How To Block Email Tracking

Email tracking is far more common than most people realise. It’s common for newsletters, cold outreach and even internal company emails to contain hidden tracking tools. These report back when and where you opened that specific message. The unsettling part though is that, in most cases, you usually didn’t give consent for that.

And even though email tracking has become the norm in digital communication, it does not mean that you have to simply accept it. Fortunately, the good news is that you can block it and you don’t need to be a tech expert either to be able to do it and protect your privacy.

What Does Email Tracking Actually Entail?

Simply put, email tracking is a way for the sender to knows what happens after they hit that send button. It can give them a lot of specific information, including if you did actually open the email and if you did, the timestamp, what device you’re using and even your location. Which is pretty concerning.

Yes, this information is valuable for marketers and sales teams who send high volumes of emails to push a product or service. But for recipients, it mostly just feels invasive. Which it is.

It’s usually done by using a tracking pixel. This is a small, invisible image which is embedded into the mail. When you open it, it sends a signal back to the sender with all of your information. Even if you don’t see it or you don’t click on anything, it’s still there.

Tracked links are another method where an email can monitor which links you clicked and how many times you clicked. They look like normal links but they are routed through a tracking server before you get to the final webpage.

Is Email Tracking A Privacy Issue?

Absolutely. Even if it sounds harmless, it creates a surprisingly detailed picture of you over time. Things like your daily routine and when you check your emails, if you’re travelling and the devices you use. It’s a goldmine of information for sales teams but it’s also surveillance on you.

The worst part of it all is that most people don’t even know that it’s happening.

How To Block Email Tracking

The good news is that you can stop email tracking from happening and it’s usually just a matter of changing some of your existing settings.

Here are a few things that you can do to make sure you aren’t being watched without your permission.

Turn Off Automatic Image Loading

Most tracking uses hidden images so blocking them from loading is the first step. If you use Gmail, you can navigate to settings and click images then you can tick the box that says ask before displaying external images. On Outlook, click layout and under message format, select the option where it says don’t automatically download pictures.

This will stop any tracking pixels from loading and gives you full control as the user over which emails are allowed to load images.

Don’t Click On Suspicious Links

Even if you have blocked image tracking, some links can still reveal information if you click on them. It could also be a phishing attempt so these links are definitely worth paying attention to.

Before you click on a link, hover over it and see if the URL is overly long or looks strange. If something feels off, don’t click it and if possible, visit the website directly instead of clicking on the link.

Install Browser Extensions

If you read your emails in your browser, there are certain privacy extensions which can help for added security. These are able to detect any tracking pixels in an email and alert you if an email is being tracked.

The extension that you choose should focus on tracker blocking and link cleaning, but also be sure that you’re using a reputable extension with solid reviews.

Use A VPN

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is one of the safest ways to protect yourself online. While it can’t block tracking pixels, it can hide your real location and add an additional layer of anonymity.

It’s definitely a useful tool to have if you open your emails on a public Wi-Fi or you travel frequently and use different networks all the time.

Enable Privacy Protection Features

Most of the modern email providers already have built-in privacy tools. Apple Mail actually has one of the strongest protections where most senders can’t sincerely tell if you opened the email and where you were when you opened it. To enable it, go to your mail settings and turn on protect mail activity.

For Gmail users, Gmail does automatically load any images through Google’s servers. This hides your real IP address to limit location tracking. However, it can’t block all forms of tracking so it is necessary to take some of the other additional security steps.