At Yopla we use email tracking across our non-confidential correspondence measure effectiveness, ensure we are delivering on our commitments, update our clients with information that's relevant to them and drive automations that give us back free time. But we also recognise that it can also pose privacy and security risks for all email recipients, but particularly who may not want to be tracked without their knowledge or consent. This is a situation where our outward technology, risks being your inward (check out our great article on inward vs. outward tech here). That's when there's no substitute for knowledge sharing, like this article.
Here we will explain how email tracking works, how to tell if an email has a tracking pixel, and how to prevent email tracking on your device.
How Email Tracking Works
Email tracking is a common practice that involves embedding a tiny image, called a pixel, into an email message. When the recipient opens the email, the pixel sends back information to the sender, such as when and how many times the email was opened, what device and email provider were used, and even the approximate location of the recipient.
The tracking pixel is a 1x1 pixel image that is inserted into the header, footer or body of an email message. It is usually transparent or matches the colour of the background, so it is not visible to the naked eye. The pixel is linked to a server that records when the image is requested, which happens when the recipient opens the email.
Some email tracking pixels can collect a wide variety of information, including:
How many times the email was opened
What device or devices were used
What email provider was used
What region or city the recipient is located in
Whether the recipient clicked on any links in the email
Email tracking pixels can also power remarketing, which means showing personalised ads to the recipient based on their email activity.
Email tracking pixels are different from cookies, which are small files that are stored on your browser when you visit a website. Cookies can track your browsing history across multiple websites, while pixels can only track your email activity within a specific email message.
Facebook do something similar with the Like button, Google across the websites that use their powerful website analytics tools and both Microsoft and Google across their web browsers. Amazon tracks users through its extensive use of cookies and personalised recommendation and bricks and mortar retailers through card use, loyalty cards and more.
How to Tell If an Email Has a Tracking Pixel
There are a few ways to tell if an email has a tracking pixel:
Use an email service or app that alerts you to the presence of tracking pixels, such as Hey or Mailbird.
Use a browser extension or plugin that blocks or removes tracking pixels, such as Ugly Email or PixelBlock.
Set your email client or app to block images by default, or view emails as plain text. This will prevent the pixel from loading and sending back information. However, this will also affect the appearance and functionality of some emails.
Inspect the source code of the email message and look for any image tags that have a 1x1 size or a suspicious URL.
How to Prevent Email Tracking
If you want to prevent email tracking on your device, you have a few options:
Use an email service or app that blocks or removes tracking pixels automatically, such as Hey or Mailbird. These services or apps will also show you which emails have tracking pixels and what information they are trying to collect.
Use a browser extension or plugin that blocks or removes tracking pixels, such as Ugly Email or PixelBlock. These extensions or plugins will also show you which emails have tracking pixels and what information they are trying to collect.
Set your email client or app to block images by default, or view emails as plain text. This will prevent the pixel from loading and sending back information. It's worth noting that this will also affect the appearance and functionality of some emails. There's a great guide at The Verge that explains how to do this for Gmal, Outlook and Apple Mail
Use a VPN (virtual private network) service that masks your IP address and location. This will prevent the pixel from identifying your approximate location based on your IP address. However, this will not prevent the pixel from collecting other information, such as when and how many times you opened the email.
Conclusion
Email tracking is a widespread practice that helps marketers and salespeople measure and improve their campaigns and can improve customer engagement and experience.
Taking these easy steps puts control where it belongs, with you.
If you would like to find out more about how email tracking works, the good, the bad and the ugly. Get in touch :)