Outlook messages being rejected as spam, and incoming messages going straight to deleted.

Shetland Gallery 0 Reputation points
2026-08-15T12:05:54.1066667+00:00

Our Outlook mail has worked perfectly for several years, but has suddenly developed two problems. Sent emails are described as "undeliverable because gmail thinks they are spam" and incoming mails are being sent directly to my deleted file, without ever touching the inbox.

I wonder if we have been hacked, or whether Outlook has changed recently.

Outlook | Web | Outlook.com | Email
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  1. AI answer

    2026-08-15T12:06:10.3+00:00

    Yes—those symptoms match a compromised Outlook/Outlook.com mailbox more closely than a recent Outlook change.

    The strongest indicators are:

    • Incoming mail going straight to Deleted Items.
    • Unexpected bounce or spam-related delivery problems on sent mail.
    • These issues can be caused by malicious rules, forwarding, blocked senders, sweep rules, or the Ignore feature being left active on conversations.

    Recommended checks:

    1. Secure the account first
      • Change the account password.
      • Enable multi-factor authentication.
      • Review recent sign-in activity for anything unfamiliar.
    2. Check mailbox rules in Outlook on the web
      • Go to Settings > Mail > Rules.
      • Remove any rule that deletes messages, moves messages to Deleted Items, or forwards mail unexpectedly.
      • This is important because malicious rules can remain even after a password change.
    3. Check forwarding settings
      • Review Mail forwarding settings and remove any forwarding address that was not intentionally configured.
    4. Check blocked senders and junk settings
      • In Outlook on the web, go to Settings > Mail > Junk email.
      • Remove legitimate addresses or domains from Blocked senders and domains.
      • If needed, unblock entries that should not be there.
    5. Check for Sweep rules
      • In Outlook on the web, go to Settings > Mail > Sweep.
      • Delete any suspicious sweep rules.
    6. Check whether conversations are being ignored
      • If messages from a thread are going directly to Deleted Items, open Deleted Items, select a message from that conversation, and use Stop Ignoring Conversation.
      • Outlook can automatically move future messages in an ignored thread to Deleted Items.
    7. Check junk deletion behavior in classic Outlook
      • If classic Outlook is also in use, open Home > Junk > Junk E-mail Options.
      • On the Options tab, clear Permanently delete suspected junk e-mail instead of moving it to the Junk E-mail folder.
      • Otherwise, suspected junk can be deleted instead of going to the Junk folder.

    About the outgoing mail being rejected as spam:

    • The accepted guidance in the provided material is to first verify the account has not been compromised.
    • Review recent sent items for unusual messages and remove suspicious rules or forwarding.
    • If Gmail is rejecting mail as spam, that can align with a compromised account sending unwanted mail.

    If the issue continues after removing rules and securing the account, use the Outlook community/support paths for deeper investigation.


    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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