Forum Discussion
BRfiji41
Sep 09, 2024Copper Contributor
Unblock a specific sender's email
I'm accessing my email using the classic Outlook app with a Microsoft 365 personal subscription on a Windows desktop PC. (I also have a business email using my employer's 365 business subscription in my Outlook app.) I accidentally blocked a sender's email address in the Outlook app. Even after undertaking all of the following actions, I am still not receiving emails from that sender:
- Checked my spam folder for the sender's emails
- Removed the sender's email address from both my Outlook app and Outlook.com blocked senders lists
- Added the sender's email address and domain to both my Outlook app and Outlook.com safe sender's lists
- Added the sender's email address to my contacts
- Checked for any rules blocking the sender's email address
- Disabled rules to see if a rule was blocking the sender's emails
- Created a rule to send the sender's emails to my inbox
- Repaired the Office applications
- Searched for the sender's emails using Outlook's advanced search options
- Successfully sent an email to the sender's email address
- Verified that Focused is turned off
- Reset my inbox filter
- Cleared my Outlook cache files
- Enabled automatic inbox refresh
- Verified that automatic send/receive is enabled
- Disabled all add-ins
- Repaired corrupt Outlook .PST file with ScanPST.exe
- Repaired corrupt Windows 11 user profile by changing ProfileList registry keys
- Repaired corrupt Windows 11 user profile with other utilities
- Reinitialized my apps by running AppXPackage PowerShell command
- Deleted affected email account from all mobile devices
- Deleted all mobile devices from Outlook
Things I haven't tried yet:
- Rebuild .ost file
- Create a new Outlook profile
Also, I discovered that any alias I created as a workaround that contains my last name in it (as does my primary alias) are also being blocked by the Microsoft server for some reason, but an alias without my last name isn't being blocked. The sender's tech support has confirmed that the sender's emails are in fact being sent and are shown as being delivered to me.
A Microsoft Outlook.com support agent told me that Microsoft needs the SMTP logs from the sender as the only way to diagnose the problem. However, the sender is a major financial institution and the sender's tech support told me they will never release such info due to security issues.
I'm being bounced back and forth and back forth between Microsoft's Outlook.com support and Microsoft's Outlook web in-app support, each say the other team can fix this issue.
Has anyone else ever experienced this issue and fixed it by doing something I haven't tried yet?
- The issue was finally resolved today after the sender’s tech support removed my email from a blacklist and added it to a whitelist.
- FrederikSeynsBrass ContributorDid you validate if the message is in quarantaine?
https://security.microsoft.com/quarantine- BRfiji41Copper ContributorYes. Thanks
- FrederikSeynsBrass ContributorYou mention both the App and the web solution;
Is the issue also happening with the local app closed? (trying to find out if it's related to outlook app or outlook web)
FYI, I've solved a similar case where the contact was (accidentally) blocked on the iPhone (I believe it was in the standard Mail app) of the client.
Is that person sending to your private email address or your personal?
Personally, I would create (as a test) 2 new Outlook profiles; 1 for each account and investigate further with these results.