Are Companies Secretly Watching You Through Email, and How Can You Easily Stop It?

Is Blocking Images in Your Inbox the Simplest Trick to Boost Your Digital Privacy?

Your email inbox is a personal space, much like your home’s mailbox. You decide what to open and what to discard. But what if some letters could tell the sender the exact moment you opened them, where you were, and what you looked at? This happens every day in the digital world through a simple, often overlooked feature: images in emails. Taking a moment to prevent images from loading automatically is one of the most effective steps you can take to protect your privacy. It’s a simple change that puts you back in control, even with emails from senders you know and trust.

The Secret Life of Email Images

When you open an email, you might see a company logo, product photos, or colorful banners. These images seem harmless. However, many of them contain a hidden component often called a tracking pixel. Think of it as a tiny, invisible spy. It’s a microscopic image, just one pixel by one pixel, so you never see it. The moment your email application loads the images in the message, it has to fetch that tiny pixel from the sender’s computer server. That single request acts as a signal, sending a packet of information back to the company.

This hidden mechanism can tell the sender several things about you:

• If and when you opened the email. This helps marketers know if their subject lines are effective and what time of day you check your mail.
• How many times you viewed the message. This indicates your level of interest.
• Your general physical location. The request to load the image reveals your IP address, which is like your computer’s mailing address on the internet. It can be used to approximate your city or region.
• The device you used. The request can include details about whether you are on a phone, a desktop, and which operating system or email app you are using.

Companies, even reputable ones, use this data to build a profile of your behavior. They want to understand what you find interesting, which helps them send you more targeted advertisements and content. While this is often done for marketing analytics rather than with malicious intent, it is still a form of monitoring that happens without your direct, active consent for each email. You may have agreed to a lengthy privacy policy years ago, but you are likely not thinking about it every time you open a message. Blocking images by default stops this communication before it can even start.

Beyond Tracking: The Other Hidden Dangers

The privacy issue is the main reason to block automatic image loading, but there are other important benefits to consider. These range from protecting your device’s security to simply making your email experience faster and cleaner.

A Doorway for Unwanted Software

While less common with well-known email providers who have strong security, images can theoretically be used to deliver harmful software, often called malware. Hackers can sometimes hide malicious code within an image file. If your email program has a vulnerability, simply loading the image could be enough to compromise your device’s security. This risk is highest when you open emails from unknown or suspicious senders. By preventing images from loading automatically, you create a crucial buffer. You get to see the text of the email first and decide if the sender is legitimate before allowing any potentially risky content to load.

Saving Your Data and Time

Every image in an email is a separate file that your device must download. This uses up internet data. If you are using a mobile phone with a limited data plan, the dozens of promotional emails you receive each week can slowly chip away at your data allowance. On a slow or unreliable internet connection, emails filled with high-resolution images can take a long time to load, slowing you down. When you block images by default, the text-only version of the email appears almost instantly, allowing you to quickly assess its importance without wasting data or time.

Avoiding Unpleasant Surprises

Spam filters are good, but they are not perfect. Sometimes, unwanted emails containing offensive or inappropriate images can slip into your inbox. If images load automatically, you could be confronted with content you never wanted to see. Disabling image loading ensures that you only see the text and can delete the email without ever viewing the visual content.

A Practical Guide to Taking Back Control

The process for disabling automatic image loading is slightly different for each email service and application. A frustrating detail is that changing the setting on your computer’s web browser will not sync to the app on your phone. You will need to adjust this setting on each device you use. Below are clear, step-by-step instructions for the most popular email clients.

On Your Desktop or Laptop Computer

Gmail (in a web browser like Chrome, Firefox, or Edge)

Gmail is one of the most widely used email services, and the setting is easy to find.

1. Open Gmail in your web browser.
2. Click the gear icon in the top-right corner to open Settings.
3. Click the button that says See all settings.
4. You will land on the General tab. Scroll down until you find the Images section.
5. Select the option that reads Ask before displaying external images.
6. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Save Changes.

Microsoft Outlook (for Microsoft 365 on Windows)

The desktop version of Outlook has powerful, layered controls for this.

1. Open the Outlook application.
2. In the top-left corner, click on File.
3. Click on Options in the bottom-left menu.
4. A new window will appear. Select Trust Center from the list on the left.
5. Click the Trust Center Settings… button on the right.
6. In the new Trust Center window, select Automatic Download from the left-hand menu.
7. Check the box that says Don’t download pictures automatically in standard HTML email messages or RSS items. For even stricter security, you can also check the box below it for encrypted or signed messages.
8. Click OK on both open windows to save your settings.

The “New” Outlook for Windows

The newer version of Outlook that is now standard on Windows 11 handles images differently. It tries to route them through Microsoft’s servers first to scan for threats. You can opt out of this process.

1. Open the new Outlook app.
2. Click the gear icon in the top-right to open Settings.
3. Select General from the left menu, then choose Privacy and data.
4. On the right, find the “External images” section.
5. Select the option that says Don’t use the Outlook service to load images. This offers the most privacy, as it attempts to block images from loading through any channel.

Proton Mail (in a web browser)

Proton Mail is focused on privacy, and it gives you clear controls over this.

1. Open Proton Mail in your web browser.
2. Click the gear icon in the top-right corner and select Go to settings.
3. In the left menu, click on Proton Mail, then select Email privacy.
4. Find the switch for Auto show remote images and turn it off.
5. While you are here, it is a good idea to ensure the switch for Block email tracking is also turned on. This adds another layer of protection.

On Your Mobile Phone or Tablet

Remember, you must set this on your phone’s apps separately. The settings from your computer do not carry over.

Apple Mail (on an iPhone or iPad)

This setting is located within your iPhone’s main settings, not inside the Mail app itself.

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Scroll down and tap on Mail.
3. In the “Messages” section, find the switch for Load Remote Images.
4. Toggle this switch to the off position.

Gmail App (on an Android or iPhone)

The process is the same whether you are using an Android device or the Gmail app on an iPhone.

1. Open the Gmail app.
2. Tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the top-left corner.
3. Scroll down and tap on Settings.
4. Tap on the email account you want to change.
5. Scroll down to the “Data usage” section and tap on Images.
6. Select the option that reads Ask before displaying external images.

Proton Mail App (on an Android or iPhone)

Proton Mail’s mobile app also requires its own setting adjustment.

1. Open the Proton Mail app.
2. Tap the menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the top-left corner.
3. Tap on Settings.
4. Tap on your email account under “Account settings.”
5. Tap on Privacy.
6. Find the switch for Auto-load remote content and turn it off.

What If I Want to See the Images?

Blocking images by default does not mean you can never see them again. It simply means you are in charge of when they appear. When you open an email from a trusted sender—like a shipping confirmation with product photos or a newsletter from a source you enjoy—you will see a banner at the top of the message. This banner will have a button or link that says something like Display images below or Show pictures.

By clicking that button, you are making a conscious, one-time decision to load the images for that specific email. This is the ideal balance of privacy and convenience. You are protected by default but have the flexibility to view content when you decide it is safe and necessary.

A Simple Act for Greater Peace of Mind

It may seem like a small thing, but controlling how images load in your email is a meaningful step toward a more private and secure digital life. You decide who gets to know your habits. You protect yourself from potential security risks and unwanted content. You even save a little data and time along the way.

While marketers use tracking to gauge interest, and not all tracking is for a negative purpose, the choice of whether to participate should always be yours. By following these simple steps on your computer and phone, you can make this one of the first things you set up on any new device. It is a simple, powerful habit that ensures your inbox remains your own private space.