When you receive a highly suspicious email—such as a blatant phishing attempt, a scam invoice, or unsolicited adult content—your first instinct is likely to block the sender immediately so they can never contact you again. However, clicking into a malicious email just to find the “Block” button is incredibly dangerous.
Many spam emails contain invisible “tracking pixels.” The moment you open the email, this tiny pixel loads, secretly sending a signal back to the scammer confirming that your email address is active and that you actively open your mail. This immediately makes your address a high-value target, resulting in even more spam. To protect yourself, you must learn how to block and report senders without ever opening their messages.
How to Block a Sender Safely on Desktop (Windows or Mac)
If you are using Gmail in a web browser on your computer, the process is straightforward, but it requires a few specific clicks from the main inbox view.
- Open your web browser and log into Gmail.
- Locate the suspicious email in your inbox list, but do not click on the subject line.
- Instead, hover your mouse cursor over the email. Look to the far right side of that email’s row; several small icons will appear (Archive, Delete, Mark as Read, and Snooze).
- Click the checkbox on the far left side of the email to select it.
- Now, look at the toolbar directly above your inbox list. You will see an icon that looks like an octagon with an exclamation mark inside it. This is the Report Spam button. Click it.
- A pop-up may appear asking if you also want to unsubscribe from similar messages. Click Report Spam & Unsubscribe.
By reporting the message as spam from the external view, Gmail’s filters learn to automatically route future emails from this exact sender directly to your Spam folder, effectively blocking them from your primary inbox without you ever triggering a read receipt.
How to Block a Sender Safely on the Gmail App (iPhone or Android)
The process on a smartphone is slightly different because you cannot hover over an email with a mouse. You must use a long-press gesture to select the message without opening it.
- Open the Gmail app on your iPhone or Android device.
- Find the suspicious email in your inbox. Do not tap it normally.
- Instead, tap and hold your finger on the sender’s profile picture (the colourful circle on the left side with their initial in it).
- The email will become highlighted in blue, and a checkmark will appear where the profile picture used to be.
- Look at the top-right corner of your screen and tap the three vertical dots (⋮).
- From the dropdown menu that appears, tap Report Spam.
Just like on the desktop version, this action instantly moves the email to your Spam folder and teaches Google’s algorithm to block all future correspondence from that sender.
What If I Already Opened the Email?
If you accidentally clicked into a spam email before reading this guide, do not panic, but act quickly. Do not click any links, do not download any attachments, and absolutely do not click any “Unsubscribe” links at the bottom of the email (scammers often use fake unsubscribe links to install malware).
Simply look to the right of the sender’s name at the top of the email, click the three vertical dots (⋮), and select Block [Sender Name]. Then, immediately delete the email.
By making it a habit to report spam from the outside of the email, you protect your privacy and ensure your inbox remains free of malicious actors.
