How to stop netflix from sending you emails and notifications

Eric Ravenscraft
Eric Ravenscraft
Writer

Eric Ravenscraft has nearly a decade of writing experience in the technology industry. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, PCMag, The Daily Beast, Popular Science, Medium’s OneZero, Android Police, Geek and Sundry, and The Inventory. Prior to joining How-To Geek, Eric spent three years working at Lifehacker. Read more.

Justin Duino
Managing Editor

Justin Duino is the Managing Editor at How-To Geek. He has spent the last decade writing about Android, smartphones, and other mobile technology. In addition to his written work, he has also been a regular guest commentator on CBS News and BBC World News and Radio to discuss current events in the technology industry. Read more.

Netflix is constantly adding new content, and the company doesn’t want you to forget it. You get emails or notifications when Netflix adds new shows, sends you recommendations, or even adds new features to its apps. Here’s how to turn off all those pestergrams.

How to Stop Netflix from Sending Emails as of 2020

Update: Netflix has changed its website and hidden the Communication Settings options deeper within the streaming service’s menu. The basic instructions are still correct; visit Netflix’s website using your browser of choice, click on your avatar in the top-right corner, and then select the “Account” option.

We’ve now reached the point where the Communications Settings options have been moved. Instead of finding the menu button in the “Settings” section, you’ll first need to click on the main account holder’s profile image to expand and show a number of additional options.

From the bottom of the list, you can now select the “Change” button found to the right of “Communication Settings.”

You can now uncheck all of the email notification boxes and then select “Do Now Send Me Any Emails Or Text Messages” as the directions below instruct.

The Old Way to Disable Email Notifications

There are two main ways that Netflix can annoy you with messages: emails and mobile notifications. To turn off the first, open Netflix on the web, hover over your profile icon in the top right corner and click Account.

Under Settings, click “Communication settings.”

At the bottom of this page, click the check box next to “Do not send me any emails or text messages,” to block all emails and texts. Alternatively, you can selectively turn off emails about updates, recommendations, offers, and surveys by unchecking the boxes for each one. When you’re done, click Update at the bottom of the page to save your preferences.

Turn Off Mobile Notifications

Next, you’ll also want to turn off mobile notifications. You’ll get these if you have the Netflix app installed on your phone, letting you know that you’ve just gotta check out this new show. Thanks, Netflix, but I think I’ll wait ’til I get home.

Update: The process for turning off mobile notifications has changed since this guide was published. In the Netflix app for Android, tap the hamburger menu icon in the bottom-right corner, select “App Settings”, and then toggle off “Allow Notifications.” The Netflix app for iPhone and iPad doesn’t offer notification settings in-app. You have to go into the device’s “Settings” app and adjust them there.

To turn off mobile notifications, open the app and tap the menu button in the top left corner of the screen. Scroll down and tap App Settings.

On this screen, tap to turn off the box that reads “Accept push notifications.”

From now on, Netflix should leave you alone until you decide to watch something. You’ll still get email with important billing or account information—for example, if the card you use to pay for Netflix expires, you’ll be notified—but otherwise, you can stream in peace.

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Eric Ravenscraft
Eric Ravenscraft has nearly a decade of writing experience in the technology industry. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, PCMag, The Daily Beast, Popular Science, Medium’s OneZero, Android Police, Geek and Sundry, and The Inventory. Prior to joining How-To Geek, Eric spent three years working at Lifehacker.
Read Full Bio »
Justin Duino
Justin Duino is the Managing Editor at How-To Geek. He has spent the last decade writing about Android, smartphones, and other mobile technology. In addition to his written work, he has also been a regular guest commentator on CBS News and BBC World News and Radio to discuss current events in the technology industry.
Read Full Bio »

Did you receive an email or text (SMS) requesting your Netflix username, password, or payment method? If so, it probably did not come from us. Here are some tips to identify and handle a suspicious email or text and keep your account safe.

How do I know if an email or text is actually from us about Netflix?

We will never ask you to enter your personal information in a text or email. This includes:

Credit or debit card numbers

Bank account details

We will never request payment through a 3rd party vendor or website.

If the text or email links to a URL that you don't recognize, don't tap or click it. If you did already, do not enter any information on the website that opened.

What should I do if I received a suspicious email or text?

Scammers can’t get information from you unless you give it to them. So don’t click any links in the messages or reply to them.

Suspicious emails

Don’t click any of the links or open any of the attachments.

Forward the email to [email protected].

Delete the email.

Suspicious text messages (SMS)

iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch

Tap and hold the message that you want to forward.

Tap More. and then the Forward arrow .

Enter [email protected]

Tap Send .

Delete the message.

Android

Tap and hold the message that you want to forward.

Tap More and then Forward.

Enter [email protected]

Tap Send .

Delete the message.

What should I do if I clicked a link or provided personal information?

Change your Netflix password to a new one that is strong and unique to Netflix.

Update your password on any websites where you use the same email and password combination.

Contact your financial institution if you entered any payment information, as it may have been compromised.

Forward the message to [email protected] with the steps above.

What are the best ways to keep my information safe?

Be careful anytime you get an email or text requesting personal information.

Don't click a link when in doubt; go directly to the company website instead.

Never provide personal or financially sensitive information through email.

Check the sender’s address to see if it looks legitimate.

On a computer browser, hover over any links before clicking on them to see the URL. Make sure the links go where you expect them to.

Install anti-virus software to help guard your devices and personal information.

Lori Kaufman
Lori Kaufman
Writer

Lori Kaufman is a technology expert with 25 years of experience. She’s been a senior technical writer, worked as a programmer, and has even run her own multi-location business. Read more.

Windows 10 includes enhanced app notifications that can display on the start menu, in the Action Center, and even on a flyout above the Notification bar. The Mail app uses the Windows notification system to notify you of new emails.

First, you must make sure app notifications are enabled in Windows. To do this, open the Start menu and click “Settings”.

On the “Settings” dialog box, click the “System” icon.

On the “System” screen, click “Notifications & actions” in the list of items on the left.

To enable app notifications, click the slider button under “Show app notifications” in the “Notifications” section on the right side of the “System” screen so the button changes to “On”.

Close the “Settings” dialog box by clicking the “X” button in the upper-right corner.

Open the Mail app by clicking the “Mail” tile on the Start menu.

NOTE: If you have the Search box available on the Taskbar, you can enter “Mail” into the Search box and open the Mail app from the search results.

At the bottom of the left pane on the Mail app window, click “Switch to settings”.

The “Settings” menu pane flies out from the right side of the screen. Click “Options”.

Scroll down to the “Notifications” section at the bottom of the “Options” pane and click the slider button under “Show in action center” so it changes to “On”.

To have Windows display a flyout notification above the notification bar on the Taskbar (as pictured at the beginning of this article) when a new email is received, click the “Show a notification banner” check box so there is a check mark in the box.

To close the “Options” pane, click the envelope icon at the bottom of the right pane on the Mail app window.

To close the Mail app, click the “X” button in the upper-right corner of the window.

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Lori Kaufman
Lori Kaufman is a technology expert with 25 years of experience. She’s been a senior technical writer, worked as a programmer, and has even run her own multi-location business.
Read Full Bio »

Notifications on Windows 10 keep you from missing important alerts, but it can be annoying having them pop up at the wrong time. Like when you’re giving a presentation at work or school.

Fortunately, if you get a lot of emails and social media notifications, which keep interrupting in the middle of a presentation, Windows 10 includes a feature to disable notifications, without the need to turn off the feature entirely.

In this Windows 10 guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to prevent notifications from appearing while you’re giving a presentation.

How to disable notifications while presenting onto a second screen

If Windows 10 keeps interrupting with notifications while doing a presentation on a second screen, but you don’t want to turn off the feature completely, then do the following:

1. Open Settings.
2. Click on System.
3. Click on Notifications & actions.

Under Notifications, turn on the Hide notifications when I’m duplicating my screen option.

Once you completed the steps, every time you are giving a presentation and you’re connected to a projector or secondary monitor, Windows 10 will not show notifications. This option will only work as long as you connect using the “Duplicate” option when projecting (Windows key + P). If you’re extending or using only the secondary display, the notifications will continue to flow.

How to disable notifications while presenting onto a single screen

If you’re giving a small presentation and you’re not not using the second screen, then the above steps won’t work. However, you can use Quiet Hours to prevent notifications from appearing at the wrong time.

To turn on Quiet Hours, do the following:

1. Click the Action Center button in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
2. If you don’t see the Quiet Hours button, click the Expand button at the bottom of Action Center.

Click the Quiet Hours button to stop the flow of notifications while presenting to complete the task.

Once you finish your presentation, you’ll to need turn off Quiet Hours manually using the same steps mentioned above to see toast notifications again.

Quick Tip: You can also right-click the Action Center button in the Taskbar to turn on or off Quiet Hours on Windows 10.

More Windows 10 resources

For more help articles, coverage, and answers on Windows 10, you can visit the following resources:

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Scammers use email or text messages to trick you into giving them your personal information. They may try to steal your passwords, account numbers, or Social Security numbers. If they get that information, they could gain access to your email, bank, or other accounts. Scammers launch thousands of phishing attacks like these every day — and they’re often successful. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center reported that people lost $57 million to phishing schemes in one year.

Scammers often update their tactics, but there are some signs that will help you recognize a phishing email or text message.

Phishing emails and text messages may look like they’re from a company you know or trust. They may look like they’re from a bank, a credit card company, a social networking site, an online payment website or app, or an online store.

Phishing emails and text messages often tell a story to trick you into clicking on a link or opening an attachment. They may

• say they’ve noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts
• claim there’s a problem with your account or your payment information
• say you must confirm some personal information
• include a fake invoice
• want you to click on a link to make a payment
• say you’re eligible to register for a government refund
• offer a coupon for free stuff

Here’s a real world example of a phishing email.

Imagine you saw this in your inbox. Do you see any signs that it’s a scam? Let’s take a look.

• The email looks like it’s from a company you may know and trust: Netflix. It even uses a Netflix logo and header.
• The email says your account is on hold because of a billing problem.
• The email has a generic greeting, “Hi Dear.” If you have an account with the business, it probably wouldn’t use a generic greeting like this.
• The email invites you to click on a link to update your payment details.

While, at a glance, this email might look real, it’s not. The scammers who send emails like this one do not have anything to do with the companies they pretend to be. Phishing emails can have real consequences for people who give scammers their information. And they can harm the reputation of the companies they’re spoofing.

How To Protect Yourself From Phishing Attacks

Your email spam filters may keep many phishing emails out of your inbox. But scammers are always trying to outsmart spam filters, so it’s a good idea to add extra layers of protection. Here are four steps you can take today to protect yourself from phishing attacks.

Four Steps To Protect Yourself From Phishing

• Something you have — like a passcode you get via an authentication app or a security key.
• Something you are — like a scan of your fingerprint, your retina, or your face.

What To Do if You Suspect a Phishing Attack

If you get an email or a text message that asks you to click on a link or open an attachment, answer this question: Do I have an account with the company or know the person that contacted me?

If the answer is “No,” it could be a phishing scam. Go back and review the tips in How to recognize phishing and look for signs of a phishing scam. If you see them, report the message and then delete it.

If the answer is “Yes,” contact the company using a phone number or website you know is real. Not the information in the email. Attachments and links can install harmful malware.

What To Do if You Responded to a Phishing Email

If you think a scammer has your information, like your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, go to IdentityTheft.gov. There you’ll see the specific steps to take based on the information that you lost.

If you think you clicked on a link or opened an attachment that downloaded harmful software, update your computer’s security software. Then run a scan.

How To Report Phishing

If you got a phishing email or text message, report it. The information you give can help fight the scammers.

Step 1. If you got a phishing email, forward it to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at [email protected]

If you got a phishing text message, forward it to SPAM (7726).

I get at least two emails from Google every time I sign in to my account and I want it to stop.

I tried changing the notification settings in Gmail, but they’re still coming and they’re useless.

How can I stop this?

3 Answers 3

Researching this I’ve seen others have this issue but no solution was presented. One “fix” would be to simply put a filter on your Gmail account that deletes any email that has the title of the email that is bothering you. It’s not the perfect solution but it might do until you find something that is more palatable.

It’s there but is a little hidden. Log in to your Gmail mailbox, scroll to the very bottom of the page and find the “details” button. Click on it and then in the pop-up window change “Alert preference: Show an alert for unusual activity”.

We strongly advise leaving alerts on so you can hear about suspicious activity on your account. If you still want to disable alerts, follow the steps below.

Note: It takes about a week for alerts to get turned off. This is because Gmail wants to confirm it’s you that’s turning them off, and not someone else who might have access to your account.

On your computer, open Gmail. In the bottom right, click Details. At the bottom of the page next to “Alert preference,” click Change. Select Never show an alert for unusual activity.

Chris Hoffman
Chris Hoffman
Editor-in-Chief

Chris Hoffman is Editor-in-Chief of How-To Geek. He’s written about technology for over a decade and was a PCWorld columnist for two years. Chris has written for The New York Times, been interviewed as a technology expert on TV stations like Miami’s NBC 6, and had his work covered by news outlets like the BBC. Since 2011, Chris has written over 2,000 articles that have been read nearly one billion times—and that’s just here at How-To Geek. Read more.

Photo Hall/Shutterstock.com

Text message scams are on the rise. If you’ve received an SMS message threatening to suspend your Netflix account for lack of payment, that’s a scam. Like the FedEx text message scam, this is a form of SMS-based phishing.

How the Netflix Scam Works

This scam is pretty simple. You receive a text message claiming to be from Netflix and threatening to suspend your account. It says something like, “We will suspend your Netflix account today because you failed to pay,” along with a link.

If you tap the link, you might end up on a fake Netflix page that asks for your Netflix username and password or your credit card number.

The scammer is impersonating Netflix to steal your personal information. The scammer likely doesn’t know whether you’re a Netflix subscriber or not, but Netflix is so popular that there’s a good chance you are.

Netflix won’t ever ask you for personal information via text message or email. You should only modify your Netflix billing information on Netflix’s official website at netflix.com.

How to Protect Yourself

Like with phishing emails, there’s no way to avoid phishing text messages completely. Ignore the text message, do not open the link inside it, and don’t send any personal information in response. You can block the scammer’s number on an iPhone or Android phone to ensure you won’t see it again.

You can also install apps that will automatically block SMS messages and phone calls from suspected phishing numbers. This is particularly useful if you’re receiving a lot of spammy SMS messages. Here’s how to protect yourself from SMS-based phishing attacks, also known as “smishing.”

Want to help catch the phisher? Netflix asks that you forward a copy of the text message or email to [email protected]

If You’ve Given Information to the Scammer

I’ve you’ve already tapped the link in the scam text message and provided personal information, you should take actions to protect yourself.

For example, if you entered your Netflix username and password, you should go to Netflix’s website and change your password. You should change your password on any other sites you use the same password on, too. It’s always a bad idea to reuse passwords. The attacker could try your email and password on other websites to gain access to your accounts.

If you’ve provided payment information like a credit card number, debit card number, or bank account information, you should contact your bank or other financial institution.

Netflix recommends you contact its customer service If you think someone else has gained access to your Netflix account and taken it over.

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• › How to Delete Your Photos on Facebook

Chris Hoffman
Chris Hoffman is Editor-in-Chief of How-To Geek. He’s written about technology for over a decade and was a PCWorld columnist for two years. Chris has written for The New York Times, been interviewed as a technology expert on TV stations like Miami’s NBC 6, and had his work covered by news outlets like the BBC. Since 2011, Chris has written over 2,000 articles that have been read nearly one billion times—and that’s just here at How-To Geek.
Read Full Bio »

When you get a message, you can choose to be notified with a:

• Sound
• Vibration
• Reminder

You can also choose how:

• Your device sends pictures and videos
• Messages handles advanced tasks

Change global settings

1. Open the Messages app .
2. Tap More options Settings.
   • Stop notifications from other apps: Tap Notifications Turn off All “Default settings” notifications.
   • Get notifications on your phone from Messages: Tap Notifications Turn on All “Messages for web” notifications.
   • Stop sound notifications when you send messages: Turn off Hear outgoing message sounds.

1. Open your device’s Settings app .
2. Tap Apps & notificationsAdvancedDefault appsSMS app.

Change font size

To make your font size smaller or larger:

1. Open your device’s Settingsapp.
2. Tap AccessibilityText and display.
3. Tap Font size.
4. Use the slider to choose your font size.

Change display size

To make items on your screen smaller or larger:

1. Open your device’s Settingsapp.
2. Tap AccessibilityDisplay size.
3. Use the slider to choose your display size.

Change advanced settings

1. Open the Messages app .
2. Tap More options SettingsAdvanced.
   • Send a message or a file separately to each person in a conversation: Tap Group messagingSend an SMS reply to all recipients and get individual replies (mass text).
   • Automatically download files in messages: Turn on Auto-download MMS.
   • Automatically download files when data roams: Turn on Auto-download MMS when roaming.

1. Open the Messages app .
2. Tap More options SettingsAdvanced.
   • Change special characters to simple characters: Turn on Use simple characters.
   • Change the phone number you use to send files: Tap Phone number.

You can keep conversations accessible with bubble notifications. When you pin bubbles to your home screen, you can get messages from contacts in fewer steps.

1. Open the Messages app .
2. Tap More options SettingsBubbles.
3. Choose:
   • Get notifications for all conversations: Tap All conversations can bubble.
   • Get notifications for certain contacts: Tap Selected conversations can bubble.
   • Stop all notifications: Tap Nothing can bubble.

Tips:

• Change bubble settings for specific contacts: Open a conversation Tap More optionsDetailsNotifications.
• Dismiss a notification: Touch and hold the bubble, then drag it to the bottom of your screen.

1. Open the Messages app .
2. Open a 1:1 conversation or group message.
3. Tap More options Details or More options Group details.
   • Stop message notifications: Tap NotificationsSilent.
   • Get priority notifications: Tap NotificationsPriority.
   • Block messages from the phone number or group: Tap Block & report spamOK.
     Optional: Check the box next to “Report spam” to send a spam report.
   • Add people to the conversation: Tap Add people.

Link previews from websites can be turned on or off:

1. Open the Messages app .
2. At the top right, tap More options SettingsAutomatic previews.
3. Turn off Show all previews.

• Optional: To turn off previews when you send or get a link in a conversation, tap Show only web link previews.

Tip: Only share links you trust. URLs can include personal details, like your location or bank information.

Important: These steps only work on Android 10 and up.

1. Open your device’s Settings app .
2. Tap Display.
3. Turn Dark theme on or off.

Important: Verified SMS isn’t available in all countries or regions.

When Verified SMS is on, Google verifies messages from participating businesses.

I watched one episode of Family Guy in 2017 and now everything on my Netflix is terrible.

We’ve all done it, watched that one out-of-character series or movie on Netflix that is forever messing up its suggestion algorithm. Maybe you watched Queen of the Damned once and now Netflix keeps offering Blade II as a suggestion, with Clippy-like abandonment. Maybe you lent your login to a roommate and they cluttered up your feed with enough Rainbow Dash that you started checking the closets for a fursuit.

Whatever your reasons for re-tuning Netflix’s algorithm, thankfully, it’s pretty easy to do. We’ve all got something to hide here, whether by accident or design, so let’s have a look at how to clear your Netflix viewing history.

How to hide your Netflix viewing history or clean up your Continue Watching row

Removing things from your Netflix viewing history not only cleans up the algorithm so you get better suggestions, but it can also remove those titles from your Continue Watching row that you have no intention of continuing. That could even content that you had watched but exited before the end credits finished, leaving Netflix to think that you hadn’t finished the entire show.

Log into your Netflix account on your preferred browser. Make sure you pick the profile you want to hide viewing details on, as the list is profile-specific. You can change it from the top-right corner at any time if you accidentally choose the wrong profile, or if you have multiple profiles that could do with a sprucing up.

Screenshot: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie

Screenshot: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie

Screenshot: Joe Rice-Jones / KnowTechie

Screenshot: Joe Rice-Jones/KnowTechie

Clicking on that will hide the show from your viewing history and stop Netflix from including it in their suggestion algorithm. It might take up to 24 hours for the change to be made.

Screenshot: Joe Rice-Jones/KnowTechie

It’s even easier on the app

Earlier this year, Netflix updated its app to make clearing the Continue Watching row even easier.

1. Scroll down to the Continue Watching row
2. Tap on the three vertical dots under the show you want to remove
3. Tap on Remove from row
4. Tap Ok

That’s it, now your Continue Watching row will only have the things you actually intend to finish watching. You can also remove shows from the app the same way you would on a browser, in the Viewing activity section of your account.

You can always just wipe the profile

There’s also a really simple way to clear off your watchlist and reset the suggestion algorithm – delete the whole profile. Head over to Netflix, log in, and instead of selecting a profile – click on “manage profiles.” Clicking on a profile will give you the menu options below.

You’ll need to click on the Pencil icon on your profile pic before you can hit “Delete Profile” to consign your skeevy watchlist to the trash heap.

Screenshot: Joe Rice-Jones/KnowTechie

Hopefully, once you do this Netflix will recommend better shows and not just all 50,000 episodes of My Little Pony. Unless, of course, you’re into that.

Will you be using this method to clean up your Netflix recommendations? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.