A hidden read receipt? Protection against tracking pixels in chat
An image in a message can reveal more than what it shows. If it sits on an outside server, that server learns when, whether and with which device someone opened the message. Friendstime puts a stop to that. Here is how it works and where the limits are.
What a tracking pixel is
A tracking pixel is a tiny image, often invisibly small, stored on an outside server. When your device loads the image, that server sees your IP address, the time and details about your device. For the sender it is a hidden read receipt you never agreed to. The trick is well known from email; in chats it works the same way when images are loaded directly from outside addresses.
How Friendstime delivers outside images
If an image message contains the address of an outside server, for example a GIF, it is not your device that loads the image on Friendstime but the Friendstime server, through its own image proxy. It checks the type and size of the image, removes metadata and caches it. The outside server therefore sees a request from Friendstime, not your IP address. This applies in the browser and in the Android app, because the address is rewritten when the message is delivered.
Videos, voice messages and files from outside
If a video, voice or file message points to an outside server, Friendstime does not load it automatically. Instead you see the address as a link. Only when you tap it do you open the page yourself, on purpose. Link previews are fetched by the Friendstime server, not by your device.
Your own uploads without location data
Photos you upload yourself automatically lose their location and EXIF data on Friendstime. So a holiday picture does not quietly give away where it was taken. Whatever is visible in the picture itself, such as a street sign, of course remains visible.
What the protection does not do
When you tap a link, you leave Friendstime, and the destination sees your visit like with any link. The protection is also no substitute for caution with unknown senders: you can slow down people who write to you unasked with “Who can send me messages?” or block them. Images in one-to-one chats are end-to-end encrypted when both accounts have a key; we do not promise this for group chats.
Try it yourself
Signing up takes a minute and is free.
Frequently asked questions
Can a sender use an image to see whether I opened their message?
For images from outside servers, Friendstime loads the image through its own server. The outside server then does not see your IP address but a request from Friendstime.
Does the protection work in the app too?
Yes. The address is rewritten when the message is delivered, so the protection works in the browser and in the Android app.
What happens with videos from other sites?
They are not loaded automatically. You see the address as a link and decide yourself whether to open it.
Are images in chat end-to-end encrypted?
In one-to-one chats yes, when both accounts have a key (ML-KEM-768 with AES-256-GCM). We do not promise this for group chats.