Gmail reports a 'Suspicious link' on tracked files
Google made a change that affects cloud-hosted or tracked attachments sent with Mixmax. When recipients download these attachments in Gmail, they may see a 'Suspicious link' message such as this one:
This change is not specific to Mixmax, and other companies with click or attachment tracking also appear to be affected.
You can avoid this by using traditional attachments. Traditional attachments are directly attached to the message rather than being hosted by Mixmax. You can use traditional attachments for individual messages and in templates and sequences. Traditional attachments are not tracked. You can change tracking settings in the Mixmax dashboard and learn more about how to make changes in our document covering traditional attachments.
FAQs
Do I need to notify my entire team?
We've got you covered; download tracking is off by default for everyone. When users toggle it on, they'll receive a notification in the product, making them aware of this article and context.
When did this start occurring?
For data on which Mixmax has visibility, there appears to have been an uptick in Google flagging tracked downloads and tracked links beginning sometime in June 2022.
Is this just for tracked downloads, or are tracked links also affected?
Both are affected to a degree. Tracked downloads appear to be flagged much more than tracked links. If you are choosing what type of tracking to keep on now, we'd recommend tracked links as the best practice.
How can I turn off tracked downloads for everyone in my organization simultaneously?
Currently, download tracking has been toggled off for all Mixmax users. If you would prefer, you can require users to use traditional attachments by changing settings for their role. When users toggle it on, they'll receive a notification in the product, making them aware of this article and context.
What action do I need to take today?
You only need to take immediate action if you would like to continue to have your downloads tracked. Mixmax has toggled download tracking to off as default for all users. If you'd like to re-enable it, follow the steps here to toggle it on.