When an employee leaves a company, collecting laptops and phones is not enough. Their business email account must also be handled in a controlled way.
1. Change the password
When access ends, change the mailbox password and terminate active sessions whenever possible.
2. Review mobile and application access
The account may still be configured in Outlook, smartphones, tablets or other applications. Previous access should be invalidated.
3. Preserve business correspondence
Instead of immediately deleting the mailbox, important business communication may need to be retained and made available to the relevant manager or department.
4. Manage incoming messages
Messages sent to the former employee can temporarily be forwarded to another employee or handled with an automatic response.
5. Review aliases and groups
The former employee should be removed from departmental aliases and distribution lists.
6. Disable the account at the appropriate time
Once business data has been preserved and forwarding requirements are complete, the mailbox can be disabled or removed according to company policy.
Conclusion
Employee offboarding is an important part of email security. Leaving old accounts active without control can create both security and privacy risks.