Self-Destructing FAQS 
Troubleshooting
Usage Issues
Troubleshooting
I know a certain email has been opened by a recipient. Why does the list read "NOT YET" next to the email?
This is a rare occurrence, but there are several possible reasons.
- Certain kinds of Read-Receipts are sent directly from your recipient back to you, the sender. Because Self-Destructing never reads these emails, we will never know if you received the notification in your Inbox. Thus, our web page will incorrectly read "not yet" under the opened status.
- If your recipient read their email when they were not online; chose to cancel, ignore or "unsend" your requested read-receipt; and did not follow your banner request for notification, you will notified only after they have read your message.
- Certain kinds of very old email software are incapable of generating Read-Notifications. These programs are rare, but your recipient may use one.
- Some organizations have a strict "no-return-receipt" policy, and may actively block all Read-Notifications. This is rare also, but worth keeping in mind if waiting for a notification from them (e.g., military branches, government departments).
Notifications are only generated when an actual person (not a "robot" or autoresponder) reads your email. Use Ensured Receipt emails if it is essential to know if and when your email is opened.
Usage Issues
What do "Foregrounded" and "Backgrounded" mean in my email history log?
If your recipient keeps your email message open, and then switches to a different window before finishing your email, "Backgrounded" will show up telling the time they switched to a different window. "Foregrounded" will tell the time they resumed reading the email.
What are the little letters after "Opened" and "Closed" in my email history log?
Self-Destructing uses over two dozen different techniques simultaneously to track your email. Each technique has a single-letter code identifying it. The more different codes you can see, the more capabilities your recipient's email system supports. The word preceding the code explains the code's meaning.
What are email messages registered with Self-Destructing ?
These are messages that are tracked by Self-Destructing on your behalf, and are entered into your personal email register (history log) from where you can monitor their delivery status and subsequent opening information.
What options are available to Self-Destructing users?
Individual Self-Destructing users can:
- Choose to receive Read-Notifications via email
- the moment an email is first opened, or
- the moment an email that was opened gets closed again.
- (NOTE: Read-Notifications also may include the amount of time a message was read; if it was re-opened; and if, when and to whom it was forwarded.)
- Choose to receive Read-Notifications:
- via a personal, dynamic and constantly live-updated page on www.self-destructing.com. This page will list the complete history of all your emails sent through Self-Destructing . You can sort and search this list in many ways, and you can erase sent messages from this page at any time.
- via SMS messages on your cell phone or pager (coming soon)
- via ICQ or other instant messaging services (coming soon)
- Select any number of different email aliases to use with the Service.
- View details of the date and time an email was opened, conveniently converted to your own time zone for easy reference.
- View the length of time emails were read for each time they were opened.
- Select what kind of messages, if any, to show a recipient that their email has a Read Notification in it.
- Enable a Delivery Service Notification (DSN).
- Ask for a Message Disposition Notification (MDN), otherwise known as a traditional Read-Receipt.
Where can I get more information?
You can read the separate general FAQ, or use the links below to write to us.
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