Why were there delays to Apple domains in January 2024 and have they been resolved?

Email marketer from LinkedIn user EmailPro shares that the Apple email delays in January 2024 were likely due to a combination of server maintenance and increased spam filtering. They mentions that Apple has implemented fixes and the delays are mostly resolved as of late January.

Email marketer from Reddit user u/EmailExpert shares that Apple had some server issues in January 2024 that caused delays in email delivery. They mention that the issue seems to have been resolved by late January, with most users reporting normal delivery times.

Email marketer from Email Geeks confirms that the issue with Apple domains appears to be resolved as of approximately four hours prior to the message.

Email marketer from Twitter user @EmailUpdates reports that they received confirmation from multiple sources that Apple had resolved the email delivery delays as of January 19, 2024. They recommend monitoring delivery rates to confirm.

Email marketer from EmailGeekForum user MailGuru reports experiencing significant delays in email delivery to Apple domains around January 16-17, 2024. They speculated about potential filtering issues or server problems on Apple's end, but notes improvements by January 18th.

Email marketer from Email Sender Inc indicates the importance of monitoring email blacklists that may have caused the Apple email delays in January 2024. It explains that identifying your presence on such lists and taking remediation steps is important to resolving your delivery.

Email marketer from StackOverflow user MailDev suggests that the issue could have been caused by a combination of increased security measures by Apple and potential misconfiguration of some email servers. They advise checking email server configurations for optimal delivery.

Email marketer from Quora user EmailInsights speculates that a surge in spam targeting Apple domains in early January 2024 may have triggered more aggressive filtering, leading to the delays. They suggest senders review their email marketing practices to ensure compliance.

Email marketer from MailChimp Forum user DeliverabilityPro explains to ensure deliverability to Apple domains, it is important to authenticate your emails using SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. In addition to also monitoring IP and domain reputation, as well as list hygiene best practices.

Email marketer from Email Geeks shares connection rejections from specific Apple MX IPs in the last 2 days and notes that rejections have dropped and accepted messages have spiked on other Apple MX IPs, suggesting they have rotated something.

Expert from Email Geeks initially mentions hearing about the issue and that it may have cleared up, but later confirms seeing a blip in their dashboards. They pinpoint the start of the issue around noon the previous day, ending 4-5 hours prior to the message.

Expert from Email Geeks shares that she has seen other reports of delays to Apple domains, indicating a potential issue on Apple's side and not the user's.

Expert from Word to the Wise explains general factors that often affect email deliverability. This includes issues with reputation, authentication, content, and list hygiene that are important when delivering to Apple domains. However, it does not specifically call out the January delays.

Expert from SpamResource notes that while they don't have specific information about Apple delays in January 2024, deliverability issues often stem from increased spam filtering efforts by mailbox providers. Sudden changes in sending volume or content could trigger these filters.

Documentation from RFC 5321 (SMTP standard) explains that temporary delivery failures, resulting in timeouts, can occur due to network congestion, server overloads, or temporary unavailability of the destination server (in this case, Apple's mail servers).

Documentation from Google Workspace Status Dashboard reported no widespread issues that would have affected email delivery in general for January 2024, confirming the Apple issue was isolated. This can be used to compare with other services that were operational at the same time.

Documentation from DNSViz explains that temporary DNS propagation delays can sometimes impact email delivery, this could have been caused by updates to Apple's servers. Ensuring correctly configured DNS records will assist here.

Documentation from MXToolbox indicates that some users reported intermittent issues with Apple's MX records around January 17th, 2024. It explains that these issues could have caused temporary delays in email delivery to Apple domains.

Documentation from Digital Ocean states that a configured reverse DNS (rDNS) record allows a receiving server to perform a reverse DNS lookup to confirm that the sending server is authorized to send email from the domain it claims to represent. Receiving servers often reject messages from sending servers that lack rDNS records.

Documentation from Apple's System Status page indicates a brief service disruption affecting Mail services on January 17, 2024. The issue was resolved within a few hours, potentially causing delays for some users.