As a web hosting provider, we take spam seriously. Like many in the industry, we actively monitor and report spam messages that flood our inboxes, helping to combat malicious activity online. However, what happens when the very company responsible for originating a significant volume of spam prevents us from reporting it? That’s exactly what we are experiencing with Microsoft’s Outlook, MSN, and Hotmail domains.
The Problem: Spam from Microsoft, but Reports Are Blocked
Over the past several weeks, we have noticed a surge in spam emails originating from Microsoft-owned email domains. These messages range from phishing attempts to outright scams, all sent via Outlook, MSN, and Hotmail addresses. As a responsible hosting provider, we do what any industry professional would: forward the spam to the relevant abuse reporting address—abuse@hotmail.com, abuse@outlook.com, etc.
But now, Microsoft is blocking us from even reporting these messages.
We receive errors like the following when trying to forward abuse reports:
host hotmail-com.olc.protection.outlook.com [52.101.9.15]
SMTP error from remote mail server after pipelined MAIL FROM:<info@xxxxx.com> SIZE=4239:
550 5.7.1 Unfortunately, messages from [xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx] weren’t sent. Please contact your Internet service provider since part of their network is on our block list (S3150). You can also refer your provider to http://mail.live.com/mail/troubleshooting.aspxIn other words, Microsoft has decided to block our mail server from delivering abuse reports—effectively preventing us from reporting spam originating from their own network. This is despite the fact that our IP address is not on any major public RBL (Real-time Blackhole List), and we have successfully reported spam to them in the past without issue.
Microsoft’s Double Standard on Spam
This raises a serious question: why is Microsoft allowing spam to be sent from their servers while simultaneously preventing affected parties from reporting it?
Microsoft’s filtering policies appear to be failing in two major ways:
Inadequate outbound filtering – Microsoft’s mail services (Outlook, Hotmail, MSN) continue to be a major source of spam, indicating that their filtering of outbound messages is weak or inconsistently applied.
Overaggressive blocking of legitimate reports – Instead of addressing spam complaints, Microsoft has chosen to block reports from affected organizations, making it nearly impossible for us to assist in stopping abuse originating from their platforms.
The Impact on the Hosting Industry
This isn’t just an inconvenience—it has real consequences:
Increased spam load – Microsoft’s lack of effective spam control means more malicious emails hitting inboxes worldwide.
Frustration for abuse teams – Legitimate abuse reports are being ignored or outright blocked, making it harder to curb spam.
Potential blacklisting of affected companies – If we are unable to report and mitigate spam effectively, some security services may misinterpret our inability to address the issue and penalize us instead.
Microsoft, Fix This Now
Microsoft’s current approach to spam handling is both irresponsible and counterproductive. If you’re going to allow spammers to abuse your platform, at least have the decency to let affected organizations report it. Blocking abuse reports only protects the bad actors while harming legitimate businesses that are trying to keep the internet cleaner.
We urge Microsoft to:
Fix their outbound spam filtering – Stop allowing so much spam to be sent from Outlook, Hotmail, and MSN domains.
Stop blocking abuse reports – Let hosting companies and security professionals report spam without being arbitrarily blacklisted.
Provide proper escalation channels – Offer a direct and responsive method for legitimate organizations to resolve false block issues.
Until Microsoft takes meaningful action, their email services will continue to be a breeding ground for spammers, and those of us trying to maintain security and integrity will be left fighting an uphill battle—against both the spammers and Microsoft itself.
Have you faced similar issues with reporting spam to Microsoft? Let us know in the comments or reach out—maybe if enough of us speak up, they’ll finally listen.
Entexion opens the door to your digital transformation journey
Services
- Shared Hosting
- Virtual Private Servers
- Dedicated Servers
- Server Management
Support
- Client Area
- Terms & Conditions
- Network Status
- Looking Glass
