Forum Discussion

dw13's avatar
dw13
Settling in
2 days ago

Outlook stopped sending emails

Outlook(new) has suddenly stopped sending my emails, reporting the following error:

"SmtpSubmissionPermanent5XXException: Smtp submission failed. Server 'smtp.virginmedia.com' Port '465'. --> Unexpected SMTP server response. Expected: 235, actual: 525, whole response: 525 5.7.13 Authentication Denied (VM305) Failure code: 1d2e"

I have tried updating the app generated password but that didn't help. 

I installed Mozilla Thunderbird using the same SMPT settings and password and that works fine, but I prefer Outlook (when it works).

Anyone else seen this or got any ideas on how to fix it?

3 Replies

  • coenoby's avatar
    coenoby
    Very Insightful Person
    2 days ago

    dw13​ "Authentication Denied (VM305"

    That error means that VM have blocked you from sending VM emails  from an email app because your VM IP address is on a Spamhaus  blocklist.

    The most likely reason for that is that there is malware on a smart device on your home network (not necessarily the device you use to send emails). The malware was sending out suspicious traffic  and so your IP address was automatically added to the blocklist. The fact that you can now send via Thunderbird is almost certainly down to the fact that the malware has stopped sending suspicious traffic and so your IP has been delisted for the time being.

    You may well find that Thunderbird stops sending at some point with a similar error when/if your VM IP gets listed again.. One error that is often reported by non Microsoft apps and clients is "Server code “ALERT”, server message “Temporarily blacklisted IP Address - try again later “

    You can check whether you IP is blocked by following these simply steps:
    •    browse to  https://whatismyipaddress.com/   and note or copy (Ctrl+C) the IP address
    •    then go to https://check.spamhaus.org/ and paste (Ctrl+P) or type your IP address in to the "Search single IP...." box and click "Lookup"
    Your IP address may well be listed on the PBL (Policy Block List) but that will flagged up as an advisory and  is to be expected.

    The fact that your IP address is on the PBL is not the reason you cannot send emails from your  email client. The two blocklists to look out for are the Spamhaus SBL and the Spamhaus XBL. If your IP address is on either of these you are likely to find that VM has blocked sending VM emails.

    If I were you I would run antivirus and  anti malware software on all devices  that you can, and for those devices that you cannot run av software, you should think about restoring to factory settings.

    The long term solution is get rid of the malware but the workarounds are

    1. using the VM webmail service to send VM emails
    2. going on line using your mobile data service rather than your VM wifi. Connecting via mobile data means you will be sending your VM emails from an IP address provided by your mobile provider
    3. using a VPN to "hide" your VM IP address
    4. using a non VM email service such Outlook.com or Gmail. VM only seems to block VM emails.

     

    Coenoby

    • dw13's avatar
      dw13
      Settling in
      2 days ago

      Thanks for the reply. I checked the IP list and I wasnt on the SBL or XBL lists, and using a VPN didnt help either. However, when turning on my VPN in Norton360 I noticed a message telling me that Norton (wrongly) though I was on a public network and was doing some sort of extra checks. Telling Norton that I was on a private network seems to have fixed the issue. I've no idea what  difference Norton sees between Thunderbird and Outlook but all seems to working again now.

       

      • coenoby's avatar
        coenoby
        Very Insightful Person
        2 days ago

        dw13​ 

        Thanks for the update. All a bit strange but good to hear it's working ok now.

        Keep an eye out in case it starts again.  The thing is that IP's go onto and come off those blocklists according to whether or not your IP is showing signs of suspicious behaviour. In this case, it's not your suspicious behaviour I hasten to add.

        VM have been blocking customers from sending emails if their IP address is flagged as suspicious for a while and just recently they seem to have started blocking incoming emails from arriving in blocked IP addresses as well.

        VM stopped issuing new VM email accounts back in 2022 and the future of the VM email service is unclear at the moment. Added to the kind of issues you are seeing right now, it should make you consider whether it's ok to have a VM email account as your main email account. (Just saying   😉)

        Coenoby