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Issue
When you open an email in Microsoft Outlook that includes your practice logo in the email signature, the image does not download or display. Instead of the logo, a blank space or a message such as “Click here to download pictures” may appear.
The missing image may display as a “no image” icon, similar to the example below:
Cause
Microsoft Outlook is designed to protect users’ privacy and security by blocking the automatic download of external images in email messages by default. This can prevent images, such as a logo hosted on an external server, from displaying until the user explicitly allows them.
Common reasons include:
- Outlook’s security settings block automatic image downloads unless the sender is trusted.
- The email format is plain text rather than HTML, which does not support inline images.
- The image URL is broken or the hosting server is inaccessible.
- Firewall, proxy or network settings prevent Outlook from accessing external content.
Solution
Update Outlook’s Trust Center settings to permit picture downloads. It's recommended to refer to your IT Administrator before changing these settings.
Note: These steps are not available for New Outlook. Refer to the solution below for adding the sender to your Safe Senders list.
- Open Outlook and select File > Options.
- Select Trust Center from the left-hand menu.
- Click Trust Center Settings….
- Choose Automatic Download.
- Clear the checkbox for Don’t download pictures automatically in HTML e-mail messages or RSS items.
- Click OK to save the changes.
For detailed Microsoft guidance, see Block or unblock automatic picture downloads in Outlook email messages.
Note: If you prefer to keep automatic downloads disabled for security, you can allow images only from trusted senders or domains by adding them to Outlook’s Safe Senders list.
Outlook allows you to manually download pictures for individual messages.
- Open the email.
- Right-click the image placeholder or information bar at the top of the message.
- Select Download Pictures.
Outlook will remember this choice for the specific message, and the images will display when reopened.
This ensures Outlook always displays images from trusted senders.
- Open the message and click the Junk drop-down on the toolbar.
- Select Never Block Sender or Never Block Sender’s Domain.
This allows images from that address or domain to display automatically in future emails.
Ensure your image is hosted correctly and that the email is sent as HTML. Refer to your IT Administrator if necessary.
- Ensure the logo image is hosted on a publicly accessible server with a valid URL. Outlook must be able to access this image online.
- Confirm the email is sent as HTML rather than plain text. Plain text emails do not support embedded or linked images.
If you are on a corporate network, confirm with your IT administrator that Outlook can access external image URLs. Firewalls, proxy settings, or antivirus software can sometimes prevent Outlook from downloading images from the internet.