Hashed Email (HEM)

Hashed Email, or HEM, is a coded version of a person’s email address that can be used as a digital identifier online. 

The act of email hashing is a cryptographic function. This means hashing an email is a way to maintain privacy. An algorithm turns a typical email addresses into a “hexadecimal string”. The email address becomes an unrecognizable pattern of numbers and letters. Although the code cannot be identified as a specific individual or traced back to the original email address, the actions and behaviors associated with the code can be recorded. 

Hashed email is valuable to marketers because they can track and understand consumer behavior while maintaining privacy.