DuckDuckGo's Latest Beta Lets Users Generate Private Email Addresses

Despite advancements in detecting and filtering out nuisance email addresses, spam can still be a major problem. Even worse is when a dodgy service reveals your email address to the wider internet, potentially paving the way for everything from phishing scams to doxing. Here to help with that problem is DuckDuckGo and its latest beta offering.

DuckDuckGo announced its new Email Protection feature today, though it is launching in beta and interested users will need to join a private waitlist to get access to the feature. With Email Protection, DuckDuckGo users can generate a private email address for use online.

The generated DuckDuckGo address will forward any messages you receive to your regular email, eliminating the need to provide your regular address in services that may send you spam or track your habits. DuckDuckGo says it strips trackers from any emails sent to your generated address, then forwards them straight to your regular email.

Users will be able to generate their own @duck.com email address through the DuckDuckGo mobile app and the service's extension. The private email-forwarding service is free for anyone to use and new @duck.com email addresses can be generated on-demand anytime a new one is needed.

Email Protection is part of DuckDuckGo's wider privacy services, including its search engine and web browser. The feature is launching into beta so the company can "iron out the wrinkles," DuckDuckGo said. You can join a private waitlist for access to the beta; doing this will put you in line via a timestamp linked to your device.