What does the Apple email error '554 5.7.0 Blocked' mean and how can I resolve it?
Summary
What email marketers say9Marketer opinions
Email marketer from Reddit suggests that the '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error often arises from poor sending reputation or being listed on blocklists. They recommend ensuring proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), monitoring sender reputation, and contacting Apple Postmaster for resolution.
Email marketer from MXToolbox shares that the error usually means the sending server is blocked. They advise using their tools to check the sending IP's reputation, DNS records, and blocklist status to diagnose the problem.
Email marketer from EmailOctopus explains that the '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error likely indicates a problem with sender reputation. They recommend warming up your IP address, ensuring a low spam complaint rate, and using a dedicated IP address to build a positive sending reputation.
Email marketer from Mailjet indicates that the '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error often means your sending IP or domain has a poor reputation. They suggest authenticating your emails using SPF, DKIM and DMARC protocols, monitoring your sender score, and removing unengaged subscribers to improve deliverability.
Email marketer from Proofpoint indicates that the error signifies an IP address block. They suggest checking the IP's reputation using their lookup tool and contacting them for remediation if the IP is incorrectly blocked.
Email marketer from Postmark details that the '554 5.7.0' error from Apple usually suggests you've been blocked. They advise checking your sender reputation via tools, improving email authentication (SPF/DKIM/DMARC), and reaching out to Apple's postmaster team for remediation.
Marketer from Email Geeks shares that the error response `554 5.7.0 Blocked` from Apple indicates a block against the sending IP address. If using a shared IP, contacting the ESP to mitigate with Proofpoint is recommended.
Email marketer from StackOverflow user indicates that high spam scores can often be the reason that the '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error comes back. Review the email copy of the email and rewrite to prevent spam related keywords and structures.
Marketer from Email Geeks indicates experiencing this issue significantly on December 22nd and 23rd, but not since.
What the experts say2Expert opinions
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that a '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error strongly suggests a reputation issue or block. Mitigation steps include identifying the cause (e.g., blocklist, complaint rate), improving sending practices, authenticating email, and contacting the recipient's provider (Apple in this case) for remediation. It is also important to understand the specific policies that might have triggered the block and adjust sending behavior accordingly.
Expert from Spamresource explains that a '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error suggests your sending server's IP address or domain has been blacklisted by Apple. Resolution includes identifying which blocklist is causing the problem, determining the reason for being listed (e.g., spam complaints, poor sending practices), addressing the underlying issues and requesting delisting from the relevant blocklist.
What the documentation says3Technical articles
Documentation from RFC describes that SMTP reply codes starting with '5' indicate a permanent failure. '5.7.0' specifies a security or policy rejection, which aligns with an IP address being blocked for perceived policy violations.
Documentation from Spamhaus explains that a '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error may result from the sending IP address being on one of their blocklists. The documentation suggests using their IP lookup tool to check if the IP is listed and following their removal process if necessary.
Documentation from Apple Support explains that the '554 5.7.0 Blocked' error indicates the sending server's IP address has been blocked due to suspected spam activity. Resolution involves contacting the email provider to investigate and resolve the issue, as the recipient cannot unblock the sender directly.