In recent years, a frequently asked question on helpdesks has been: "Why didn’t my email arrive at Seznam? Why didn’t it arrive at Volný? Why didn’t it arrive at Gmail?" The battle against spam and unsolicited commercial messages is relentless, and new mechanisms and protective technologies are developed daily to filter incoming mail as effectively as possible.
This brief article is written for general users, aiming to explain the issue as simply as possible. With the rise of spam and unsolicited emails, technologies like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC have been introduced. These email protection elements are automatically set up by your email provider or configured upon request. Our clients have these protections set up automatically. An email sent then gains positive points on the recipient’s side, and it is neither rejected nor marked as spam if the email is written correctly and the sender is not on a blacklist. Everything is perfectly fine.
However, many users cannot abandon their first email account, which is always on some free hosting service such as Seznam, Gmail, Volný, Tiscali, or Live. A notable example is Bohuslav Sobotka’s email on @seznam.cz with confidential content that was "hacked" and published. The client has a corporate email on their domain but refuses to check mail there and wants everything to be in the webmail of their original free hosting email, as they are accustomed to. The simplest solution appears to be setting up automatic forwarding in the MyDreams administration. Ten years ago, forwarding was common and worked as expected. Today, email forwarding generally works only within the same server.
FORWARDING WORKS
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. is forwarded to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
FORWARDING DOES NOT WORK
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. is forwarded to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
So, why does this happen? Here is an example explanation:
The sender of the email, e.g., This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., sends a message to the recipient’s mailbox, which is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Once the email reaches the recipient’s server, the server checks using DKIM, SPF, and DMARC if the email from the sender is indeed from the sender and is for the specified recipient. If so, the email is delivered to the recipient.
If the recipient sets up forwarding:
The sender’s email, e.g., This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., is sent to the recipient’s mailbox, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Once the email reaches the recipient’s server, it checks using DKIM, SPF, and DMARC if the email from This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. is indeed from the sender and is for the specified recipient. If so, the server delivers the email. The recipient’s server then forwards the email from This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to another recipient, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The next recipient's server checks using DKIM, SPF, and DMARC if the email from This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. is indeed from the sender and was sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
And here is the root of the problem. The sender sent an email for a specific recipient. The server of the forwarded recipient recognizes that the email is not intended for it and behaves according to its internal settings. In the logic of email server protection mechanisms, it is considered a spoofed email.
What happens to the forwarded email?
Each server allows setting procedures and spam score values if something is not met. What specifically can happen to a forwarded email?
- Nothing may happen
- The email may be marked as SPAM or PHISHING
- The email may fall into the SPAM folder
- The email may be sent to the trash
- The email may be rejected before delivery
According to 2018 log statistics, approximately 60% of all forwarded emails were rejected. We no longer recommend forwarding emails.