Email verification glossary

A domain configured to accept email sent to any local-part address, making individual mailbox verification impossible via SMTP alone.

The percentage of emails that could not be delivered to the recipient's inbox.

An email standard that allows brands to display their verified logo next to emails in the recipient's inbox.

A domain configured to accept emails sent to any address, regardless of whether the specific mailbox exists.

A cryptographic email authentication method that verifies an email was sent by an authorized server and wasn't altered in transit.

A protocol that tells receiving servers what to do when SPF or DKIM checks fail for your domain.

A temporary email address created for one-time use, often to avoid giving out a real email address.

A type of DNS record used to store text-based data, commonly used for email authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).

A two-step email subscription process where the user must confirm their signup by clicking a link in a verification email.

The process of confirming whether an email address is valid, deliverable, and belongs to a real person.

A database of IP addresses and domains known to send spam, used by ISPs to filter incoming email.

The process of gradually increasing email send volume on a new IP address or domain to build trust with ISPs.

The umbrella term for protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) that verify a sender's identity and prevent email spoofing.

The percentage of email recipients who interact with your emails through opens, clicks, replies, or forwards.

The set of practices used to maintain a clean, healthy email list by removing invalid, inactive, and risky addresses.

The practice of adding email addresses to existing customer or contact records using third-party data sources.

A mechanism provided by ISPs that reports back to senders when recipients mark their emails as spam.

A spam prevention technique where a mail server temporarily rejects emails from unknown senders, expecting legitimate servers to retry.

A permanent email delivery failure caused by an invalid address, non-existent domain, or server rejection.

A trust score assigned by ISPs to a specific sending IP address based on its email sending history and behavior.

The percentage of sent emails that successfully land in the recipient's primary inbox rather than spam, promotions, or junk folders.

A DNS record that specifies the mail server responsible for accepting email for a domain.

Server software responsible for routing and delivering email messages between mail servers.

An email address associated with a job function rather than an individual person (e.g., info@, support@, sales@).

A temporary email delivery failure that may succeed on retry.

A score assigned by ISPs to your email sending domain/IP that determines whether your emails reach the inbox.

A DNS record that specifies which mail servers are authorized to send email on behalf of your domain.

The process of connecting to a mail server to verify if a specific mailbox exists, without actually sending an email.

A numerical rating that predicts how likely an email is to be classified as spam by ISP filters.

An automated email triggered by a specific user action, such as a purchase receipt, password reset, or account notification.