One of the biggest features Google added in the Gmail redesign is finally making its way to the service’s mobile clients on iOS and Android. Confidential Mode, which lets users send self-destructing emails, has begun rolling out to Gmail’s Android and iOS apps. However, it’s not as prominently placed as one would like and if you’re not aware, you can easily miss it. Here’s how to use it.
Send Self-Destructing Emails on iOS and Android Gmail Apps
- First and foremost, you need to update the Gmail app from the Google Play Store or the iOS App Store.
- Once that’s done, fire up the app and tap the red pencil icon for composing a new email.
- Tap the three-dots overflow menu situated at the top right corner. There, you’ll find an option for configuring the Confidential Mode.
- You will have two further settings for setting up the Confidential Mode. You can specify for how long the email should be accessible to the recipient before it’s disappeared. In addition, passcode protection can be enabled as well which would require the other person to authenticate themselves through a one-time password before reading the email.
- Hit Save. In the email’s message section, you’ll now have an indicator suggesting that the Confidential Mode is switched on and when will the email’s content expire in the recipient’s inbox. That’s it.
Unlike what you’d think, confidential emails are not simply removed from an inbox once they’re past their defined period. Google employs a rather intriguing approach to prevent any sort of misuse. Gmail essentially sends a parsable link which acts as a limited access to the email stored in the sender’s account. Hence, in a way, the message never actually leaves your inbox. Read more about that here.
In addition to the Confidential Mode, the new Gmail comes with a flurry of features and changes such as the ability to snooze emails for later, smart replies, and more.