If you've noticed unexpected or inflated click counts in your Opensense campaign reports, you're not alone. Email security gateways such as Proofpoint, Mimecast, and Barracuda are widely used to scan inbound emails for potential threats—including links embedded within banners or signatures. These tools often “click” tracked links as part of their routine scans, which can artificially increase your engagement metrics.
What Are "Vanity Clicks"?
Vanity clicks refer to clicks generated by automated email security software, rather than by real users. Because these tools interact with tracked links during their security scans, Opensense and other email engagement platforms can mistakenly record these as actual recipient interactions.
Is This Issue Unique to Opensense?
No, the challenge of vanity clicks is common across all platforms that track email engagement using embedded links. The technical behaviors of security solutions are consistent, whether you're using Opensense or a different vendor.
What Is Opensense Doing About It?
Opensense's Engineering Team is aware of this reporting challenge and continues to monitor how email security tools impact engagement data. However, because vanity clicks originate from recipient-side security infrastructure, the issue cannot be fully prevented by any email campaign provider.
How Can I Improve the Accuracy of My Metrics?
To ensure more reliable click reporting:
Export Your Click Data: Download your campaign’s raw click data.
Filter for Duplicates: Review and filter out duplicate clicks that are likely to result from automated security scans.
Monitor Patterns: Look for unusual spikes in click activity or repeated clicks from the same recipient within a short timeframe.
By regularly monitoring and cleaning your engagement data, you'll get a more accurate picture of genuine recipient interactions.
Opensense Support
For further assistance, contact Opensense Support:
Email: help@opensense.com
Knowledge Base: help.opensense.com