At Proton Mail, we believe that reading emails should be as private as our end-to-end encryption makes sending them.
Today, we’re happy to introduce enhanced tracking protection, a feature that will provide an additional layer of privacy to your inbox. Now you can read your emails without letting advertisers watch you, build a profile on you, or serve you ads based on your mail activity.
By default, Proton Mail on the web now protects your privacy by:
- Blocking tracking pixels commonly found in newsletters and promotional emails, preventing senders from spying on your mail.
- Hiding your IP address from third parties so your location remains private.
With enhanced tracking protection, you can continue to use your Proton Mail address to subscribe to newsletters and register for online accounts everywhere while enjoying a better, more private email-reading experience.
How does email tracking work?
Email tracking is a form of digital surveillance that has become a serious concern(new window) in recent years. Over 40% of emails sent and received daily(new window) are tracked. It works by embedding a tiny, invisible spy pixel in an email sent to you, logging details about your mail activity. Every time you open the email, the spy pixel collects information such as:
- When you opened an email
- How many times you have opened an email
- The device(s) involved
- Your location and IP address
The gathered data is sent to the email sender, all without your consent. Email trackers can sometimes even expose your information to third parties(new window), allowing them to track you across the web and connect your online activity to your email address(new window), further shaping your invisible online profile.
Use Proton Mail for a cleaner, more private inbox
At Proton Mail, our vision is to build a better internet where privacy is the default. As part of this vision, we’ve built enhanced tracking protection to keep your personal data safe. The feature is enabled by default on our web app, so you can enjoy peace of mind knowing that your emails are always protected.
You can also learn more about spy pixels and how we block them from your emails.
Once again, we thank you for being a valuable member of the Proton community!
