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| Why your Email Bounces March 14, 2006 —Jonathan Shubow Website: www.resume.engageboston.com You click "send" and a few minutes later your Email bounces back. Immediately you assume that there is something wrong with the recipient's Email system. Why? My extensive research indicates that for the most part, the problem is on the sender's end, not the recipient's. Bounce Message First of all, most bounce messages, at least from my servers, contain a message explaining why the Email was returned. All the sender need do is take a moment to read the explanation contained in the bounce message to gain some insight as to what went wrong. However, it appears, at this point the sender's reading ability somehow becomes disabled and the sender picks up the phone and calls the recipient telling him there is something wrong with his (the recipient's) Email system. Mistakes I found the most common reason the Email bounced is that the sender made a typo in the recipients' Email address. Obviously if you hit "reply" this does not apply. Forged Address or outgoing only The next most common reason is the sender is trying to send Email to an Email address that does not exist or does not accept incoming Email. For example, many spammers forge their return address, or a newsletter may not accept Email when you hit reply. Remember, NEVER reply or send Email under any circumstance to someone you suspect is a spammer. Most spammers ignore your request to stop sending or remove your Email address; they simply move you to the top of their "sucker list". Blacklisting The third most common reason is a bit more difficult to explain. The sender's Email server is "blacklisted" or is on a "blocklist". Each Email server has a unique identity called an "IP address". The IP address of your Email server can show up on a blacklist maintained by several blacklisting organizations. The exact reason your Email server gets blacklisted can be many, however, it generally involves a history of sending SPAM, viruses, or other untoward conduct. Please note that most big providers like Verizon and Comcast maintain many hundreds of servers. When you send Email, these providers will use different servers at different times. This explains why one Email will be received one moment, and another bounce the next. Hotmail & Yahoo! The #1 sender of SPAM worldwide and thus the most blacklisted Email system is Comcast. Running a close second is Yahoo!. The rest of the big "throw-away" Email providers such as Hotmail and Gmail are often blacklisted. You should avoid using a free Email service like Hotmail for sending important, business or professional Email. Not only are they unreliable, but their use makes you look foolish (e.g. "BigStevie34534@...") especially if you are in any type of business. Why are you promoting or advertising the Gmail or Hotmail domain as opposed to your own? Where is your branding? (More on that in another article.) Verizon & Comcast Using the big ISP's such as Verizon and Comcast present another issue. These companies place more emphasis on profit rather than tracking down the spammers on their networks and cleaning up their Email servers. This takes time and money, something many providers don't wish to expend on Email which they somehow do not regard as their main or important function. Verizon (The "Evil Empire" as it is know throughout the IT community, a reference to Verizon using Darth Vader as their spokesman) even refuses to comply with international standards related to computers and servers. It can be done however; RCN is a good example. RCN requires authentication to send Email and does not allow its subscribers to run their own Email servers, a common source of SPAM. The result is that in comparison, RCN is rarely blacklisted. But I didn't send SPAM! Well, what you mean is that you did not knowingly send SPAM. Have you ever forwarded a chain letter or joke Email to another individual or a long list of recipients in the "cc" box? Many of these Emails contain viruses that attempt to send themselves to as many people as possible and send back the Email address contained in the recipient's address book. Alternatively once you forward along a joke, you never know to whom it may subsequently be sent. All it takes is someone who does not find your joke amusing to report the Email as unwanted and have it traced back to you! Are you a "Zombie"? You may unknowingly have a virus that turns your computer into a "zombie" sending out SPAM at an alarming rate. One of these viruses was so bad on the Comcast network that Hotmail, for a time, blocked almost all Email from Comcast servers. Even if you have an anti-virus program you may be vulnerable. If this is the case you will be blacklisted almost immediately. If you suspect you have a virus or want to be sure your computer is clean, contact me and I will send you a link to a site that will check your computer for free. All Email is not created equal If you are in business, or want to be sure your Email works and your intended recipients actually receive your Email, you need to find a reliable provider. (Note: complaining to Verizon or Comcast will get you nowhere.) Find a reliable Email provider Additionally you must practice safe Email. (More on this in another article.) Keep your jokes, newsletters and discussion groups confined to your "throw-away" Email account with Hotmail, etc. Use your new reliable Email provider for important business Email. If you need help finding a reliable Email service, please contact me. Post a reply to this message |
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