Systems and methods for operation upon a data processing device for handling messages with different levels of security, are provided herein. A method for operation upon a data processing device for handling messages with different levels of security includes examining an attribute of a message received over a network in order to determine a security-related level associated with the message, generating a visual indication for display to a device user that is indicative of the determined security-related level, wherein the generated visual indication is applied to a displayed portion of text associated with the message, and changing the visual indication when the message viewed.