Why are authenticated emails going to junk in Microsoft Outlook?

Email marketer from Litmus explains that certain words, phrases, or HTML structures in email content can trigger spam filters, even with authentication. They recommend testing email content with spam testing tools to identify and remove potential spam triggers.

Marketer from Email Geeks notes that abuse@ and postmaster@ addresses seem more responsive nowadays, and escalating tickets at Microsoft is possible and increasingly utilized during IP warmups.

Email marketer from Mailjet emphasizes that sender reputation is crucial for email deliverability. Even with authentication, a poor sender reputation can lead to emails being marked as spam by Outlook. Maintaining consistent sending volume, avoiding spam traps, and promptly addressing complaints can improve sender reputation.

Email marketer from Deliverability Forum shares that user interaction heavily influences whether emails land in the inbox or junk folder. If users frequently mark authenticated emails as junk, Outlook will learn to filter similar emails automatically.

Email marketer from SparkPost notes that getting caught in a spam trap can damage your sender reputation, even with authentication, resulting in emails going to junk. Maintaining a clean email list and employing double opt-in can help prevent spam traps.

Email marketer from Reddit explains that Outlook's junk filter can be aggressive and sometimes marks legitimate emails as junk, even with proper authentication. They suggest checking the sender's reputation and ensuring the email content isn't spammy.

Email marketer from SendGrid advises that engaging content and proper list management are key to improving email deliverability. Even with authentication, emails can still go to spam if users don't find the content valuable or if the list is outdated. Regularly cleaning your email list and tailoring content to your audience can improve engagement and deliverability.

Marketer from Email Geeks shares that there are similar issues popping up and Microsoft filters seem to be stricter.

Marketer from Email Geeks reports a massive issue with the "Unverified sender" feature in Outlook, where fully authenticated emails (SPF, DKIM, DMARK) are being marked as "Unverified sender" and sent to junk.

Email marketer from Microsoft Community shares that Microsoft's filters evolve and sometimes misclassify emails. They suggest adding the sender to the safe sender list and checking if any rules are inadvertently filtering the emails.

Email marketer from Email Marketing Forum explains that even with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, Outlook can still send emails to junk based on content, sender reputation, and user behavior. They recommend using a tool to monitor sender reputation and avoiding spam trigger words in the email.

Email marketer from StackExchange explains that sometimes email providers have problems interpreting even correctly configured SPF, DKIM and DMARC records, causing authenticated email to go to the junk folder. They suggest looking at your headers to ensure they are passing

Expert from Spam Resource explains that Microsoft's junk mail filter, like any filter, occasionally makes mistakes, even with proper authentication. Filters rely on a multitude of signals beyond just SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, including content, reputation, and user feedback. There is no specific URL for the response beyond the main website, as John Levine is the owner.

Expert from Email Geeks explains that Microsoft will only answer issues that come through the official channel and suggests repeatedly replying to the support ticket with a concise description of the problem and desired outcome, asking for escalation.

Expert from Word to the Wise shares how Authentication is a necessary part of deliverability, but it's not sufficient to guarantee inbox placement, because deliverability is really about reputation which is about relevance and engagement.

Documentation from Microsoft Support explains that adding a sender to the Safe Senders list in Outlook can prevent their emails from being marked as junk. The article details how to add email addresses or domain names to the Safe Senders list.

Documentation from DMARC.org explains that even with DMARC implementation, emails can still go to junk if the DMARC policy is set to 'quarantine' or 'reject' and the email fails DMARC authentication checks due to misconfiguration or other issues.

Documentation from Microsoft outlines best practices for bulk email senders to ensure deliverability to Outlook inboxes. This includes using SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, maintaining a clean email list, and monitoring sender reputation.

Documentation from RFC7489 explains that DMARC policies can instruct email receivers to quarantine or reject emails that fail authentication. If the DMARC policy is strictly enforced, even minor authentication issues can lead to emails being marked as junk.

Documentation from RFC6376 explains that DKIM authentication can fail if the email content is modified in transit, causing the signature to be invalid. Ensure that the email is not being altered by intermediaries and that the DKIM signature covers all relevant headers.