How to Load Images in Mail Automatically on an iPhone

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Disable "Privacy Protection” in Apple Mail so you can access image attachments

Written by Rain Kengly

Last Updated: November 14, 2023 Fact Checked

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• Disabling Privacy Protection
|
• Troubleshooting
|
• Warnings

|Show more |Show less

Are you seeing "Unable to load remote content privately" in your iPhone's Mail app? This is due to a new feature introduced in iOS 15. By default, your iPhone should automatically download and show the contents of an email. If it doesn't, you may have the new feature enabled. This wikiHow teaches you how to make the images and special formatting in Apple Mail load automatically on your iPhone.

Things You Should Know

• If images don't load in Mail, go to Settings" → "Mail" → "Privacy Protection" → toggle off "Protect Mail Activity".
• By default, image attachments in Mail should load automatically.
• Be sure to update your iPhone, check your Wi-Fi or cellular connection, and disable any VPNs.

Steps

Section 1 of 2:

Disabling Privacy Protection

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1. 
   1
   Open the Settings

   

   app. This is the grey cog icon.

   • By default, image attachments in the Mail app will load automatically.
   • If your iPhone is updated to the latest version, the attachments in Mail may not load due to the app's privacy settings.
2. 
   2
   Tap Mail. This will be underneath Passwords. You'll need to scroll down to find it.
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3. 
   3
   Tap Privacy Protection. You can find this underneath the Messages header.
4. 
   4
   Toggle off

   

   "Protect Mail Activity". This will disable this feature.

   • If this feature is enabled, content will be blocked from loading in the Mail app. You may see the notification "Your network settings prevent content from loading privately" at the top of emails.
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Section 2 of 2:

Troubleshooting

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1. 
   1
   Check your connection. If you're using Wi-Fi, check your Wi-Fi network. If you're using cellular data, check your signal. A network issue could cause images not to load, as these attachments tend to be large.
2. 
   2
   Disable any active VPN services. A VPN (Virtual Private Network) can interfere with how some apps function. If you have one active, disable it temporarily and restart the Mail app.
3. 
   3
   Check iCloud Private Relay status. If you have iCloud+, you will have Private Relay. This helps protect your privacy when you browse the web using Safari. However, if this feature is offline, you may experience trouble with other apps that use your IP address (such as Mail).
4. 
   4
   Turn your iPhone off and on again. Sometimes, a simple restart can fix basic issues. If you're using an iPhone without a Home button, press and hold the Volume Up button and Power button at the same time. Swipe to power off. Wait at least thirty seconds, and then power it on again.

   • On iPhones with a home button, press and hold the side button. Slide to power off. Wait thirty seconds, and then power it on again.
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Warnings

• People sometimes include images in emails to track when (or if) recipients open the message. If you allow images to load automatically, use caution when opening messages from senders you don’t trust.
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