Safe Sender emails are still going into spam

Question

Emails from a new client are going into spam even though I've added them as contacts and added them as safe senders. Suggestions?

Answer 1

Hello.

this can be due to their email didn’t pass the SPF, DKIM and DMARC checks. These are standard email domain verification DNS records that help determine if the email is really from the legitimate sender and is it spoofed to look like the email address you trust. If the sender doesn’t configure these correctly their emails can be marked as spam .

I’ll suggest that you use this instruction here to view the email header. And look for mentioning of SPF, DKIM and DMARC and see if they failed.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/view-internet-message-headers-in-outlook-cd039382-dc6e-4264-ac74-c048563d212c

Answer 2

For Outlook on the web/Outlook.com, confirm and adjust the junk settings in a few places to stop these messages going to Junk:

1. Verify Safe Senders and domains
   1. Select Settings (gear icon) at the top of Outlook.com.
   2. Select Mail > Junk email.
   3. Under Safe senders and domains, select Add safe sender.
   4. Add the client’s full email address and, if appropriate, their domain (for example, ******@contoso.com and contoso.com).
   5. Select OK, then Save.
2. Check Blocked senders and domains
   1. In the same Junk email settings page, look under Blocked senders and Blocked domains.
   2. Make sure the client’s address or domain is not listed there. If it is, select it and remove it.
   3. Save changes.
3. Use the Safe Senders List in Outlook If using Outlook (new or classic) in addition to Outlook.com:
   1. Open Outlook and go to Options > Junk Email.
   2. Under Safe Senders List, type the client’s email address or domain and select Add.
   3. Ensure Also trust email from my Contacts is selected if the client is in Contacts.
   4. Remove the client from the Blocked Senders List if present.
4. Mark messages as “Not junk” When one of the client’s messages lands in Junk:
   1. Open the message in the Junk Email folder.
   2. Use the Not junk / Not spam option so Outlook’s filter learns that these messages are legitimate.

After adjusting these settings, allow some time and continue marking any misclassified messages as Not junk so the filter can retrain.

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References:

• Filter junk email and spam in Outlook
• Add recipients to the Safe Senders List in Outlook
• Options > Junk Email
• Block or unblock senders in Outlook