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Sending SPAM

Can my sent emails be marked as SPAM?

Yes. Even if you're sending an email from your Warwick account to another Warwick account, it's always possible that it'll be flagged up as SPAM if the content looks suspicious to our scanning system. We have to use SPAM checking to counteract any compromised Warwick accounts which can result in our email servers being blocked by remote email services (Realtime Blackhole Lists).

If you want to reduce the risk of your email being marked as SPAM or not being delivered because it is deemed SPAM, here are a few tips:

  • Don't use high risk words like "Offer" or "Affordable"
  • Don't use phrases like "Click here!" or "Once in a lifetime opportunity!"
  • Don't use ALL CAPS, especially in the subject of your email
  • Don't create an email that's just one big image, with little or no text
  • Don't use too many images, and keep the size of the email reasonable
  • Only link to legitimate websites in your email like "https://www.warwick.ac.uk", where possible use https over http
  • Address each user individually, avoid sending "Dear Customer"
  • Avoid requesting financial/personal information within the body of an email

SPAM filters always change

The rules we use to filter out SPAM change all the time - they have to keep up with the new tactics that spammers employ. Often SPAM will refer to new products or upcoming events in an attempt to get people to open the email. To avoid looking like spam, it's best to not use too many words or phrases of this kind (e.g. "Free One Direction tickets!!").

How to test if your email could potentially be marked as SPAM

Online spam scoring assessment tools can help you make sure that your mail passes spam assessment checks that are performed at various stages of the email journey from sender to recipient.

How To Use

They are very easy to use. You send the email that you intend to send to the address listed on the website (obviously emails should never contain personal data) and then after a few minutes click the 'view results' button to get the results.
Advise is offered to enable you to reduce the spam score of the email and once you have done this there is nothing stopping you from repeating the process to further tweak your email if you want to.
Note: The test address will change as it's only valid for one email check.

The best free spam testing websites are:

https://www.mail-tester.comLink opens in a new window
https://www.mailgenius.comLink opens in a new window
https://unspam.emailLink opens in a new window

Obviously, there is no guarantee that the mail will pass the spam checks at the recipients mail relay especially if they have a non-standard spam checking set up. It does however greatly reduce the chance of the email ending up in the recipients spam folder if the advise is taken.