Gmail Confidential Mode & How-to-Guide

Gmail has introduced a new feature named Confidential Mode for sending an email. With the Confidential Mode, you can block the Recipients to not have the option to forward the email contents, copy/paste, download or print the email data.

This feature is an excellent for the users who want to protect the email data or attachments and not allow the email recipients to forward your email to anyone else except to whom it was sent.

As stated by Google, with the feature "You can send messages and attachments with Gmail's confidential mode to help protect sensitive information from unauthorized access. You can use confidential mode to set an expiration date for messages or revoke access at any time. Recipients of the confidential message will have options to forward, copy, print, and download disabled. "

Here is How Gmail Confidential Works explained in One Screen:

How Gmail Confidential Works explained in One Screen

Steps to Send Email and Attachments Confidentially:

1. On your computer, go to Gmail.
2. Click Compose.
3. In the bottom right of the window, click Turn on confidential mode .
   Tip: If you've already turned on confidential mode for an email, go to the bottom of the email, then click Edit.
4. Set an expiration date and passcode. These settings impact both the message text and any attachments. 
   • If you choose "No SMS passcode," recipients using the Gmail app will be able to open it directly. Recipients who don't use Gmail will get emailed a passcode.
   • If you choose "SMS passcode," recipients will get a passcode by text message. Make sure you enter the recipient's phone number, not your own.
5. Click Save.

How to Remove access early

You can stop your recipient from viewing the email before the expiration date.

1. On your computer, open Gmail.
2. On the left, click Sent.
3. Open the confidential email.
4. Click Remove access.

Open an email sent with confidential mode

If the sender used confidential mode to send the email:

You can view the message and attachments until the expiration date or until the sender removes access.

Options to copy, paste, download, print, and forward the message text and attachments will be disabled.

You might need to enter a passcode to open the email.

Though needless to mention, that although the confidential mode will help prevent the recipients from sharing the email, it will not prevent them from taking screenshots or photograph of your messages or attachments. Nor does it blocks the malicious programs on the users computer to be able to copy or download the message or attachment.

Unfortunately this feature is not yet available to G Suite users at the moment.The Gmail confidential mode is also not available in Gmail Classic mode.