Summary
The sudden spike in triple clicks from .edu addresses during a recent email campaign is primarily attributed to increased security measures implemented by educational institutions and email providers. These measures include automated systems scanning emails for malicious content by clicking on links, often multiple times, before the email reaches the recipient. Factors contributing to this include updated security filters, the high vulnerability of .edu domains to cyberattacks, and the need to protect unmanaged user machines on their networks. Services like Proofpoint's URL Defense, Cisco's AMP, and Microsoft's Safe Links rewrite URLs and scan destination websites, triggering click events. The widespread adoption of these security practices aims to protect users from phishing and malware, but results in skewed click data and website traffic.
Key findings
- Automated Scanning: Security software automatically clicks links within emails to scan for malicious content, which leads to inflated click counts.
- Updated Filters: Updated or newly implemented security filters trigger increased link checking activity.
- .edu Vulnerability: .edu domains are prime targets for phishing and malware attacks, necessitating stricter security protocols.
- Third-party services: Services like Proofpoint, Cisco, and Microsoft rewrite URLs and perform scans, generating preemptive clicks.
- Unmanaged Machines: The security tools are an important measure because of the difficulty patching student machines
Key considerations
- Data Inaccuracy: Email marketers should be aware of skewed click data due to automated scanning and adjust reporting accordingly.
- Website Load: Email senders should ensure websites can handle potential traffic surges from security checks.
- Sender Reputation: Monitor sender reputation to ensure that security systems do not flag your emails or websites as malicious.
- Filter Clicks: Consider implementing rules to filter out clicks occurring before email opens for more accurate reporting.
- Security vs. Metrics: Balance the need for accurate email metrics with the importance of robust security measures.
What email marketers say
11 marketer opinions
A recent email campaign experienced an unexpected surge of multiple clicks originating from .edu addresses. This phenomenon is primarily attributed to automated security measures implemented by email providers and organizations, particularly academic institutions, to safeguard against phishing and malware. These systems often scan emails for malicious content by automatically clicking on links, resulting in clicks being registered before the recipient interacts with the email. The heightened security protocols of .edu domains, driven by their susceptibility to cyberattacks, contribute to this increased link checking activity. The spike can also be caused by security systems being updated.
Key opinions
- Automated Security: Email security software automatically clicks links to scan for malicious content.
- Domain Security: .Edu domains have stricter security protocols due to being prime targets for attacks.
- Link Verification: Organizations use automated tools to verify links for malicious content.
- Spam Filter Analysis: Advanced spam filters analyze links, generating clicks, especially aggressively for .edu domains.
- Tightened Protocols: Security software may be configured to click links multiple times to ensure safety and these settings get updated.
Key considerations
- False Positives: Multiple clicks from security scans can skew email analytics and reporting.
- Security Measures: Recognize that link checking is a legitimate security measure, particularly within academic institutions.
- Sender Reputation: Understand that while clicks might be automated, a negative result from the scan can affect sender reputation and deliverability.
- Filter Rules: Implement rules to identify and filter out clicks occurring before email opening to improve reporting accuracy.
- Monitoring Updates: Be aware that changes in security settings by email providers or organizations can lead to sudden changes in click behavior.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Reddit explains that .edu addresses often have stricter security protocols because universities are prime targets for phishing and malware attacks. Automated link checking is a common security measure.
19 Nov 2024 - Reddit
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks explains that some domains check the email before entering the recipient mailbox and may follow links in the email, which, with tracking, can be registered as a click.
3 Feb 2025 - Email Geeks
What the experts say
5 expert opinions
A sudden spike in clicks, specifically triple clicks from .edu addresses in an email campaign, is likely due to updated or new security measures implemented by these educational institutions. Because the machines used on the networks are often unmanaged they need to secure their inbound mail servers as best as they can, and this often involves automated link checking. This link scanning is a proactive effort to defend against malware and phishing attacks and the spikes occur when the filtering service updates, or a new filter service is put in place, which then checks links. This security behavior is not exclusive to .edu domains as .gov and businesses implement similar.
Key opinions
- Filter Updates: The spike is likely caused by updated filter services now actively checking links in emails.
- Proactive Security: Clicking links is a security measure to check for malware.
- Unmanaged machines: .Edu sites have to be extra careful on inbound emails
- Security Focus: Educational institutions prioritize security measures due to their vulnerability to cyber threats.
- Broader Implementation: Similar security practices are also found in .gov and business sectors.
Key considerations
- Website Performance: Email senders should ensure their websites can handle traffic spikes from security checks.
- Data Accuracy: The automated clicks will skew your email reporting.
- Reputation Monitoring: It is good practice to monitor your sender reputation to prevent the security tools from seeing your website as dangerous.
- Adapt Security Strategies: Understand that heightened security checks are the norm, and it is advisable to adapt email practices accordingly.
Expert view
Expert from Spam Resource responds that a sudden change in click behavior, such as a spike in clicks from .edu addresses, could be attributed to updated security filters on the receiving end, especially if they've implemented new link checking mechanisms.
23 Dec 2023 - Spam Resource
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks explains that academia doesn’t have control over the user machines like corporate sites do, therefore .edu network admins are going to do _everything_ they possibly can to catch malware at the places they do control, like the inbound mailserver.
11 Mar 2024 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
3 technical articles
A recent email campaign experiencing an unexpected spike of triple clicks from .edu addresses is likely due to security services like Proofpoint's URL Defense, Cisco's AMP, and Microsoft's Safe Links. These services scan URLs in emails for malicious content. By rewriting the URLs and scanning the destination website, a click event can be generated even before the intended recipient reaches the site.
Key findings
- URL Rewriting: Security services rewrite URLs to scan destination websites for threats.
- Preemptive Clicking: Scans can generate click events before the user reaches the intended website.
- Threat Analysis: Services analyze URLs and website content to identify potential threats.
Key considerations
- Data Inaccuracy: Click data may be skewed due to automated security scans.
- Compatibility: Organizations may want to consider if their security configurations are compatible with email marketing best practices.
- Reporting: Email marketers may want to adjust reporting to account for the inflated clicks.
Technical article
Documentation from Microsoft explains that Safe Links is a feature in Microsoft Defender for Office 365 that rewrites URLs to point to Microsoft's servers, which scan the link before redirecting the user. The scan can generate a click event.
4 Aug 2022 - Microsoft
Technical article
Documentation from Cisco details that Advanced Malware Protection (AMP) for Email scans attachments and URLs in emails. It may visit links to analyze the content for threats, which can register as a click.
16 Nov 2022 - Cisco
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