Outlook won't send bigpond emails

Christine Hay 20 Reputation points
2026-05-28T04:42:18.4333333+00:00

Since around mid-day today Outlook won't send my bigpond emails (checked and I can send trough Telstra Webmail, so not a bigpond issue). Confirmed with bigpond the correct outgoing mail settings. Tried to repair my bigpond account and receive error message 'The outgoing (SMTP) server doesn't recognize your account. Please check you remail address and try again'. My email account is valid and the password is correct as confirmed by bigpond emails being received in Outlook. Don't know where to go from here.

Outlook | Windows | Classic Outlook for Windows | For home

Answer accepted by question author
Victor1-V 13,040 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
2026-05-28T09:45:09.32+00:00

Hello Christine Hay,

I understand that Bigpond mail can be received in Outlook and sent through Telstra Webmail, but Classic Outlook cannot send and says the outgoing SMTP server does not recognize the account. Since Webmail works, this is likely related to Outlook’s outgoing server settings or saved authentication.

Please note that this is a user-to-user forum, so contributors cannot access your Outlook app or mailbox directly but can help narrow down the issue.

Please check the SMTP settings in Classic Outlook:

  1. Close Outlook, then open Control Panel.
  2. Open Mail (Microsoft Outlook) > Email Accounts.
  3. Select your Bigpond account > Change > More Settings.
  4. On the Outgoing Server tab, enable My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication and choose Use same settings as my incoming mail server.
  5. On the Advanced tab, confirm the outgoing server uses:
    • Server: smtp.telstra.com
    • Port: 465 with SSL/TLS, or 587 with STARTTLS
  6. Save the changes, then test sending again.

Telstra lists these as the current Bigpond/Telstra outgoing mail settings, and Microsoft also recommends checking the outgoing server, port, encryption, username, password, and SMTP authentication when Outlook cannot send.

If the same message continues, please check with Telstra whether your account requires a separate secure mail password or app password for Outlook. This can matter when Webmail works but Outlook SMTP sign-in is rejected.

If the settings are correct, you can also try a new Outlook profile:

  1. Close Outlook.
  2. Press Windows key + R, type outlook /profiles, then press Enter.
  3. Select Options > New.
  4. Add the Bigpond account again using manual IMAP/POP setup.

References:

If you still need help from Microsoft Support, you can follow these steps to reach a live chat agent:

  1. Visit the Microsoft Support contact page: Contact - Microsoft Support  
  2. In the search bar provided on the page, type "Outlook issue" and press Enter.  
  3. Click on the "Get Help" button that appears.  
  4. Scroll down the page until you see and click on the "Contact Support" option.  
  5. When prompted to select your product or service, choose "Other Products".  
  6. For the category, choose "Outlook".  
  7. Look for and click on "Chat with a support agent in your web browser".  
  8. Confirm your personal email when prompted - this is the email Microsoft will use to communicate with you during and after the support session.  
  9. Explain your situation clearly: Be concise but provide all the relevant details.    

I hope this helps guide you toward the correct support path.

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