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Gmail Tracking All Links

4 points by acvny ↗ HN
I've noticed just recently that any link you click from a gmail message first goes to a google URL and then the redirect happens to the actual website.

Here's a ticket opened in 2019 regarding this on Android, but this also happens in the web version of gmail:

https://support.google.com/mail/thread/10786964?hl=en

4 comments

[ 6.4 ms ] story [ 22.2 ms ] thread
robertcope
Not seeing this with my Gmail account. It's a paid account, though. Maybe that's the price for good, free email.
muzani
It does seem to behave differently for paid. For example, it doesn't give you automated suggestions on what to respond, which hints that it might not be reading your mail.
terranoct
I think it's less for tracking than for trying to combat viruses and phishing attempts. Having the spool data and writing the JavaScript mail client app makes link-based tracking redundant.
hitsurume
Not sure about gmail, but its been this way for awhile with gchat and i'd presume gmail too.