Mail programmes use an icon to indicate that an email and its content have been digitally signed with a certificate from a trusted issuer. — *© Stadt Bocholt*

13. November 2025City Hall

Secure e-mails: City of Bocholt introduces digital certificates

City relies on digital ID cards for emails // More security for official communication

The city of Bocholt is currently gradually introducing so-called S/MIME certificates for its business email addresses. These digital certificates, which have been tested by the city of Bocholt since the middle of the year, enable the unique signing and encryption of emails. This will make messages from the city administration even more secure in future and their authenticity easier to trace.

In everyday life, this means that every email sent by an employee of the City of Bocholt can be clearly verified in future. The digital certificate serves as an ID card for the e-mail address. It ensures that the message actually comes from the city of Bocholt and has not been altered in transit.

This increases transparency for citizens and companies. It is then recognisable in the inbox that a message from the city has been digitally signed - depending on the email provider, this is usually indicated by a symbol or a note on the email. At the same time, the new technology makes fraudulent attacks such as phishing or spoofing, in which fake senders are used, more difficult.

Recent increase in fraud attempts

In recent months, Bocholt - like other towns in the district - has also been affected by attempted fraud in which false letters and emails have been sent in the name of the town. In these cases, for example, it was claimed that the city of Bocholt had commissioned a debt collection agency to collect debts. Such messages are fictitious: As a matter of principle, the city does not commission external debt collection services to enforce debts.

In addition, both citizens and companies received fraudulent emails specifically asking for contact persons or contact details for alleged "billing" purposes. These requests were apparently used to collect email addresses and names for subsequent phishing attacks. With the introduction of S/MIME certificates, which were introduced internally in advance and extensively tested, the city of Bocholt is actively countering this development and strengthening the protection of digital communication.