{
  "schema_version": "1.1",
  "id": "apple-mail-privacy-protection-hides-opens",
  "slug": "apple-mail-privacy-protection-hides-opens",
  "url": "https://groundedkit.com/claims/apple-mail-privacy-protection-hides-opens/",
  "api_url": "https://groundedkit.com/api/claims/apple-mail-privacy-protection-hides-opens.json",
  "claim": "Apple Mail Privacy Protection stops senders from using invisible pixels to know when an email is opened and masks the user's IP address",
  "commonly_cited_as": "\"Are email open rates still accurate?\"",
  "verdict": "verified",
  "verdict_definition": "Primary source found; it says the same thing, the scope matches, and it is reasonably current.",
  "confidence": "high",
  "rating": {
    "value": 5,
    "best": 5,
    "worst": 1
  },
  "origin": {
    "publisher": "Apple Newsroom",
    "title": "Apple advances its privacy leadership with iOS 15, iPadOS 15, macOS Monterey, and watchOS 8 (June 7, 2021)",
    "year": "Current documentation"
  },
  "quote": "In the Mail app, Mail Privacy Protection stops senders from using invisible pixels to collect information about the user. The new feature helps users prevent senders from knowing when they open an email, and masks their IP address",
  "method": "Official Apple announcement.",
  "drift": [
    "None — open rates from Apple Mail users are unreliable as a result"
  ],
  "interest": "Apple markets privacy features.",
  "safe_rephrasing": "Since Apple's 2021 Mail Privacy Protection, the Mail app blocks tracking pixels from revealing when users open emails and masks their IP address, which makes open rates less reliable.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Apple Newsroom — iOS 15 privacy features (June 7, 2021)",
      "url": "https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/06/apple-advances-its-privacy-leadership-with-ios-15-ipados-15-macos-monterey-and-watchos-8/",
      "primary": true
    }
  ],
  "kind": "reference_fact",
  "as_of": "Announced June 7, 2021",
  "last_checked": "2026-10-16",
  "stale": false,
  "date_reviewed": "2026-10-16",
  "license": "CC BY 4.0",
  "license_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"
}