, section on password management, retrieved 17 September 2026.

A shared file of recipient passwords is itself a target worth protecting and hard to audit.

Which methods exist besides the PDF?

Conbool

S/MIME and PGP at the gateway, a message portal with encrypted replies, and SecureFiles for files too large for a PDF. Each rule defines which method applies, for example PDF only for emails with attachments.

Avamboo EncryptAvamboo Encrypt

The product page describes encryption as an AES-256 PDF only. Attachments are placed in the PDF, and the original email can additionally be embedded as a file.

As of 17 September 2026, retrieved from avamboo.de.

A recipient cannot reply to a PDF in encrypted form. If you expect replies with documents, you need a second channel.

What can be controlled and proven centrally?

Conbool

Rules, password policy and methods live in one admin interface. Message tracing shows for each email whether and how it was encrypted. The add-in asks before an unencrypted send, including in Outlook Classic.

Avamboo EncryptAvamboo Encrypt

Options are set in the extension: a reminder to encrypt, always or for stored recipients, and automatic encryption for stored recipients. Neither the page nor the manual mentions central management or a log.

As of 17 September 2026, retrieved from avamboo.de and the Avamboo Encrypt manual.

For GDPR and NIS2 it matters not only that email is encrypted, but that you can prove it.

Switching

How a switch works

The switch does not affect recipients. They keep receiving a PDF that they open with a password.

  1. List recipients

    Which recipients and domains receive encrypted email today? These become the rules.

  2. Choose the password method

    Fixed password, entry in the add-in, or the recipient chooses it in the portal.

  3. Test in parallel

    Conbool runs alongside the existing extension. Message tracing shows every encrypted delivery.

  4. Remove the extension

    Only once all rules apply is Avamboo Encrypt uninstalled from the workstations.

PDFs already sent stay readable with their existing password.

Decision guide

Which vendor fits when

Conbool fits when

  • Encryption should apply centrally by rule, regardless of what the sender remembers.
  • Outlook on the web, smartphones, Mac or Thunderbird are in use.
  • Recipients should choose their own password or reply encrypted.
  • S/MIME, PGP, spam protection, archiving or signatures should come from the same platform.

Avamboo Encrypt fits when

  • A few workstations run Outlook on Windows and central control is not needed.
  • The original email should travel inside the PDF as a file.
  • Received PDFs should be decrypted with a button in Outlook.
  • An IT service company from the Augsburg region should also look after the rest of your IT.

Read on

Related solutions and industries

PDF-Verschlüsselung für E-Mails

E-Mails samt Anhängen automatisch als AES-256-PDF versenden.

Learn more

Sicheres Nachrichtenportal

Empfänger ohne Schlüssel lesen und antworten ohne Konto.

Learn more

Steuerberater

Mandantenunterlagen vertraulich übertragen.

Learn more

NIS2 im Überblick

Richtlinie, Umsetzungsgesetz und BSIG: wer betroffen ist und was gilt.

Learn more

SEPPmail-Alternative

SaaS-SecureMail aus der EU, ohne Appliance-Pflege.

Learn more

NIS-2 E-Mail-Verschlüsselung

S/MIME, PGP und Domain-Verschlüsselung nach NIS-2 angemessen.

Learn more

NIS-2 E-Mail-Sicherheit

NIS-2-konforme E-Mail-Sicherheit mit Audit-Trail.

Learn more

PDF-Verschlüsselung

Sensible PDFs verschlüsselt versenden, ohne Empfänger-Konto.

Learn more

Secure Message Portal

Empfänger-Web-Reader für Schlüssel-lose Empfänger.

Learn more

Verschlüsselung für Thunderbird

Ohne Add-on und ohne Zertifikate auf den Endgeräten.

Learn more

PGP-Schlüsselverwaltung

PGP-Schlüssel je Gruppe automatisch erzeugen und verlängern.

Learn more

Also compared

Other vendors

Comparisons with adjacent solutions.

Frequently asked questions

Encryption without installing anything on workstations

We set up a test environment and map your recipients as rules, without touching ongoing operations.

Book a demoRequest a quote

Sources and fairness note

Statements about Avamboo Encrypt are based exclusively on publicly available sources, namely the product page on avamboo.de and the manual linked there. This page is an editorial comparison by Conbool GmbH and not material from Avamboo GmbH.

As of 17 September 2026. Vendor information changes. For a final decision we recommend checking current information with the vendor.

Avamboo is a trademark of Avamboo GmbH. Conbool is a trademark of Conbool GmbH. Outlook and Microsoft 365 are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.