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Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

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Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#2
I just got the email mentioned in the article (and that's the only blog source I found for it, including Microsoft.com). After the whole G Suite Free cancellation I thought about switching my domain email to Outlook for that benefit, but I decided against moving. Guess that was a good call.

Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#3

I just got the email mentioned in the article (and that's the only blog source I found for it, including Microsoft.com). After the whole G Suite Free cancellation I thought about switching my domain email to Outlook for that benefit, but I decided against moving. Guess that was a good call.

This would've not impacted you, if you did move - they stop offering the feature to new customers, but will keep it working for existing users.

I've had a couple of free emails with custom domains setup probably 15 years ago (Microsoft went through a few different names for this service since) and they work to this day. The only difference is I can't create new email accounts in the custom domains.

Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#4
post #3

I just got the email mentioned in the article (and that's the only blog source I found for it, including Microsoft.com). After the whole G Suite Free cancellation I thought about switching my domain email to Outlook for that benefit, but I decided against moving. Guess that was a good call.

This would've not impacted you, if you did move - they stop offering the feature to new customers, but will keep it working for existing users. I've had a couple of free emails with custom domains setup probably 15 years ago (Microsoft went through a few different names for this service since) and they work to this day. The only difference is I can't create new email accounts in the custom domains.

I was in the same boat. Now feeling lucky I didn't make that mistake.

Makes you wonder how much of this has to do with fraud and spam mitigation. It must be bad enough that they are throwing out the baby...

Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#5
Spammers love this feature of Outlook.com. Services like Outlook.com and Gmail are good at ensuring that their servers are not blocked and that their email gets delivered, perfect for spam delivery.

Here is a fun one... You get spam from that appears to be from outlook.com. You look at the email header and find the IP address. You lookup the IP Address registration info and find that it is registered to Microsoft, included in that registration is the email address abuse@microsoft.com. You email abuse@microsoft.com to tell them about the spammer, they respond telling you that you told the wrong people and refuse to send your message to the right people. Microsoft could care less about being a major spam provider.

Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#7
post #3

I just got the email mentioned in the article (and that's the only blog source I found for it, including Microsoft.com). After the whole G Suite Free cancellation I thought about switching my domain email to Outlook for that benefit, but I decided against moving. Guess that was a good call.

This would've not impacted you, if you did move - they stop offering the feature to new customers, but will keep it working for existing users. I've had a couple of free emails with custom domains setup probably 15 years ago (Microsoft went through a few different names for this service since) and they work to this day. The only difference is I can't create new email accounts in the custom domains.

It would, because I make aliases and other mailboxes occasionally. (E.g.: Apple/Google developer program public-facing alias) I don't want to be locked into just the one name forever.

Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#8

I just got the email mentioned in the article (and that's the only blog source I found for it, including Microsoft.com). After the whole G Suite Free cancellation I thought about switching my domain email to Outlook for that benefit, but I decided against moving. Guess that was a good call.

If you're looking for a new provider I'd vouch for Fastmail. I switched from Google's free plan back when they killed Inbox, and I've been pretty happy with it.

Re: Microsoft is killing custom domain names in Outlook.com

#10

Spammers love this feature of Outlook.com. Services like Outlook.com and Gmail are good at ensuring that their servers are not blocked and that their email gets delivered, perfect for spam delivery. Here is a fun one... You get spam from that appears to be from outlook.com. You look at the email header and find the IP address. You lookup the IP Address registration info and find that it is registered to Microsoft, in…

This is about using a custom domain, and it's not a free feature. It's only if you pay for Microsoft 365 Personal/Family, or any of the 365 business plans. (They're killing it for 365 Personal/Family plans)

Spammers can still use a ...@outlook.com address as before, and if they made it to having a domain + paid Microsoft 365 subscription, Microsoft have a credit card to blacklist.

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