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Scrape Timestamp (UTC): 2024-05-09 17:58:50.416
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AT&T delays Microsoft 365 email delivery due to spam wave. AT&T's email servers are blocking connections from Microsoft 365 due to a "high volume" spam wave originating from Microsoft's service. Starting on Monday, AT&T customers began reporting they could no longer receive email from Microsoft 365 email addresses. When Microsoft 365 customers attempted to email an address at @att.com, @sbcglobal.net, or @bellsouth.com, AT&T servers would refuse the connection and not accept the email for delivery. Since then, AT&T customers have created numerous topics with hundreds of replies in the company's forums about the issue [1, 2, 3, 4], with some claiming it also affects Gmail. "Same problem. Can't send from multiple 365 accounts or gmail... only to att.net domain... Hey ATT... I cant even email your SALES guys... get this working...," reported someone trying to send an email to an AT&T address. "I'm having the same problem: nothing from a gmail account is getting into my email account (sbcglobal.net), and nothing is being bounced back to the sending gmail accounts. It's just vanishing. Yet everything was working a few hours ago," a sbcglobal.net user posted. BleepingComputer could not independently confirm whether Gmail emails are having issues as well. AT&T told BleepingComputer that the issue is due to an "unusually high volume of spam" originating from Microsoft's servers, causing a mail delay. "An unusually high volume of spam originating from the Microsoft email platform is causing temporary delays in receiving emails from that platform," an AT&T spokesperson told BleepingComputer. "This incoming spam is an industry-wide issue that affects multiple email services. We thank our customers for their patience as we work with Microsoft to help protect them from fraud." BleepingComputer attempted to learn more about this spam campaign but did not receive a response from Microsoft or Gmail, nor was there further information from AT&T by the time of this publication. Microsoft recently announced it will fight spam originating from its platform by imposing a daily Exchange Online bulk email limit of 2,000 external recipients starting January 2025. Starting April 1st, Google has also implemented stricter spam thresholds and authentication guidelines for bulk email senders to strengthen defenses against spam and phishing attacks.
Daily Brief Summary
AT&T has been blocking emails from Microsoft 365 users due to a significant influx of spam originating from Microsoft's servers.
The issue began on Monday, affecting users with AT&T, sbcglobal.net, and bellsouth.com email addresses, who reported an inability to receive emails from Microsoft 365.
Complaints were also raised by users unable to send emails to AT&T domains from Gmail, although this was not independently confirmed.
AT&T acknowledged the problem, attributing the email delivery delays to the high volume of spam and is working with Microsoft to resolve the issue.
AT&T customers expressed frustration on forums, noting that emails sent to AT&T were neither being delivered nor bounced back, essentially disappearing.
Microsoft plans to combat spam by setting a limit of 2,000 external recipients for bulk emails on its Exchange Online platform starting January 2025.
Google has similarly tightened its spam and phishing defenses starting April 1st by implementing stricter spam thresholds and authentication guidelines for bulk email senders.