Say Goodbye to Creepy Email Stalkers with This Easy Trick for Blocking Tracking Pixels in Apple Mail!
As technology advances, so do the methods of tracking our online movements. One of the newest ways to do this is through tracking pixels, small invisible images embedded in emails. They are often used by marketers and advertisers to monitor whether an email has been opened and, if so, at what time and from what location. While this may seem harmless, it can also be used by those with malicious intent to track our movements and gather personal information without our knowledge or consent.
Fortunately, there is an easy way to block tracking pixels in Apple Mail. This trick involves using the default settings in Apple Mail to disable the automatic loading of remote images in emails. Here’s how to do it:
Step 1: Open Apple Mail and click on Mail in the menu bar at the top of the screen.
Step 2: Select Preferences from the drop-down menu.
Step 3: Click on the Viewing tab.
Step 4: Under the Viewing tab, look for the option that says Load remote content in messages and uncheck the box next to it.
Step 5: Close the Preferences window and restart Apple Mail.
And there you have it! By disabling the automatic loading of remote images in emails, you are effectively blocking tracking pixels from being able to gather information about you. Without the automatic loading of these images, it is also important to note that some emails may not appear as intended and may not look as visually appealing as intended.
It is also important to remember that blocking tracking pixels only provides partial protection against online tracking. There are still other techniques that can be used to gather your personal information, such as tracking cookies and browser fingerprinting. However, by taking simple steps like blocking tracking pixels, we can begin to take control of our online privacy and reduce the risk of being stalked by creepy email stalkers.
In conclusion, while tracking pixels may seem like a harmless way to monitor email open rates and engagement, they can also be used by hackers and other unsavory individuals to collect personal information without our knowledge. By following the simple steps outlined above, we can put an end to this invasive practice and say goodbye to creepy email stalkers once and for all!
But did you know there’s a really sneaky way to collect your data from within an email client? The method in question uses invisible pixels (called tracking pixels) in an email to not only help a company see which emails you interact with but how you interact with them.
How to block tracking pixels
I’m demonstrating with Apple Mail 15.0. This new feature is built into macOS Monterey, so if you’re using an older version of macOS, you’ll want to upgrade as soon as possible (which you should do anyway). These pixels help companies (especially marketing firms) measure open/click rates, discover traffic sources, track conversions, and gather other data points. Specifically, tracking pixels empower companies with the following types of information:
How many people open emails and click-through links.Provide a general success rate of an email campaign.Devices used to read email.Which email providers a recipient uses.What region a recipient is located in.
Sounds like something many privacy-conscious users don’t want or need. Fortunately, some email client developers are catching on to this tactic and have made it possible to protect yourself against them. One such client is Apple Mail. Let me show you how to enable that protection, so you can avoid the dreaded tracking pixel. To enable tracking pixel protection, open Apple Mail and click Mail > Preferences. Click the Privacy tab in the menu bar (Figure A). Figure A In the resulting window (Figure B), click the check box associated with Protect Mail Activity. Figure B When you enable the feature, you’ll notice that Hide IP Address and Block All Remote Content both are greyed out. That doesn’t mean those features will be disabled but if want to enable either of those options, do so before clicking Protect Mail Activity. There’s no need to restart Apple Mail, as the change will take effect immediately. With this option enabled, you no longer have to worry about tracking pixels collecting your data that can, in turn, be used by companies in the same way tracking cookies are used within a web browser. Welcome to a more private email experience in macOS.
