Email Aliases and Temporary Numbers: Sign Up Privately

TL;DR: An email alias forwards to your real inbox without revealing it, so one leaked or spammy address can simply be switched off. Free options: Gmail plus addressing (you+shop@gmail.com), Apple's Hide My Email, and Firefox Relay (five free masks). For phone numbers, a masked number from a privacy service is safer than free public “receive SMS online” sites, where anyone can read the codes. Never use a throwaway number for banking or account recovery.

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Why bother with aliases?

Every sign-up is another database that can leak. If you use one email everywhere, a single breach links your shopping, social media and banking accounts, and the spam never stops. With aliases, each site gets its own address. When one starts getting junk or appears in a breach, you know exactly who leaked it and you turn it off.

Three free ways to make an email alias

1. Gmail plus addressing

Google's own tip: “add a plus sign (+) and any word before the @ sign in your current address.” So name+news@gmail.com still lands in your inbox, and you can filter by it. It's quick, but a spammer can easily strip the +word, so it shows who leaked your address more than it hides it.

2. Apple Hide My Email

Apple creates random addresses that forward to your real inbox. Apple says it doesn't read message content beyond standard spam filtering, and deletes messages from its relay servers after delivery, usually within seconds. You get one automatically when you choose Hide My Email with Sign in with Apple; with iCloud+ you can create and manage them in Settings.

3. Firefox Relay

Mozilla's Firefox Relay gives up to five free email masks. The paid tier adds unlimited masks, promotional-email blocking and phone masks that forward calls and texts to your real number.

4. Outlook and Hotmail aliases

Microsoft lets you add extra addresses to one Outlook.com or Hotmail account. In Outlook, open Settings, Email, Sync email, then Manage or choose the primary alias. Mailmeteor reports you can keep up to 10 active aliases and add 10 new ones a year, at most two a week. Use one alias for shopping and another for sign-ups, and you can delete it if it starts attracting spam.

Sending from an alias in Gmail

Gmail plus addresses only receive. To send from another address you own, go to Settings, See all settings, Accounts and Import, Send mail as, Add another email address, then confirm the link Gmail emails you, as Gmail Help explains.

Temporary phone numbers: be careful

Lots of sites demand a phone number for verification. There are two very different kinds of “temporary number”:

Public “receive SMS online” sites. The number is shared, and anyone can see the codes sent to it. Fine for a throwaway forum, dangerous for anything you care about, because someone else can use the same code to take over the account.
Private masked or second numbers from a privacy service or your carrier. Only you get the texts, and you can switch it off later.

Never use a temporary number for banking, email or anything you may need to recover. If that number is recycled, so is your account. Our guide on account takeover fraud shows how that happens, and SIM swap fraud explains the risk to your main number.

A simple setup that works

Keep your real email for banks, government, work and close contacts.
Use aliases for shopping, newsletters, apps and opt-out requests to data brokers.
Use a masked number for marketplaces and dating apps.
When an alias gets spam, check how to block and report it, then switch it off.

Aliases protect your future sign-ups. To see whether your real address already leaked, a free email exposure check lists the breaches it appears in, and the full scan adds your phone number.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an email alias?

An extra address that forwards to your real inbox, so you can give it out without revealing your main email and turn it off if it gets spam or leaks.

How do I create a Gmail alias?

Add a plus sign and a word before the @, for example yourname+shopping@gmail.com. Mail still arrives in your main inbox.

Is Apple Hide My Email free?

Hide My Email addresses are created with Sign in with Apple; creating and managing your own addresses in Settings needs an iCloud+ subscription.

Are temporary phone numbers safe for verification?

Public receive-SMS sites are not, because anyone can read the codes. Private masked numbers are safer, but never use temporary numbers for banking or account recovery.

How many free masks does Firefox Relay give?

Up to five free email masks. Unlimited masks and phone masks are paid features.

Email Aliases and Temporary Phone Numbers: How to Sign Up Without Exposing Yourself