A burner email address can reduce your risk

Suggestion For each trip you are taking, set up an email address specifically for that trip. Use this for all correspondence connected to the trip. And then, when you have been, returned, and everything is completed, delete the email.

Why? Latest data from NordStellar shows that 501 million unique email addresses ended up in breached databases on the dark web in 2025. Using a burner or disposable email addresses can significantly reduce the risk of that.

Domininkas Virbickas, product director at NordVPN, says that using your everyday email address increases exposure if there is a data breach.

Using a burner email address reduces that risk.

Travellers should consider starting to use the alternatives offered by various service providers in 2026, she says.

“Think of disposable email addresses as damage control,” explains Domininkas.

“They dramatically reduce how exposed you are in the event of a data breach by making it harder for attackers to connect accounts, flood your inbox with scams, or reuse leaked credentials.”

What is a burner email address?

This is a temporary address created for one-time or limited use.

That helps to protect your main email address from spam, reduces the exposure in data breaches and protects privacy.

Domininkas explains: “Burner email addresses are commonly used when signing up for online services or platforms you don’t fully trust, such as free trials, webinars, or gated content, or when you simply want to avoid mandatory registrations.

“Disposable email addresses are quick to set up and often self-destruct after a short period or some number of uses, helping protect your real email address from unwanted marketing messages or phishing attempts.”

How does a burner email address reduce the risk of a data breach?

First, we must understand that using a temporary email address doesn’t prevent breaches from happening.

But if they do occur it reduces exposure and limits the impact.

It keeps you everyday email address out of breached databases.

It presents cross-service account linking. This is gives automatic access across various accounts, without sharing credentials.

And it reduces spam, phishing and credential-stuffing risks. (Credential-stuffing is a cyberattack where hackers use stolen username/password pairs, typically from past data breaches, to automatically gain access to other online accounts.)

How to use a burner email address correctly

The team at NordVPN explains, in their own words:

+ Pick a trusted service provider for your one-time or short-term tasks. Options to consider include 10 Minute Mail, Guerrilla Mail, EmailOnDeck, or TempMail.

+ Use burner email addresses for non-essential services. Because many disposable email services lack end-to-end encryption and security controls, avoid using them for sensitive activities such as online banking, health care, or government services.

+ Use them responsibly. Some people use burner email addresses for fraud and other malicious activities. Thus, some companies may block burner email domains to prevent abuse.

+ For longer term needs, consider alternatives such as email masking services (like NordPass) or email aliases (available in Gmail or Outlook), which forward messages to your main inbox while keeping your primary address private.

About NordVPN

NordVPN is a VPN service provider used by millions of internet users globally.

A Virtual Private Network secures an internet connection by creating an encrypted tunnel between your device and a remote server.

It protects your online privacy by hiding your IP address. (An Internet Protocol address is a unique numerical label assigned to every device connected to a computer network that uses the IP for communication.

A VPN service masks your location and prevents Internet Service Providers or hackers from tracking your browsing activity.

NordVPN offers dedicated IP, Double VPN, and Onion Over VPN servers, which help to enhance online privacy with zero tracking.

One of NordVPN’s main features is Threat Protection Pro, which blocks malicious websites, trackers and ads and scans downloads for malware.

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