Beskrywing
Privacy Mail Log records every email sent through wp_mail(): recipients, subject, body, attachments (file names only), and whether the send succeeded or failed. Unlike most mail loggers, it treats the log itself as what it is — a growing collection of personal data — and gives you the tools to keep it small.
You decide per field whether the recipient name, the recipient email address, the subject and the body are anonymized: never, after a retention period, or immediately when the entry is written. Immediately anonymized data never reaches the database at all. A second retention stage deletes old entries completely. Anonymization is irreversible.
Features
- Logs every email sent through
wp_mail(), including failed sends with their error message - Log view with search, status filter and bulk delete; HTML emails are rendered in a sandbox that blocks scripts and forms
- Per-field anonymization: recipient name, recipient email address, subject and body — each set to never, after the retention period, or immediately
- Metadata-only mode: set the body to “Immediately” and the message content is never stored
- Three replacement styles for email addresses: a plain placeholder, a stable hash (still countable and searchable), or keeping just the domain
- Two-stage retention via WP-Cron: anonymize after a number of days, delete completely after a longer period
- Integrates with the WordPress privacy tools: personal data exports include matching log entries, and erasure requests anonymize them
- Test email screen to verify that logging works on your site
- Attachments are stored as file names only, never as files
- No dependencies, no external requests, no tracking
Privacy
The log stores personal data: email addresses, names, subjects and message bodies of the emails your site sends. What is stored and for how long is under your control:
- Fields set to “Immediately” are anonymized before the entry is written, so that data never reaches the database.
- The retention cron anonymizes entries after a configurable number of days (default 30) and deletes them completely after a longer period (default 90 days).
- Personal data export requests (Tools Export Personal Data) include matching log entries; erasure requests (Tools Erase Personal Data) irreversibly anonymize them while the send record itself remains.
- Attachments are recorded as file names only. The plugin makes no external requests.
Privacy Mail Log is a tool, not a compliance guarantee. Whether your use of it complies with the GDPR/DSGVO or any other regulation depends on your configuration, your retention periods and your processes as the site operator. This is not legal advice.
For developers
neuedaten_pml_logged— action fired after an email has been written to the log, with the entry id and the stored valuesneuedaten_pml_settings— filter the resolved plugin settingsneuedaten_pml_capability— filter the capability required for all plugin screens (defaultmanage_options)neuedaten_pml_retention_batch_size— filter how many entries each retention stage processes per cron run (default 500)
Screenshots




Installation
- Upload the plugin folder to
/wp-content/plugins/or install it through the Plugins screen. - Activate the plugin. From now on every email sent through
wp_mail()is logged. - Go to Mail Log Settings and choose your anonymization and retention periods.
- Use Mail Log Test Email to send yourself a test email and check the log entry.
Kwel-vrae
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Does it capture emails sent by SMTP plugins?
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Emails are captured through the WordPress mail hooks (
pre_wp_mail,wp_mail_succeeded,wp_mail_failed). SMTP plugins that build onwp_mail()are captured. A plugin that replaces the mail function entirely without firing these hooks bypasses the log. -
What does the “Pending” status mean?
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The email was handed over for sending, but neither the success nor the failure signal arrived — typically because another plugin took over the delivery and did not report back. The email may well have been sent.
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What happens on a personal data erasure request?
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All log entries addressed to the requested email address are irreversibly anonymized: recipient name and address, subject and body are replaced. The entry itself remains, so send statistics stay intact while no personal data is left.
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How do I stop the body from being stored at all?
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Set Body to Immediately on the settings screen. The message content is then replaced before the entry is written and never reaches the database — only metadata is logged.
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Is anonymization reversible?
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No. The original values are overwritten in the database. There is no way to restore them.
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Does using this plugin make my site GDPR compliant?
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No plugin can promise that. Privacy Mail Log gives you the tools — configurable retention, per-field anonymization, integration with the WordPress privacy tools — but compliance depends on your configuration and your processes. When in doubt, ask a professional.
Aanbevelings
There are no reviews for this plugin.
Contributors & Developers
“Neuedaten Privacy Mail Log” is oopbron sagteware. Die volgende mense het bygedra tot die ontwikkeling van hierdie uitbreiding:
ContributorsTranslate “Neuedaten Privacy Mail Log” into your language.
Interested in development?
Browse the code, check out the SVN repository, or subscribe to the development log by RSS.
Changelog
1.0.0
- Initial release.
