How email tracking pixels work
Many marketing emails can tell the sender exactly when you opened them. Here is how, and why our inbox blocks it by default.
What a tracking pixel is
A tracking pixel is a tiny, usually invisible image in an HTML email. The image isn’t inside the email. It is loaded from the sender’s server, using a web address unique to you. When your email app loads the image, the sender’s server records the request.
What the sender learns
- That you opened the email, and when.
- Your IP address, which reveals your rough location and sometimes your employer or internet provider.
- Clues about your device and email app.
- How many times you opened it.
For a disposable inbox this matters even more: loading images confirms to a spammer that the address is live and read by a real person.
How TempMailyo handles images
All remote images are blocked when you open an email. You’ll see a note that images are hidden, with a Load images button. If you choose to load them, the sender can see your IP address and that you opened the message. Images included directly inside the email, which don’t contact the sender, can still show.
Links can track too
Links in marketing emails often go through a tracking address first. Clicking a link tells the sender you clicked it. If you only need a code, copy the code instead of clicking around.
Blocking pixels in your real inbox
Most email apps have a setting to stop loading remote images automatically, or to load them through a privacy proxy. Turning that on gives you the same protection in your everyday email.