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Is it true that IMAP has a Spam folder but POP does not ?

  • 3 respuestas
  • 3 tienen este problema
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  • Última respuesta de Matt

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I have been using POP for years, but I recently bought a second computer and set the email account to use IMAP. I am horrified to see that IMAP seems to have a Spam folder as well as a Junk folder and that there was stuff in it that, from my point of view, was not spam. Can POP not see this Spam folder at all ? Perhaps I should switch my older computer to use IMAP ?

I have been using POP for years, but I recently bought a second computer and set the email account to use IMAP. I am horrified to see that IMAP seems to have a Spam folder as well as a Junk folder and that there was stuff in it that, from my point of view, was not spam. Can POP not see this Spam folder at all ? Perhaps I should switch my older computer to use IMAP ?

Solución elegida

what happens with spam filtering is something of a black box. In as much as each provider has their own ideas on what to do with spam.

Some flag it, but honour the traditional use of POP as the only access to email arriving on the server and offer it out in pop sessions to the mail client.

Others are like your provider, sequestering mail in a server folder and not offering it to pop connections.

My cynicism shows through, but they don't get an opportunity to show you adds if you use a mail client, so it is a subtle way to get eyes on adds and increase revenues if you have to go into a web browser to see if you have spam that needs attention.

If you choose to use POP or IMAP, is entirely up to you. Personally I would be looking for a provider that actually sent a pop connection all the mail they received for the account.

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Solución elegida

what happens with spam filtering is something of a black box. In as much as each provider has their own ideas on what to do with spam.

Some flag it, but honour the traditional use of POP as the only access to email arriving on the server and offer it out in pop sessions to the mail client.

Others are like your provider, sequestering mail in a server folder and not offering it to pop connections.

My cynicism shows through, but they don't get an opportunity to show you adds if you use a mail client, so it is a subtle way to get eyes on adds and increase revenues if you have to go into a web browser to see if you have spam that needs attention.

If you choose to use POP or IMAP, is entirely up to you. Personally I would be looking for a provider that actually sent a pop connection all the mail they received for the account.

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Thank you for that helpful reply. As I have no wish to change my ISP, which happens to be BT, I shall probably switch to IMAP.

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