How To Fix Unable To Load Remote Content Privately In Mail

Unable to load remote content privately

Unable to load remote content privately


Are you getting the Unable to load remote content privately error in Mail? This issue can be common among iOS 15 users and is usually caused by the new Private Relay privacy feature. The warning message is triggered when an unread mail message is opened in the stock Mail app, Gmail, Yahoo and others.

Images within the mail message aren’t loading when the ‘Unable to load remote content’ error is displayed. If you’re willing to sacrifice privacy, you can tap Load Content and the pictures will download without iOS 15 being able to hide your IP from network trackers.

How To Fix Unable To Load Remote Content Privately

This error can be triggered when Private Relay is enabled on your iCloud account, but it’s not active on your current Internet connection, for example home or work Wi-Fi network:
how to enable private relay for WiFi

  • Open Settings and browse for Wi-Fi.
  • Tap the blue ‘i’ icon, available next to the name of the Wi-Fi network that your iPhone / iPad is currently connected to.
  • Enable iCloud Private Relay.
  • Open the App Switcher and force close Mail.
  • Relaunch the Mail app and try to open a message. Are you still getting the Unable to load remote content privately error?

iCloud Private Relay Downtime?

Update, November 3:
icloud private relay outage

The ‘Unable to load remote content privately’ error can also be triggered by an iCloud Private Relay outage! In fact, Private Relay is currently experiencing a worldwide downtime . The outage is confirmed on Apple’s System Status page.

Update, November 14:
private relay unavailable notification
iCloud Private Relay is down again! Apple doesn’t confirm the issue yet in the System Status page but we and many other readers have been prompted with the Private Relay Unavailable error!

All that you can do in this case is to be patient until Apple fixes this issue!

Private Relay Not Available?

Private Relay not showing up? This is a premium iOS 15 feature and only available with an iCloud+ or Apple One subscription.

Other Fixes For Loading Remote Content Privately

2. Disable Firewalls & DNS Guards

The Unable To Load Remote Content Privately error can be also generated by third-party apps that run firewalls or similar DNS protection.

If your iPhone or iPad runs software like AdGuard or 1Blockers make sure that you whitelist the Mail app to prevent this issue from triggering.

Fact: Having both VPN and Private Relay enabled on your device can lead to the ‘Unable to load remote content privately’ error. You will have to turn off one of them, or clear the Mail app on your VPN if possible!

3. Disable Privacy Protection

how to disable Mail Privacy Protection
A workaround for the Unable to load remote content privately error implies to turn off the iOS 15 Mail Privacy Protection.

However, this might not be the fix that you are looking for because you will stop seeing the error message, but sacrifice privacy instead.

How to: Browse for Settings -> Mail -> Privacy Protection -> Protect Mail Activity. Turn it OFF and also disable Hide IP Address option.

Fact: This workaround isn’t ideal. The error stops showing up only because you disabled the privacy feature, allowing your mail activity to be tracked by various network profilers!

Did you manage to fix the Unable to load remote content privately error? Which of the above troubleshooting tips worked for you? Use the comments section and share your feedback.

Related: How to block email tracking on iPhone in iOS 14!