I’ve just had a conversation with ZB Support and it sounds like my email address was not blacklisted for sending spam. ZB is blocking me because I tend to mark a lot of spam messages as spam when I receive them. I do this because my email account is old as dirt and I get a lot of spam.
So, s it turns out, I am being blocked because I do the right thing and mark spam when I receive it.
My transcript of my chat with ZB support is below. This is very concerning since Scoutbook, by using this service, is auto-opting-out quite a lot of people who should be receiving messages.
ZB seems to be designed for mass marketing emails like the ones national scouting org blasts out routinely. ZB is not a good fit for transactional email such as a Cub Master sending a message to scout parents about a pending camping trip. This distinction is important.
Chat Transcript
ZB: Welcome to ZeroBounce, the #1 trusted email validation and deliverability service!
ZB: Try us and validate 10,000 emails for $65. Have questions? Just ask
ZB: We also can assist with DMARC, Blacklist Monitoring, Activity Data, Finding emails and more.
CC: Hi there! A personal email I’ve had for ages is flagged in your system with a status of “abuse”. Do you have a process for me to be verified and be removed from your database?
ZB: [NAME REDACTED] joined the chat
ZB: Hello and welcome to ZeroBounce support!
ZB: Before we start, may I have your name and your email address associated with your Zerobounce account, please?
CC: I don’t have a ZeroBounce account. Email is [email
ZB: Thank you
ZB: One moment please
ZB: I am afraid there isn’t.
ZB: An address marked as Abuse is not considered Invalid. It is by all intents and purposes a Valid address, and can receive and send emails without issues. By definition, an email marked as Abuse belongs to people who are known to click the ‘abuse’ link on incoming emails, which is an important factor to email marketers as it can affect their sender score/reputation. The fact that it is Valid and can receive and send emails properly does not change that, and unfortunately it is a status we cannot change for this address.
ZB: Our validation services are focused on reducing risks, not just marking emails as “yes” or “no”. It is just a precaution measure we offer to marketers, to let them know this is a perfect email address but it does present a risk, especially if it is not a solicited email
CC: So just to confirm - I am not on the list because I spam people, it’s because I am likely to mark spam as spam?
ZB: Yes
ZB: That is correct
CC: thank you
