I Have to many spam emails.

Question

I have received hundreds of spam email messages in my inbox account in the last 2 days. What is going on?

Answer 1

A company or site you used your outlook or hotmail.com address with may have been involved in a data breach or sold its contact list. When spammers buy new address lists, they often “test” them in bursts, which is why this can start suddenly. Or outlook/hotmail addresses that use common words or names can be targeted automatically by spambots.

Although I do want to share an experience I had with Gmail myself some time ago and hopefully this can serve as a warning just to be on the safe side.

I believe my information was involved in a data breach incident via a medical billing company. My credit card was used by someone to purchase a $2000 item at the Apple Store. I received an alert from my credit card company app, and that's how I found out. But what happened after that was crazier—my phone and my email were flooded by spam all of a sudden; they are coming in by the second/minute.

This is what I learned later: fraudsters often use your phone number or email to sign you up for countless newsletters, programs, and alerts. Their goal is to bury important notifications, such as credit card alerts or order confirmations (e.g., from Apple, in my case). They want you to miss those alerts so the order will go through and they can pick up the order no problem, while leaving you to deal with the inbox mess.

It took me several days to unsubscribe and block emails for my inbox and my sms to finally calm down. This may or may not be the case for you, but I just want to share in case the sudden increase of spam might be a cover up for some important emails. Be vigilant.

Answer 2

A sudden spike in spam is usually caused by spammers getting hold of the email address (for example from data leaks, lists being sold, or automated harvesting) and then targeting it heavily for a period of time. While the root cause is outside Outlook.com, several built‑in protections and settings can reduce what reaches the inbox.

To reduce spam in Outlook.com / Outlook on the web:

1. Use the Junk Email filter and block senders
   1. At the top of Outlook on the web, select Settings.
   2. Select Mail > Junk email.
   3. Under Blocked senders and domains, select Add blocked sender.
   4. Add the email addresses or domains that are repeatedly sending spam.
   5. Select OK, then Save. Messages from those senders will go directly to Junk Email instead of the inbox.
2. Let Outlook’s spam filters work Outlook automatically evaluates incoming messages and moves those identified as spam to the Junk Email folder. Junk email is kept there for 30 days and then automatically deleted, which helps keep the inbox cleaner over time.
3. Avoid actions that increase spam The following behaviors can cause more spam to arrive over time:
   • Posting the email address on public websites, forums, or social media.
   • Replying to spam or clicking “unsubscribe” in messages from unknown or untrusted senders (this confirms the address is active).
   • Allowing sites to share the email address with “partners” or “third parties” via pre‑checked boxes when signing up.
4. Be cautious with suspicious or phishing emails
   • Do not click links, open unexpected attachments, or provide personal information in suspicious messages.
   • Outlook.com uses spoof and phishing protections and may mark suspicious messages as junk or show warnings; treat those messages with extra caution.

If the volume remains very high even after using the Junk Email settings, continue marking unwanted messages as Junk instead of deleting them. This helps train the filtering system so that similar messages are more likely to be routed to the Junk Email folder automatically.

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References:

• Filter junk email and spam in Outlook
• 10 tips on how to help reduce spam
• Help protect your Outlook.com email account
• Phishing and suspicious behavior in Outlook