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How do I know if the e-mail I sent someone has been read already by him / her. If I heard it correctly, it's called a read receipt. How do I use or implement something like that?
Registered User
Posted 2011-02-10T21:10:48.893
Reputation: 265
Detect if e-mail has been read by the recipient?
Answers
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There is no way to absolutely know for sure. Some environments support it within a given enterprise (ie, if you're emailing a co-worker). But if you're mailing someone else at random on the net, you can't.
There are some tricks to attempt to get around this. Many "advertising newsletter" types things from stores send mail only in HTML and contain embedded images that point to a unique URL on their server that is mapped to you. However, even this won't give you assurance that they read it since many mail readers are configured not to load images by default, for example.
Now, lets say you could actually detect through some trickery they opened it. Could you tell they read it? Could you tell that they clicked quickly, realized they clicked on the wrong one and clicked on another one within a second? You can't.
The best thing to do is put a phrase in it that says "the magic word is dune-buggy" and then call them and ask if they know what the magic word is :-)
Wes Hardaker
Posted 2011-02-10T21:10:48.893
Reputation: 1 796
Just as read as terms and conditions you explicitly confirm to have read. – Volker Siegel – 2020-01-01T06:19:08.053
Also known as "PattyMail" after HP tried to use these to figure out who on their board was leaking information to the press. – Broam – 2011-02-10T22:02:20.133
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On Outlook 2007 it is under options:
Supercereal
Posted 2011-02-10T21:10:48.893
Reputation: 8 643
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there is no way for this. For the emails you are interested in, I suggest you to send them as normal mails, then add a mark to them, and review after some days if they have been answered, case notm send them again. For me it works
Open the way
Posted 2011-02-10T21:10:48.893
Reputation: 6 061
What is your platform you are sending emails from? – DaBaer – 2011-02-10T21:12:51.243
Post your Operating System and Email client or type of Webmail you are using, edit your original post to include this information. – Moab – 2011-02-10T21:13:35.080
8You can't, reliably. Email clients (and their users) can skip sending a receipt, or don't support this feature at all. – Daniel Beck – 2011-02-10T21:14:13.630
What Daniel Beck said is true. – Supercereal – 2011-02-10T21:16:37.070
Daniel is correct, BUT depending on your environment, your mail administrator can most likely run a trace. – DaBaer – 2011-02-10T21:17:22.157
1What @Daniel Beck said. I always refuse to send read receipts, and I judge you every time I see you requested one. ;) – Shinrai – 2011-02-10T21:22:59.023
Related (if not a dupe): How to prove that an email has been sent?
– Arjan – 2011-02-10T21:56:12.527