If you want to prevent users from adding signatures in Outlook, here is how you can do that. It is possible to enable this setting with the help of the Registry Editor and the Local Group Policy Editor. After turning it on, Outlook won’t display the option to add the signature that you created earlier.
Let’s assume you are on a team and do not want to include a signature on any email sent on behalf of your company. There are two options. First, you can remove the signature manually. Second, you can use this method to get the job done. The guide below is useful when you have multiple customized signatures and do not want to remove them.
How to prevent Users from adding Signature in Outlook
To prevent users from adding a signature in Outlook using the Registry, follow these steps:
- Press Win+R to display the Run prompt.
- Type regedit and hit the Enter button.
- Click the Yes button.
- Navigate to office in HKCU.
- Right-click on office > New > Keyand name it as 0.
- Repeat these steps to create another sub-key named common.
- Right-click on common > New > Keyand name it as mailsettigns.
- Right-click on mailsettings > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
- Set the name as disablesignatures.
- Double-click on it to set the Value data as 1.
- Click the OK button and restart your computer.
Let’s take a closer look at these steps.
To get started, press Win+R to open the Run prompt, type regedit, press the Enter button, and click on the Yes option on the UAC prompt to open the Registry Editor on your PC.
Then, navigate to the following path:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\office
Right-click on the office key, select New > Key and name it as 16.0. Then, right-click on the 16.0 key, select New > Key from the context menu, and set the name as common.
After that, you need to create a sub-key under the common key. For that, right-click on common > New > Key, and name it as mailsettings.
Once done, create a REG_DOWRD value. T do that, right-click on mailsettings > New > DWORD (32-bit) Value and call it disablesignatures.
Double-click on this REG_DOWRD value to set the Value data as 1.
Then, click the OK button and restart your computer to get the change.
If you want to allow Outlook to add signatures to e-mail messages, you have two options. You can set the Value data as 0 or delete the REG_DWORD value. If you want to delete the REG_DWORD value, right-click on it, select the Delete option, and click on the Yes button.
The same thing can be done with the help of the Local Group Policy Editor. However, you need to install the administrative template for Office first.
How to stop users from adding signatures in Outlook using Group Policy
To stop users from adding signatures in Outlook using Group Policy, follow these steps:
- Search for gpedit.msc in the Taskbar search box.
- Click on the search result.
- Navigate to Mail Format in User Configuration.
- Double-click on the Do not allow signatures for e-mail messages setting.
- Choose the Enabled option.
- Click the OK button.
To learn more about these steps, keep reading.
First, you need to open the Local Group Policy Editor on your computer. For that, you can use the Taskbar search box. That said, search for gpedit.msc and click on the individual search result.
Then, navigate to the following path:
User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Outlook 2016 > Outlook Options > Mail Format
Here you can find a setting called Do not allow signatures for e-mail messages. You need to double-click on it and choose the Enabled option.
Then, click the OK button to save the change. Unlike the REGEDIT method, you do not need to restart your computer. However, if Outlook was opened during the change, you need to restart the Outlook app.
In case you want to revert this change, you need to navigate to the same Mail Format section, double-click on the Do not allow signatures for e-mail messages setting, and choose the Not Configured option. Although you can also select the Disabled option, it is recommended to opt for Not Configured for having the default setting.
That’s all! Hope this guide helped.
Read: Unable to add Email Signature in Outlook.
How do I disable the end user’s ability to add, edit and remove Outlook signatures?
To disable the end user’s ability to add, edit, and remove Outlook signatures, you need to create a REG_DWORD value named NewSignature here: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\office\16.0\common\mailsettings. Then, double-click on it to set the Value data as 1. Next, create another REG_DWORD value named ReplySignature and set the Value data as 1.
How do I turn off my signature in Office 365?
To turn off your signature in Office 365 or Outlook 365, follow the guide above. In the Local Group Policy Editor, open the Do not allow signatures for e-mail messages setting. Then, choose the Enabled option and click the OK button.
