Email Guard Lightweight Backend (Dep 0.5.6 Mini)

A streamlined FastAPI backend for email phishing detection, specifically optimized for Replit deployment and designed to work seamlessly with the Email Guard Vercel Frontend.

🔗 Full Version Available: This is a lightweight version of the comprehensive Email Guard project (Dev 0.6.2). For enterprise deployments with advanced security features, see the full version.

🚀 Quick Start

Frontend: https://email-guard-cyan.vercel.app/ Backend: Deployed on Replit (URL configured via VITE_API_URL environment variable)

Replit deployment code: https://replit.com/@Richdaleintern0/EmailGuardLightweight

📊 Version Comparison

Feature	Lightweight (Dep 0.5.6 Mini)	Full Version (Dev 0.6.2)
Deployment	✅ Replit-optimized	🐳 Docker + APISIX Gateway
AI Models	✅ phishing-detection-py + Rule-based	🧠 DistilBERT + Multiple ML Models
Security	✅ JWT Authentication	🔒 Enterprise Security Stack
Rate Limiting	⚡ Application-level	🛡️ APISIX Gateway-level
Dependencies	📦 Minimal (11 packages)	📚 Comprehensive (50+ packages)
Container Isolation	❌ Single deployment	✅ Isolated Docker containers
Model Complexity	🎯 Lightweight ML	🧠 Heavy transformer models
Setup Time	⚡ < 5 minutes	⏱️ 15-30 minutes

🎯 Features

Core Functionality

🤖 AI-Powered Detection: Primary ML analysis using phishing-detection-py
🔧 Rule-Based Fallback: Comprehensive pattern matching when ML models are unavailable
🔐 JWT Authentication: Secure token-based authentication with HTTP-only cookies
📊 Scan History: Track and retrieve analysis results for authenticated users
⚡ Replit-Optimized: Specifically configured for seamless Replit deployment

Model Analysis Pipeline

Primary ML Model: phishing-detection-py for URL and content analysis
Rule-Based Analyzer: Pattern matching for suspicious indicators
Metadata Extraction: Content analysis and risk scoring
Confidence Scoring: Detailed confidence metrics for each analysis

API Endpoints

POST /auth/token - Authenticate and receive JWT
POST /scan/email - Analyze email content for threats
GET /history - Retrieve scan history
POST /auth/logout - Clear authentication
GET /health - Health check endpoint

🏗️ Architecture

Frontend (Vercel)                 Backend (Replit)
┌─────────────────┐               ┌──────────────────┐
│   React + Vite  │──── HTTPS ────│   FastAPI App    │
│                 │               │                  │
│  Dashboard UI   │               │  ┌─────────────┐ │
│  Auth Flow      │               │  │ JWT Auth    │ │
│  Results Display│               │  │ Module      │ │
└─────────────────┘               │  └─────────────┘ │
                                  │                  │
                                  │  ┌─────────────┐ │
                                  │  │ AI Analysis │ │
                                  │  │ Engine      │ │
                                  │  └─────────────┘ │
                                  │                  │
                                  │  ┌─────────────┐ │
                                  │  │ Scan        │ │
                                  │  │ History     │ │
                                  │  └─────────────┘ │
                                  └──────────────────┘

🛠️ Technology Stack

Backend Core

FastAPI: Modern Python web framework
Uvicorn: ASGI server for production
Python 3.11+: Latest Python features

AI/ML Models

phishing-detection-py: Primary ML model for URL/content analysis
Rule-based analyzer: Custom pattern matching engine
Content analyzer: Metadata extraction and risk scoring

Authentication & Security

python-jose: JWT token handling
passlib: Secure password hashing
HTTP-only cookies: XSS protection

Dependencies (Lightweight)

fastapi
uvicorn[standard]
python-multipart
python-jose[cryptography]
passlib[bcrypt]
python-dotenv
pydantic
requests
aiofiles
phishing-detection-py

🚀 Deployment

Replit Deployment (Recommended)

Import Repository: Import this repository to Replit
Install Dependencies: Replit auto-installs from requirements.txt

Set Environment Variables:

JWT_SECRET_KEY=your-super-secure-jwt-secret-key-here

Run: Execute python main.py
Configure Frontend: Set VITE_API_URL in Vercel to your Replit URL

Local Development

Clone Repository:

git clone https://github.com/Richdale04/Email-Guard-Lightweight.git
cd Email-Guard-Lightweight

Install Dependencies:
```
pip install -r requirements.txt
```

Environment Setup:

# Create .env file
JWT_SECRET_KEY=your-jwt-secret-key

Run Server:
```
python main.py
```
Access API: http://localhost:5000

Environment Variables

Variable	Description	Required	Default
`JWT_SECRET_KEY`	Secret key for JWT signing	✅ Yes	None
`PORT`	Server port (Replit auto-sets)	❌ No	5000

📁 Project Structure

Email-Guard-Lightweight/
├── ai/                          # AI Analysis Engine
│   ├── email_guard.py          #   Main analyzer with multiple models
│   └── README.md               #   AI documentation
├── backend/                     # FastAPI Backend
│   ├── app.py                  #   Main FastAPI application
│   ├── scan.py                 #   Email scanning logic
│   ├── modules/                #   Backend modules
│   │   ├── authenticate.py     #     JWT authentication
│   │   └── verify.py           #     Input validation
│   └── db/                     #   User database
│       └── users.csv           #     User tokens storage
├── main.py                     # Replit entry point
├── requirements.txt            # Python dependencies
├── pyproject.toml             # Project configuration
└── README.md                  # This file

🧠 AI Analysis Pipeline

1. Primary ML Model (`phishing-detection-py`)

# URL Analysis
urls = extract_urls(email_text)
result = detector.predict(urls[0])
decision = 'phishing' if result.prediction == 1 else 'safe'

2. Rule-Based Fallback

# Pattern Detection
suspicious_patterns = ['urgent', 'account suspended', 'verify identity']
risk_score = calculate_risk_score(email_text, patterns)
decision = map_risk_to_decision(risk_score)

3. Response Format

{
  "results": [
    {
      "model_source": "PyPI",
      "model_name": "phishing-detection-py",
      "decision": "phishing|safe|spam|error",
      "confidence": 0.85,
      "description": "Detailed analysis description"
    }
  ],
  "timestamp": "2024-01-01T12:00:00",
  "email_snippet": "Email content preview..."
}

🔐 Authentication System

Token-Based Authentication

# Sample tokens (backend/db/users.csv)
sample_token_1,user1,user      # Standard user
sample_token_2,user2,admin     # Admin user

JWT Flow

Frontend sends token to /auth/token
Backend validates token and creates JWT
JWT stored in HTTP-only cookie
Subsequent requests use JWT for authentication

Security Features

HTTP-only cookies (XSS protection)
JWT expiration handling
Input sanitization and validation
CORS configuration for Vercel frontend

📊 API Usage Examples

Authentication

curl -X POST https://your-replit-url.repl.co/auth/token \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"token": "sample_token_1"}'

Email Analysis

curl -X POST https://your-replit-url.repl.co/scan/email \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -b "auth_token=your-jwt-token" \
  -d '{"email_text": "URGENT: Your account has been suspended..."}'

Scan History

curl -X GET https://your-replit-url.repl.co/history?limit=5 \
  -b "auth_token=your-jwt-token"

🧪 Test Cases

Phishing Email Example

Subject: URGENT: Account Verification Required

Dear Customer,

Your bank account has been suspended due to suspicious activity. 
Please verify your identity immediately by clicking the link below:

http://suspicious-bank-verify.com/urgent-verify

Failure to verify within 24 hours will result in permanent account closure.

Best regards,
Security Team

Expected Result: phishing with high confidence

Safe Email Example

Subject: Meeting Reminder

Hi John,

Just a reminder about our team meeting tomorrow at 2 PM in the conference room.

Please bring the quarterly reports we discussed.

Thanks,
Sarah

Expected Result: safe with high confidence

🔄 Migration from Full Version

Removed Components

Docker Containerization: Single Replit deployment
APISIX Gateway: Direct FastAPI routing
DistilBERT Models: Heavy transformer models removed
Redis Caching: Simplified in-memory processing
Advanced Rate Limiting: Application-level only
Multiple Model Pipeline: Streamlined to essential models

Maintained Compatibility

✅ API Response Format: Identical to full version
✅ Authentication Flow: Same JWT implementation
✅ Frontend Integration: No changes required
✅ Core Analysis: Essential detection capabilities preserved

📈 Performance Characteristics

Resource Usage

Memory: ~100-200MB (vs 1GB+ for full version)
CPU: Lightweight processing
Storage: Minimal file system usage
Startup Time: ~10-30 seconds (vs 2-5 minutes)

Response Times

Authentication: < 200ms
Email Analysis: 1-3 seconds
History Retrieval: < 100ms
Health Check: < 50ms

Scalability

Concurrent Users: 50-100 on Replit
Request Volume: 100-500 requests/hour
Analysis Capacity: Suitable for small-medium deployments

🚨 Limitations & Trade-offs

Reduced Capabilities

Model Accuracy: 80-90% (vs 95%+ in full version)
Security Features: Basic vs enterprise-grade
Scalability: Limited vs highly scalable
Model Diversity: 2 analyzers vs 10+ in full version

Appropriate Use Cases

✅ Development/Testing: Perfect for prototyping
✅ Small Teams: Up to 50 users
✅ Educational: Learning and demonstration
✅ Quick Deployment: Rapid setup requirements

Not Suitable For

❌ Enterprise Production: Use full version instead
❌ High Volume: > 1000 requests/hour
❌ Critical Security: Mission-critical applications
❌ Advanced Features: Complex workflow requirements

🔗 Related Projects

Full Version

Repository: Email Guard Full
Version: Dev 0.6.2
Deployment: Docker + APISIX
Use Case: Enterprise production environments

Frontend

Live Demo: Email Guard Dashboard
Technology: React + TypeScript + Vite
Deployment: Vercel
Integration: Works with both versions

🛠️ Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Models Not Loading:

# Check if phishing-detection-py is installed
pip list | grep phishing-detection-py

# Reinstall if missing
pip install phishing-detection-py

CORS Errors:

# Verify CORS origins in backend/app.py
allow_origins=[
    "https://email-guard-cyan.vercel.app",
    "http://localhost:5173"  # For local development
]

Authentication Failures:

# Check if JWT_SECRET_KEY is set
echo $JWT_SECRET_KEY

# Generate new secret key
python -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_hex(32))"

Replit Deployment Issues:

Ensure main.py is the entry point
Check that requirements.txt is in root directory
Verify environment variables are set in Replit secrets

📚 Documentation

Code Documentation

AI Models: /ai/README.md
API Reference: Built-in FastAPI docs at /docs
Authentication: See backend/modules/authenticate.py

External Resources

FastAPI Documentation: https://fastapi.tiangolo.com/
Phishing Detection Py: https://pypi.org/project/phishing-detection-py/
Replit Deployment: https://docs.replit.com/

🤝 Contributing

Development Workflow

Fork the repository
Create feature branch: git checkout -b feature/new-feature
Test changes locally
Submit pull request with description

Coding Standards

Python: Follow PEP 8 style guidelines
Type Hints: Add type annotations
Error Handling: Comprehensive exception handling
Documentation: Update README for new features

📄 License

This project is licensed under the AGPL-3.0 License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🆘 Support & Contact

Getting Help

Issues: GitHub Issues
Documentation: This README and inline code documentation
Full Version: See original repository for advanced features

Version Information

Current Version: Dep 0.5.6 Mini
Full Version: Dev 0.6.2
Compatibility: Frontend compatible with both versions
Last Updated: 2024

Email Guard Lightweight - Streamlined email security analysis for rapid deployment and development environments.

For production enterprise deployments, consider the full version with advanced security features and comprehensive model pipeline.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 9 Commits
ai		ai
backend		backend
db		db
.env		.env
.replit		.replit
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
main.py		main.py
pyproject.toml		pyproject.toml
requirements.txt		requirements.txt
uv.lock		uv.lock

License

Richdale04/Email-Guard-Lightweight

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