How to Send Email to Self-Destruct (Confidential Mode) in Gmail

The following guide provides a clear overview of Confidential Mode, with the most relevant background, details, and practical takeaways.

When sending emails in Confidential mode, users can choose the viewing time limit, let the email cancel or have a password to open. When the expiration time is set, the time limit may be 1 to 5 years.

This feature is available to all email service providers because mail received is not actually a secure email but a link to Google servers, when the recipient clicks on, Google will require login to confirm.

If you send the wrong message or want to cancel the sending, you can open the email in the Sent inbox and select the Remove access button. Because mail is actually on the Google server and not in your mailbox, the sender can control whether the recipient sees the mail at all times.

Note that although this way of sending mail is quite safe, the recipient can take a picture of the email screen. Many people also fear the possibility of phishing attacks taking advantage of this feature.

How to Email Self-Destruct in Gmail

This feature is available on Gmail's webmail, iOS and Android apps. To send mail to self-destruct on Gmail web version, you just need to create a new mail normally, then click the lock icon as in the image below.

Select the lock icon when creating new mail

Then the screen to select the expiration time or request the password to view the mail will appear.

Detailed options for self-destruct time

For mobile users, after creating a new mail, select the 3 dots icon in the corner and find the Confidential Mode option to open a detailed selection screen.

Self-destruct feature on mobile Gmail application

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