Purpose and Scope
This article describes how the system processes identifiability in email tracking.
Email tracking events include:
Email opens
Email clicks
For each tracked event, the system determines whether the interaction remains attributable to an individual contact profile or is processed in anonymized form.
Anonymization affects the storage and attribution of engagement data at profile level.
Aggregated campaign reporting remains available in all cases.
This model applies exclusively to the email channel.
Event Processing Model
Email tracking is based on tracking pixels (opens) and tracked links (clicks). Each interaction is initially detected using a unique identifier.
After detection, the system processes the event in one of two modes.
Identifiable Processing
The unique identifier is retained.
The event is attributed to the corresponding contact profile.
Engagement data is stored on profile level.
The event can be used for segmentation and contact-level analysis.
Anonymized Processing
The event is detected using a unique identifier.
The system assigns the event to an aggregated campaign context.
The unique identifier is discarded during processing.
No engagement data is written to the contact profile.
Anonymization therefore occurs at event-processing level.
Identifiability is removed before profile-level persistence.
Impact on Reporting and Segmentation
The selected processing mode directly affects downstream data availability.
When events are processed in identifiable mode:
Engagement history is available on the contact profile.
Segmentation based on email activity is supported.
Contact-level evaluation of opens and clicks is possible.
When events are processed in anonymized mode:
Opens and clicks are included in aggregated campaign reports.
No engagement history is available on the contact profile.
Segmentation based on email activity is not possible.
Contact-level evaluation of email activity is not possible.
Aggregated campaign performance metrics remain available in both modes.
Control Mechanism: DoNotTrack Attribute
The processing mode for email tracking events is determined at profile level through the DoNotTrack attribute.
The attribute supports three states.
DoNotTrack = False
Email engagement events are processed in identifiable mode and attributed to the contact profile.
DoNotTrack = True
Email engagement events are processed in anonymized mode and stored only in aggregated form.
DoNotTrack = Unset
No explicit tracking preference is stored on the profile.
If the DoNotTrack attribute is included during a profile import but no value is provided, the system interprets the value as False, not as unset.
Sources of Preference Updates
The DoNotTrack attribute can be set or updated through:
Preference centers
Registration forms
Profile imports
Automation workflows
The stored value determines the processing mode applied during event handling.
Global Handling of Unset Preferences
The DoNotTrack attribute supports a third logical state: unset.
A system-level configuration defines how profiles without an explicit preference are handled.
If configured accordingly, email engagement events for profiles with an unset value are processed in anonymized mode until an explicit preference is stored.
This configuration applies to all profiles without a defined DoNotTrack value, including newly created profiles.