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Email

By setting up 'Email' notifications, you will receive detailed alerts with comprehensive information about your infrastructure compliance issues, including resource details, remediation links, and formatted reports directly in your inbox.

Prerequire​

Kexa supports SMTP-based email notifications. You will need:

  • An SMTP server (Gmail, SendGrid, Outlook, or custom SMTP server)
  • SMTP credentials (username, password/API key)
  • SMTP server configuration (host, port)

SendGrid (Recommended):

Gmail:

  • Use App Passwords for authentication
  • Enable 2-factor authentication first
  • Generate App Password in Google Account settings

Custom SMTP:

  • Any SMTP-compatible email server
  • Corporate email servers
  • Self-hosted solutions

Any other compatible SMTP

Examples configurations with different providers:​

SendGrid:

EMAILPORT=587                                    # SMTP port (587 for TLS, 465 for SSL, 25 for unencrypted)
EMAILHOST='smtp.sendgrid.net'                   # SMTP server hostname
EMAILUSER='apikey'                              # Username (for SendGrid, use 'apikey')
EMAILPWD='SG.XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX'   # Password or API key
EMAILFROM='"Kexa Security" <noreply@yourcompany.com>'  # Sender name and email

Gmail:

EMAILPORT=587
EMAILHOST='smtp.gmail.com'
EMAILUSER='youremail@gmail.com'
EMAILPWD='your_app_password_here'
EMAILFROM='"Kexa Security" <youremail@gmail.com>'

Outlook/Office 365:

EMAILPORT=587
EMAILHOST='smtp-mail.outlook.com'
EMAILUSER='youremail@outlook.com'
EMAILPWD='your_password_here'
EMAILFROM='"Kexa Alerts" <youremail@outlook.com>'

Any other compatible SMTP

In your rule file, configure email notifications:

- version: 1.0.0
  date: 07-23-2024
  alert:
    fatal:
      enabled: true
      type: 
        - email
        - log   
      to:
        - 'admin@company.com'
        - 'security-team@company.com'
    error:
      enabled: true
      type: 
        - email
      to: 
        - 'admin@company.com'
        - 'devops@company.com'
    warning:
      enabled: true
      type: 
        - email
      to:
        - 'admin@company.com'
    info:
      enabled: true
      type: 
        - email
      to: 
        - 'admin@company.com'
    global:
      enabled: true
      type: 
        - email
      to: 
        - 'management@company.com'
        - 'admin@company.com'
      conditions:
        - level: 0
          min: 1
        - level: 1
          min: 1
        - level: 2
          min: 1
        - level: 3
          min: 1
  rules:
    # all rules are here

Email Content Features​

Kexa email notifications include:

  • HTML formatting
  • Resource details with direct links to cloud provider if possible
  • Severity indicators with color coding
  • Summary statistics in global alerts

Best Practices​

  • Use descriptive sender names: Make it clear emails are from Kexa
  • Separate distribution lists: Use different email lists for different severity levels

Troubleshooting​

Emails not being sent:

  • Verify SMTP credentials are correct
  • Check firewall settings for SMTP ports
  • Ensure SMTP server allows connections from your Kexa instance
  • Verify the sender email is authorized

Emails going to spam:

  • Configure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for your domain
  • Use a reputable email service provider
  • Avoid spam trigger words in email content
  • Maintain good sender reputation

Authentication errors:

  • For Gmail: Use App Passwords, not regular passwords
  • For corporate email: Check if 2FA or special authentication is required
  • Verify username format (some require full email, others just username)

Connection timeouts:

  • Check if your network/firewall blocks SMTP ports
  • Try different ports (587, 465, 25)
  • Verify SMTP server hostname is correct