Screen sender issues

Question

The screen sender for my android Outlook will not accept my choices of accept or deny. When I choose an option it changes nothing and the notification remains. Can you help?

Answer 1

Stephen J Douglas-

Having just gone through this annoyance myself, I'll try to type it in a way you can follow along.

I had to search the screened emails individually and permanently delete them after approval or denial.

After deleting the individual emails, the pop up for "screened messages" went away and approved senders still continued as usual.

ONLY permanently delete the ones the screened section flagged. Approve the emails you want to continue, find the specific screened (approve) email individually, delete, then permanently delete.

Repeat the same process for denied.

It benefits a lot to use the search engine (look for the magnifying glass button) to narrow down the screened emails.

It's annoying and cumbersome, but it is worth noting that approved emails will continue to come through in the future. You'll just lose the specific email that the system initially had you screen (The specific flagged email).

Hope you're able to follow the steps I took. Good luck.

Answer 2

Tried everything you suggested. The only thing that worked was uninstall, reinstall and remove the screen sender option.

Answer 3

Hi Stephen J Douglass,

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A.

It sounds like Outlook for Android is showing an Accept / Deny notification, but when you tap either option, nothing happens and the notification won’t go away. That usually means Android isn’t successfully passing the “button tap” back into Outlook (often due to a temporary sync/cache hiccup, background restrictions, or a notification setting).

Here are some steps you can try:

1) Quick refresh

• Go to Android Settings > Apps > Outlook > Force stop
• Open Outlook again and try the notification
• If it’s still stuck, restart your phone once

2) Update Outlook

• Open the Google Play Store > Outlook > Update (if available), then test again.

3) Reset Account in Outlook (recommended)

• In the Outlook app: Settings > select your account > Reset Account
• This keeps your sign-in and most settings, and refreshes syncing in the background.

4) Clear Outlook cache (safe to try)

• Android Settings > Apps > Outlook > Storage & cache > Clear cache

Tip: Try Clear cache first (it’s safer). “Clear data” is more drastic and usually signs you out.

5) Make sure Android isn’t restricting Outlook in the background

Android Settings > Apps > Outlook > Battery

 Set it to Unrestricted / Not optimized (wording varies by phone).

6) Check Outlook notification categories (channels)

Some Android versions let you control notifications by type:

• Android Settings > Apps > Outlook > Notifications > See all categories
• Look for Calendar or Meeting notifications and make sure they’re enabled

7) If needed: remove and add the account back

• Outlook app: Settings > your account > Remove account, then add it again

Heads up: Remove Account requires signing in again and re-setting things up, unlike Reset Account, which keeps your login and settings.

8) Last step: reinstall Outlook

• Uninstall Outlook > reinstall from Play Store > sign in > test again.

Quick workaround (if you need to respond right now)

If this is a meeting invite and you need to answer immediately, you can respond through Outlook on the web at outlook.live.com as a temporary workaround.

Confirm it’s fixed

After trying steps 3–5, please give it a couple minutes, then send yourself a test meeting invite (or ask someone to send one) to make sure new notifications behave normally.

If you reply with the exact wording on that notification (and whether it’s a meeting invite, an email, or a security prompt), I can point you to the most likely fix first.

Please let me know if this proves useful to you or if you would like further assistance.

I'm looking forward to your answer.

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Answer 4

It sounds like you are experiencing an issue with the Outlook app on your Android device where the accept or decline options for meeting requests are not functioning as expected. This could be related to several factors, including app settings or connectivity issues.

To troubleshoot this issue, you can try the following steps:

1. Check for App Updates: Ensure that your Outlook app is updated to the latest version available in the Google Play Store.
2. Clear App Cache: Go to your device's settings, find the Outlook app, and clear its cache. This can resolve many app-related issues.
3. Reinstall the App: If clearing the cache does not help, try uninstalling and then reinstalling the Outlook app.
4. Check Internet Connection: Make sure your device is connected to the internet, as connectivity issues can affect the app's functionality.
5. Review Notification Settings: Ensure that notifications for the Outlook app are enabled in your device settings.

If the issue persists, you may want to collect diagnostic logs from the Outlook app and reach out to Microsoft Support for further assistance.

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References:

• Your organization has removed its data associated with this app