Why did a large number of people click a link in my email immediately after sending?

Email marketer from SendPulse shares that factors like spam filters, email client settings, and automated security scans can result in skewed click rates immediately after sending an email.

Email marketer from Litmus shares that pre-delivery link validation by security software, especially in enterprise environments, can trigger initial clicks as the system checks for malicious content.

Email marketer from Campaign Monitor explains that email clients often pre-render emails for preview, which can trigger link clicks as the client processes the content.

Email marketer from Mailjet notes that click tracking systems might inadvertently register clicks due to the way links are processed, especially when using link shorteners or redirect services.

Marketer from Email Geeks shares their experience with AWS, noting they check the links of mailers and they were once under review for broken links.

Email marketer from Stack Overflow explains that some email clients pre-fetch content, including links, which can register as clicks even if the recipient doesn't interact with the email.

Email marketer from Reddit explains that automated link checking by email providers or security software can cause immediate clicks. They suggest analyzing user agent data to identify bot traffic.

Email marketer from Neil Patel explains that bot traffic can come from various sources, including competitors trying to gather data or security software scanning links, and suggests analyzing IP addresses to identify patterns.

Email marketer from Email on Acid describes that certain email clients or security tools will actively render links to determine safety, which will count as link clicks.

Marketer from Email Geeks guesses that some filter's checking links by clicking them, and it seems to be pretty widely-distributed.

Expert from Spam Resource shares that spam filters check links to ensure that a link does not direct the user to malware or other malicious content

Expert from Word to the Wise explains that clicks shortly after sending may be due to security software verifying links, especially if the software aggressively protects users from malicious links.

Documentation from RFC Editor details how automated systems, such as email clients and security software, often process links in emails for various purposes, including security analysis and content indexing.

Documentation from Cisco highlights that their email security appliance scans links to protect against malware, and this scanning generates clicks.

Documentation from IETF specifies that email headers can instruct automated systems on how to process the email, including following links for indexing or security checks, resulting in immediate clicks.

Documentation from Microsoft details their Safe Links feature, which rewrites URLs in incoming email messages. When a user clicks a URL in a message, it is redirected through Microsoft Defender for Office 365. This happens before the destination website is opened, and is used to verify websites are not malicious.

Documentation from Google explains that spam filters often pre-scan links in emails, especially those sent in bulk, to protect users from malicious content, leading to artificial clicks.