Spam Watch 2025: 80% of Retailers Are Tracking Your Gmail Inbox

Your holiday inbox overload isn't just annoying, it's engineered. A new analysis from Proton reveals that 80% of major U.S. retailers embed spy pixels in 100% of their marketing emails, turning your Gmail inbox into a surveillance goldmine during the busiest shopping season of the year.

If you've felt overwhelmed by retail emails lately, you're not imagining things. Inbox volume surged 93% during the 2025 holiday peak, and the bombardment is driven by sophisticated tracking technology that monitors when you open emails, what devices you use, and whether you click their links.

For Gmail users who value their privacy, this is a wake-up call.

The Tracking Epidemic: Numbers Don't Lie

According to Proton's Spam Watch 2025 report, email tracking has reached endemic levels. Research shows that up to 24.7% of all emails now contain tracking pixels, with some domains using nine different email tracking services simultaneously.

But retail marketing during the holidays takes surveillance to another level. The worst offenders combine high-frequency sending with dense tracking:

• CB2 (home décor): Tracking aggression score of 27.39
• Anthropologie: Score of 24.31
• Victoria's Secret: Score of 21.75

Some retailers are sending over 3 emails per day. LOFT leads with 3.62 daily emails, followed by Macy's (3.52) and Neiman Marcus (3.32). And each email isn't just promotional—it's packed with trackers. Victoria's Secret's Pink brand embeds an average of 14 tracking pixels per email, with Victoria's Secret main brand using 13.84 and CB2 deploying 13 trackers per message.

How Spy Pixels Actually Work

So what exactly is a spy pixel? It's a 1×1 invisible image embedded in HTML emails. When your email client loads the message, it requests this tiny image from the sender's server. That single request reveals:

• When you opened the email (down to the second)
• Your IP address (which can reveal your location)
• Your device type (iPhone, Android, desktop)
• Your email client (Gmail app, browser, etc.)
• Whether you forwarded the email to someone else

Each tracking pixel URL is unique to you, creating a direct link between your identity and your behavior. Marketers use this data to optimize send times, segment audiences, and determine which customers are most engaged—essentially profiling your shopping habits without your explicit consent.

A 2021 study by the email service "Hey" found that spy pixels appeared in about 600,000 out of 1,000,000 messages daily. By 2025, this surveillance has only intensified, with lawsuits now targeting major brands like Patagonia, PacSun, Target, Gap, and Lowe's for allegedly tracking customers without proper consent.

The Privacy Champions: Proof That Change Is Possible

Not all retailers are playing the tracking game. Proton's analysis identified five brands that sent zero tracked emails during the study period:

• H&M
• TJ Maxx
• Burlington
• Bass Pro Shops
• New Balance

These companies prove that effective marketing doesn't require invasive surveillance. You can promote products, drive sales, and build customer relationships without embedding invisible trackers in every message.

Why Gmail Users Are Especially Vulnerable

While Apple Mail users benefit from Mail Privacy Protection (which preloads images through proxy servers and has been adopted by 97% of iOS users), Gmail takes a different approach. Gmail caches images on Google's servers, which can strip some location data, but it doesn't preload pixels like Apple does.

This means Gmail users remain more exposed to real-time tracking. When you open a tracked email in Gmail, the sender often gets accurate data about your open time and behavior—exactly the information retailers use to intensify their campaigns.

How to Protect Your Gmail Privacy

The good news? You can take back control of your inbox privacy with a few simple steps:

1. Disable Auto-Loading Images in Gmail

The most straightforward protection is telling Gmail not to automatically load external images. On Gmail web, go to Settings > General > Images and select "Ask before displaying external images." On mobile, find the same option under your account settings.

The downside? You'll need to manually load images for every email, which can be inconvenient.

2. Use a Privacy Extension Like Gblock

For Gmail users who want both privacy and convenience, browser extensions offer the best solution. Gblock is specifically designed to protect Gmail users by:

• Automatically detecting and blocking spy pixels
• Preventing tracking links from revealing your clicks
• Blocking read receipts so senders can't confirm you've seen their message
• Working invisibly in the background while you use Gmail normally

Unlike disabling images entirely, Gblock lets you see email content while still protecting your privacy. It's the privacy shield Gmail should have built in from the start.

3. Be Selective About Who Gets Your Email

With nearly one-third of consumers now distrustful of sharing email addresses due to privacy concerns, it's worth being strategic. Use separate email addresses for shopping versus personal communication, and unsubscribe from retailers who abuse your inbox.

The Bottom Line

The 2025 holiday season has exposed just how deeply email surveillance has penetrated retail marketing. When 80% of major retailers track 100% of their marketing emails, inbox overload isn't a personal failing—it's a business model built on monitoring your behavior.

For privacy-conscious Gmail users, the message is clear: Your inbox is under surveillance, but you don't have to accept it. Whether you disable images, install Gblock, or support the rare retailers who respect privacy, taking action matters.

Your email behavior is your business. Protect your inbox. Take control of your data, Gblock has you covered!