How to stop delete key from deleting the entire email in outlook?

Anonymous
2024-02-18T13:18:35+00:00

When I press delete - like in any other Microsoft tool, i mean delete the immediate text. But for some reason, Outlook started to use this key to delete e-mail. Where can I swich it off?

It´s really frustrating, I really wonder how people at Microsoft think. For example, they added annoying function where I have to first confirm editing a Word file before I start editing it (WHY?). But now I can accidentally delete an entire e-mail by a very predictable action. WHY! Just stop changing things for worse. Everytime I reinstall my windows, I need to go through the ordeal of swiching all these "bright ideas" off.

Outlook | Windows | Classic Outlook for Windows | For home

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  1. Anonymous
    2025-02-24T19:31:31+00:00

    The proposed fix absolutely does NOT work. Summary:

    PROBLEM: When an email in Outlook (I am using 2016) is selected, pressing DELETE button on your keyboard is catastrophic. It:

    • deletes the email locally, nothing is saved in trash or deleted items
    • there is no confirmation, no prompt to delete
    • it also goes to the mail sever and deletes the email there too!!

    This is unacceptable. Since I have two PCs and one keyboard things get confusing so I often delete emails by accident. This is a complete "nuke" and you don't even know what you deleted.

    I also tried removing my bluetooth keyboard and replaced it with a wired USB keyboard. It makes no difference.

    I also have "Prompt for confirmation before permanently deleting items" checked - also makes no difference.

    Why is this not being fixed?

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  2. Anonymous
    2024-07-18T15:52:17+00:00

    I also have this. Thought I was going mad - how come I keep managing to delete or archive emails. It also I found messes up sending of email because you are drafting a reply to something which you have now archived and when you press send it frequently doesn't work.

    This is utterly insane behaviour to build into the software. Stark raving bonkers. Most of us have decades of muscle memory of selecting a word to delete it and pressing the delete button (for example). But now you are going to make that action delete the email you have selected, normally of course the one you are writing a reply to.

    Utterly mad.

    Anyone got a fix yet ?

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  3. Anonymous
    2024-08-13T16:19:24+00:00

    This is very annoying. I've been unintentionally deleting emails every day. Please fix this.

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  4. Anonymous
    2024-07-17T11:09:28+00:00

    I have the same problem, its ridiculous. Constantly deleting email by accident

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  5. Anonymous
    2024-07-12T20:26:40+00:00

    Yes - this is a HUGE problem!! It seems at random times if I click somewhere in the body of my message and then backspace - the entire email is archived. This is a horrible feature and we need to get this resolved very quickly please!

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