Outlook for Mac skips clearly junk items

Question

Outlook for Mac skips clearly junk items

Tim Murray 0

Maybe I'm just venting a generic complaint, but it appears that in the last few weeks, Microsoft — I have a Hotmail address — has nearly stopped detecting junk mail. I said "nearly" because my Junk folder collects a lot of junk, but the items that get through are so obvious that Stevie Wonder could see them.

When I receive about eight a day for two weeks for the same nighttime glasses, same ad, same wording, you would think Microsoft would get the hint. And my iCloud storage is just fine, thank you, phishermen, for checking.

System: MBPro M4, Sequoia 15.7.2, Outlook 16.103.2 (25112216), Legacy mode

2 answers

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Answer 1

It sounds like you're experiencing issues with Outlook for Mac's junk mail filtering. While Outlook does have a junk email filter, it may not always catch every spam message, especially if the spam messages are using tactics that bypass the filter. Here are a few suggestions to improve your junk mail filtering:

Adjust Junk E-mail Options: You can customize the settings for junk email filtering in Outlook. Make sure you have the filter set to a higher level of protection.
Report Junk Emails: When you receive junk emails that are not filtered out, report them as junk. This helps improve the filtering system over time.
Regularly Update Outlook: Ensure that your Outlook application is up to date, as updates may include improvements to the junk mail filter.
Use Rules: You can create specific rules in Outlook to automatically move emails from certain senders or with specific keywords to the Junk folder.
Check Your Filters: Sometimes, filters can be set in a way that might inadvertently allow junk emails to appear in your inbox. Ensure that your filtering options are configured correctly.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, it may be worth checking Microsoft's support resources or forums for additional troubleshooting steps specific to your version of Outlook for Mac.

References:

Answer 2

Rez 10,615 Independent Advisor

Thanks for reaching out Tim,

I know those spam emails are a pain! Outlook’s junk filter uses some rules and your past choices, but spammers keep switching things up to get past it. If the same ad keeps popping up, the sender is likely using different domains or messing with the details to trick the filter.

To fix it, try blocking those senders or keywords in your Blocked Senders list. You can also make a rule to send similar messages to Junk. Plus, see if Focused Inbox is on because it might be mixing up spam with real emails.

Do you see if these emails share the same domain or come from random addresses?

Best

Rez

Tim Murray 0 Reputation points

2025-12-03T16:19:00.7933333+00:00

Thanks, but I didn't say so: I've been doing this for 40 years. That stuff about the glasses came from even non-US domains, and the comment about "Stevie Wonder could see it" isn't far from the truth.

I've seen spams & phishing that looked as near to perfect as could be, but no, these are emails loaded with misspellings not even close (software for Mack), childish subjects (Ca!! u$ for a quote), the sending domain is some country in the Eastern Bloc, you name it.

Seriously, Outlook is behaving as though it is simply throwing in the towel on spam.

Hey, gotta run. I have until noon, Eastern, to claim my winnings from a Somalian lottery out of Minnesota.
Rez 10,615 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2025-12-03T16:42:23.4566667+00:00

Understood. The issue seems to be that the spam filter's pattern-based detection isn't catching these unusual emails due to rotating domains and random text used by spammers. To improve this, repeatedly mark these emails as junk or report phishing. Adjust junk email settings or establish rules for keyword/domain flagging. Have you observed any shared phrases or subject patterns in these emails?

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Outlook for Mac skips clearly junk items

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