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FastMail Forum All posts relating to FastMail.FM should go here: suggestions, comments, requests for help, complaints, technical issues etc. |
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10 Apr 2019, 11:17 AM | #1 |
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Protection from tracking
So... we all know that FM can block remote images from HTML email in order to help prevent tracking, but does anyone know if they scrub all URLs from HTML code as well? Can this even be done, if many HTML emails are depending on remote stylesheets or something? And if such scrubbing is not being done, does that mean that blocking remote images only is just a kind of "security theater"? And does it mean that the settings text Ask before loading any external content is somewhat inaccurate?
Last edited by NumberSix : 12 Apr 2019 at 02:22 PM. |
10 Apr 2019, 01:39 PM | #2 |
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I guess a more concise way of saying this is: does the aforementioned external content really include all external references by HTML message bodies, or just images?
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11 Apr 2019, 02:06 PM | #3 |
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If you selected under Advanced Settings "Always display messages in plain text", would that remove the issue?
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12 Apr 2019, 09:49 AM | #4 |
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Yes, I suppose it would solve the "problem" that concerns me, but I don't prefer to do that because most HTML emails (if they don't also contain a plaintext version internally, which I think most don't) look like crap when de-formatted. I like to see HTML formatting when it's available. Just don't want it "phoning home".
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13 Apr 2019, 09:36 AM | #5 |
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Hmmm. Flashy formatting, or privacy?
Flashy formatting, or privacy? Tricky choice. Not. |
13 Apr 2019, 09:43 AM | #6 |
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But it's a false choice. Most HTML will probably display fine with remote references removed. Mail that depends on remote resources like stylesheets might look bad, but probably not quite as bad as the same thing rendered as plain text by simply stripping all HTML code out. Companies/orgs that want privacy-minded customers to see their content properly should (ideally) learn not to use remote resources, but rather embed CSS styles, etc, into the HTML body.
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13 Apr 2019, 09:50 AM | #7 |
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Ideally?
No, ideally, they should use plain text. |
13 Apr 2019, 11:33 AM | #8 |
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13 Apr 2019, 12:51 PM | #9 | ||||
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Quote:
https://www.fastmail.com/help/receiv...tecontent.html Quote:
https://www.fastmail.com/help/ourservice/security.html Quote:
https://fastmail.blog/2014/09/16/bet...mage-proxying/ Quote:
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15 Apr 2019, 10:20 AM | #10 |
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Thanks for the response, Bill... in fact I had neglected to check the help pages. But I disagree that they are "very clear". In fact, with the exception of the one place you quoted "we block any images or other content", every other bit of wording on that page, and the others, contains a very strong implication that "external content" == "images". The two terms are used interchangeably. That doesn't prove anything, but it also does not make me feel confident that in fact any and all external content is being treated the same as images are treated (in spite of the previous quotation). If other types of content like stylesheets were included, you would think that some mention of something other than images would be made. Or there would be an explicit statement that HTML messages are scrubbed of all URLs, or something to that effect. So, I think it is quite reasonable for me to ask this question.
I have put in a support request asking this question. I will follow up to this thread with whatever response I get. |
15 Apr 2019, 12:32 PM | #11 |
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16 Apr 2019, 11:10 AM | #12 | |
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Here's the response I got:
Quote:
Maybe even Grhm will be willing to view formatted emails now |
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