mailtoemailaddresssubjectInquiry

The mailto URI scheme is a URL scheme that specifies an email address and optionally other parameters such as a subject line, body content, and recipient list. It is primarily used to create links that, when clicked, open the user's default email client with a pre-populated message.

When a user clicks on a mailto link, their web browser interprets the link and instructs the operating system to launch the default email application. The parameters specified in the mailto URI are then used to fill in the corresponding fields in the email composer. For example, a mailto link like mailto:[email protected]?subject=Hello&body=This is a test message would open the default email client with "[email protected]" in the "To" field, "Hello" in the "Subject" field, and "This is a test message" in the body.

While convenient for simple email composition, mailto links have limitations. They rely on the user having a configured email client and can sometimes be unreliable across different operating systems and browsers. Furthermore, they can be susceptible to email address harvesting by bots if not implemented carefully. For more complex or robust email interactions, web-based contact forms or dedicated email APIs are often preferred. The specification for the mailto URI scheme is defined in RFC 6068.