PixelBlock

I'll admit - I've used email tracking software before to get an idea of my email open rates. But after a few uses it started to leave a bad aftertaste. I started wondering whether other people were doing the same to me and it felt very intrusive. I like replying to emails whenever I want, thank you very much! @omar_w_qureshi has come out with a nifty Chrome plugin which blocks any attempts by others to track whenever you open your email. He'll probably join here to chime in on any details you may have. Check it out!

Thanks @alirtariq! I made this to protect my email privacy and find out at the same time who's trying to track me, and what they're using. Was pretty surprised to see who used email tracking on me while sifting through my emails with PixelBlock on :) Enjoy!

Personally, I dont mind when people use email tracking on me. I usually have it running in the background. However, I could definitely appreciate some people wanting to block it. Are people who dont want to be tracked offended by tracking or just dont want to be tracked?

@EAWharton, I think it's more of a control issue for me. I don't mind that you're tracking me (meaning, i'm not offended). However there are times when I don't read/open emails bcs I know the person will know I read it and thus expect a reply soon!

Quick note: You can use PixelBlock and still track others using any available email open tracking tools. It has no effect on your usage of open tracking. It just prevents others from tracking you :)

@omar_w_qureshi good to hear. It reminds me of the old days with BBM and the silly opening / replying games people played.

@omar_w_qureshi I've seen a lot of these tracking services too with the pixel is hidden in what the sender is trying to play off as an ultra fancy signature or company header. If a person wants to track my open I'd prefer it tell me like back in the outlook days, "The person is requesting a read receipt. Yes or No?" A lot of people have auto loading images on their phones too. So if you're trying to dodge a read receipt using PixelBlock, think about turning that setting off on your phone too