2,500,000,000 Gmail users affected by critical security update to platform

A whopping 2.5 billion Gmail users have been affected by a critical security update to the platform.

Google has implemented a major security update for its email service and it turns out that it's good news for users.

The update comes with new rules around email authentication and the introduction of domain-based message authentication.

Gmail now has new authentication rules (Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

At the time of the update, the group product manager of Gmail, Neil Kumaran, said: “Many bulk senders don’t appropriately secure and configure their systems, allowing attackers to easily hide in their midst.”

But now, accounts who send bulk emails of at least 5,000 a day are now required to provide authentication.

Kumaran added: “Ultimately, this will close loopholes exploited by attackers that threaten everyone who uses email.”

In a statement at the time, the tech giant said: “Many bulk senders don’t appropriately secure and configure their systems, allowing attackers to easily hide in their midst. To help fix that, we’ve focused on a crucial aspect of email security: the validation that a sender is who they claim to be.

“As basic as it sounds, it’s still sometimes impossible to verify who an email is from given the web of antiquated and inconsistent systems on the internet.

“Last year we started requiring that emails sent to a Gmail address must have some form of authentication. And we’ve seen the number of unauthenticated messages Gmail users receive plummet by 75%, which has helped declutter inboxes while blocking billions of malicious messages with higher precision.

Google has revealed how the update has impacted its users (Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

“That’s great progress, but there’s much more we need to do — starting with new requirements for large senders.”

And it looks like things are working as planned - six months after the update was introduced, Kumaran revealed exactly how it was affecting users.

It turns out that Google has seen a reduction of 65% of unauthenticated messages being sent to its users and a whopping 265 billion fewer unauthenticated messages sent that year than in the previous year.

The statement from Google went on to say: “These changes are like a tune-up for the email world, and by fixing a few things under the hood, we can keep email running smoothly.

“But just like a tune-up, this is not a one-time exercise. Keeping email more secure, user friendly and spam-free requires constant collaboration and vigilance from the entire email community.

“And we'll keep working together to make sure your inbox stays safe.”