outlook email signature not showing images

Question

My email signature contains some images. When I create a new email, the images appear regularly in the signature. After the email is sent, however - 1) the email recipient cannot see the images 2) the images do not appear in the stored version of the email in the 'sent' folder. Instead of the image, the following message appears:

The linked image cannot be displayed. The file may have been moved, renamed or deleted. Verify that the link points to the correct file and location.

I have tried re-creating the signature through options - mail - signatures and by inserting the images directly into the signature box from the original image files (not copied from a Word document). I have also tried creating the signature in an email, complete with the images, and then copying and pasting that signature into the same signature box. Neither of these methods overcame the problem.

Curiously, all previous emails in my sent folder also do not display the signature images, even those from a long time ago (before this problem appeared).

I am using Outlook 365, classic version.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Answer 1

Hi @Peter Sanfilippo,

From what you’ve described, this appears to be a known issue affecting classic Outlook for Windows. Specifically, it has been observed that images in emails, newsletters, and signatures may display correctly while composing. However, after the message is sent, the images can disappear. As a result, recipients, as well as your own Sent Items, may show the message "The linked image cannot be displayed".

According to Microsoft, this issue began after the May 12, 2026 updates and is related to how certain images are formatted within the message. You may find more details in Microsoft’s documentation under: Images are not displayed in emails, newsletters, or signatures in classic Outlook

To begin with, I recommend checking your current Outlook version and ensuring that all Office updates are installed. You can do this by going to File > Office Account > About Outlook (to view your version/build), and then File > Office Account > Update Options > Update Now (to install updates).

Microsoft has already released a fix in newer builds. Additionally, for update channels that had not yet received it, the fix was expected to be included in the public updates released on June 9, 2026.

Furthermore, Microsoft notes that this issue is often linked to images using the "Top and Bottom" text wrapping option. Therefore, as a temporary workaround, you can try recreating your email signature and ensuring that any images are set to "In Line with Text" instead of "Top and Bottom" or other floating wrap styles. This setting can also be controlled through the Insert/paste pictures as option in the Outlook/Office editor.

In summary, I would recommend the following steps:

Update your Outlook/Office installation to the latest version.

Check your signature image formatting and switch it to “In Line with Text.”

Recreate your signature after updating, and test it by sending a new message.

I hope this information helps improve the situation. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or need further assistance.

Wishing you all the best.

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Answer 2

The behavior matches a known Outlook issue where linked images are blocked by a specific registry setting.

In Outlook 365 classic, this occurs when the BlockHTTPimages registry value is set to 1 and the images in the message (including those in signatures) are loaded from a URL. When this value is enabled, Outlook replaces those images with the error:

The linked image cannot be displayed. The file may have been moved, renamed, or deleted. Verify that the link points to the correct file and location.

Because this is enforced at display time, it also affects messages already stored in Sent Items, which explains why older sent messages now show the same error.

To fix it, remove the BlockHTTPimages value from the registry.

1. Close Outlook.
2. Open Registry Editor (regedit.exe).
3. Locate the key (replace x.0 with the Office version in use):
   • Without Group Policy:
     • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\x.0\Common
   • With Group Policy:
     • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\policies\Microsoft\Office\x.0\Common
4. In that key, find the BlockHTTPimages DWORD with value 1.
5. Right‑click BlockHTTPimages and select Delete.
6. Confirm deletion, then exit Registry Editor and restart Outlook.

If the value is under the Policies hive, it is likely set by Group Policy and will be recreated; in that case, an administrator must change the policy for the setting to persist.

After this change, newly viewed and newly sent messages should display the signature images correctly, provided the image URLs are valid and reachable.

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References:

• The Linked image cannot be displayed error in an Outlook email message