The Royal Air Force (RAF) has completed the roll out of a secure remote email service which will provide high level protection to military staff accessing information from locations around the world.

IT networking firm Global Crossing has worked with the RAF to install the Secure Remote Access Service, which will allow air force and Ministry of Defence personnel to view email abroad using token-based security.

The system has been designed in cooperation with the UK government's Communication Electronics Security Group and will authenticate users when accessing RAFMail, an email system used by 63,000 employees based at 66 stations around the world.

'The new Secure Remote Access Service replaces an outdated modem service and provides a more secure access method to restricted data, while offering a more reliable and efficient access mode for registered users,' said squadron leader Steve Palfrey.

'This new access solution enables the RAF and an increasing number of army, navy and civilian personnel to safely and securely remain in touch wherever they may be,' he said.

Military and civil personnel will be issued with a token that challenges one-off passwords to authenticate users.

The upgrade is part of a 10-year contract Global Crossing signed with the RAF in 1998 to manage and upgrade mail and messaging systems.

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