Gmail Archives

Big Tech is tracking your emails

I have three different work email addresses — and a Gmail address I set up when it launched in 2004. I could never score the handle again today, but after 20 years, that inbox is a mess.

It’s become my disposable email address for coupon codes, free signups and newsletters — pretty much, the nonessential things in my digital life.

For my personal email, I don’t want Big Tech tracking me. That’s why I wanted to tell you about an email solution to take back privacy that you’ll love, love, love.

If it’s free, you’re the product

Let’s look at what you hand out when you use that “free” email address from your internet service provider, whether it’s Google, Yahoo, AOL or some other Big Tech company. Remember, all of these are tracked and sold off to the highest bidder:

Phrases and particular words that appear most in your emails. Think for a moment about some topics in your email right now. These companies make more money off you when they have more data.
Your location and where your recipients are located, too. Again, it’s just more data points for them to sell!
Every single person you correspond with — business contacts, friends, family, doctors. Also, how often you exchange emails and what you talk about. Nothing is sacred when it comes to making money.
The specific time you’re most likely to open your emails, no matter if they’re spam or legit. That’s why the time you get a particular email may change.
Your website habits get pulled in, too. That includes your shopping, research, dating and even porn-watching habits. Yup, it’s all for sale and tied to your name and IP address.

Simply put, all the data in your email is gathered, tracked, recorded and sold. But hey, it’s free! Don’t like it? Do something about it.

My pick for privacy-first email

Back in the day, none of us blinked at handing out our email address to any form, site, company, salesperson or app that asked. Now that we know better, we can take that knowledge into a fresh inbox.

Don’t just make another Big Tech email account. That’s no solution.

My pick is StartMail. Plans include 20GB of storage (that’s a lot!) and unlimited aliases. You can encrypt your emails, and there aren’t any ads or tracking to deal with. Love that.

If you want to say goodbye to your old inbox altogether, StartMail has an easy-to-use migration tool that brings over your mail and contacts. Score. Or, if you prefer, consider it a new inbox for your VIPs only.

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Reader question: Is it safe to hit the ‘unsubscribe’ button on spam?

I got an email from a reader asking if hitting the “unsubscribe” button in her inbox is smart. Like many things in tech, it depends. In some cases, reacting to spammers might make your email a hot commodity, leading to more unwanted emails or even a spot on a “for sale” list.

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Make sure you get my emails: Sometimes, spam blockers filter out safe messages you really want to see — like The Current! The good news is it takes just a minute to fix it.

Gmail: On mobile? Hit the three dots in the top right corner > Move to > Primary. On desktop, back out of this email, then drag and drop it into the Primary tab near the top left of your screen.
Apple Mail: Tap on our email address at the top of this email (next to “From:” on mobile) and click Add to VIPs.
Microsoft Outlook: Click the Home tab > Delete > Junk > Never Block Sender or Never Block the Group or Mailing List.

⭐ Using a different provider? I’ve got your back. Check this list of other email providers here.

This mom goes screen-free

Open/download audio

Most kids are glued to the computer. But Stacy Liberatore, Deputy Science and Technology Editor at DailyMail.com, takes a different approach — she says no to screens for her daughter. Plus, updates on ChatGPT-4o, Gmail AI features, and fast food freebies.

📧 Mark Cuban scammed: The billionaire received strange notifications in Gmail before answering a phone call from someone ready to fix his account. He bought it, hook, line and sinker. Reminder: Google will never ask for passwords or verification codes over the phone, email or messages.

Get instant disposable email addresses

Apple and Google let you create “burner emails” to save your inbox from spam. I choose this over giving out my real email address when I’m trying to score a coupon code or a site I’m just browsing requires contact info.

Got an Apple device? The Hide My Email feature lets you generate random email addresses when you fill out an online form or sign up for a website.

It pops up when you fill out online forms or sign up for a website.
Emails sent to the generated address go to your iCloud account.

Using Gmail? To create an alias in Gmail, add a + (plus sign) after your address, followed by the name of the site, like first.last+target@gmail.com. If you start getting spam, delete that email address. That’s it!

🗺️ Just got an email from Google detailing how they’ve devised a way to read maps backward. Turns out it was spam.

Google's AI Bard has some new tools that are actually useful

ChatGPT launched last November, and it didn’t take long for the alarm bells to start ringing at Google. “Uh oh, AI is here and it works — what do we have?” (That’s the convo I imagine, anyway.)

Google brought co-founder and billionaire Sergey Brin back from his island paradise to get working on a solution. And now, finally, something exciting enough you’ll actually want to use it — Google Bard integrates with Gmail, Google Calendar, Drive, Docs, you name it.

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How to make sure emails you want to see don't end up lost in spam

Have you ever felt like spam is that one friend who just can’t take a hint? You know, the one who keeps inviting you to their pyramid scheme parties? Out of nowhere, your inbox is flooded with offers of “get rich quick” pitches. Some email providers block these kinds of messages before they cause trouble.

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Drag and drop: In Gmail, your mail is divided into categories: “Primary,” “Promotions,” “Social” and “Updates.” If you always want to see emails from a certain sender (ahem, like me!), just drag an email from that sender into the “Primary” tab. Now, emails from that sender will get the all-star treatment.

📧 AI coming to Gmail inboxes: Soon, a “smart assistant” will summarize email threads and suggest responses. A Q&A tool (powered by Gemini) will dig through your emails to answer questions like, “I got three bids for a new roof. Which one is the best?” Once it’s live for everyone, I’ll show you how to use it.

To spam in a handbasket: Some emails from Outlook are landing in Gmail’s spam folder. There’s a temporary fix: Go to this page, click “Add an alias” and log in. Hit “Add Alias.” Also, here’s how to send an email from a different email address or change your primary alias, if you need more help.

Simple scheduling: Emailing back and forth is a time-suck! If you use Gmail, appointment scheduling is now built right in. On another provider? Try Calendly. The free version gives you one type of appointment. Set the hours and dates, and it’ll check your cal to make sure you don’t get double booked. Nice.

Go away: Say you have a ton of emails from a company (or person) you no longer want to hear from. Search for the email address in the search bar and delete them all at once. In Gmail, hit the Select all conversations option at the top of the page, then tap the Trash icon. Bye!

Wonder how long it took to come up with the name: Elon Musk says he’s launching an email service to rival Gmail called XMail. No details yet. Would you use it? Tell me on, well, X.

Quickly switch between Gmail accounts: Click your profile icon at the top right (on both mobile and desktop), select Add account > Sign in. Now, just click the right profile icon to access the account you want.

Google’s Bard chatbot is now Gemini: If you want a smarter AI, go for Gemini Advanced. It’s $19.99 a month and you get 2TB of cloud storage and Gmail integration. FYI, most people are fine with the free version. Try it for a few weeks before you hand over your credit card.

Privacy tip: 5 ways you’re being tracked you must stop right now

Online privacy is an oxymoron. For example, an advertiser ID on your phone is supposed to keep your location anonymous. Are you surprised it doesn’t? Me neither. Tap or click here for steps to see and remove your advertiser ID.

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All the companies collecting your info to train AI

Aliens might be on their way, but the robots are very much here. The apps you rely on every day use your data in many ways. The latest craze? Your data’s making a whole lot of robots a whole lot smarter.

Earlier this month, Zoom users discovered the app was using data from video calls to train its artificial intelligence (AI). It didn’t go over well, and they quickly backtracked (sort of). Now, we’re all wondering what these companies are really up to.

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Protect your privacy, your cell phone number and email address

Phone scams are never-ending because they work. Scam texts are increasing, too. Here are five sure signs a text is junk you need to delete.

While we’re talking scams, I’d be remiss not to mention your inbox. Tap or click for convincing spam that landed in my email with not-so-obvious red flags.

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Inbox a mess? Here’s the surefire way to keep your email in check

I have a rule: If discussing something via email takes paragraphs and paragraphs, I pick up the phone instead.

Another way I keep my inbox clean is by archiving all my messages at the start of the year. Who says you can’t do the same thing in summer? Tap or click for my quick and easy fix to get a clean slate.

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