SMTP Email not accepting password

[Anonymous]

I have been unable to send email via Outlook for 4 days now, on my main account and my partner cannot send on her account either.

I am using Outlook, and  SMTP.virginmedia.com is not accepting my password. This has worked for months and has now stopped working, I have altered no settings on either my machine or my partners laptop. I can log in and use webmail and can recieve mail. Just cannot log in to the SMTP server - is this a Virgin issue?

[Gazmo_1]

Thanks Jem,

I finally managed to change my password and gained full access to my mailboxes.

Ironically VM had sent me an email explaining why I'd been locked out and how to resume service.

Unfortunately I couldn't read the email as I had no access 🤣

[Anonymous]

Sorted now, had to contact Spamhaus to get my IP delisted after a full scan of every device revealed no infection. So it was probably someone spoofing my IP address. 

Would be so much easier if VM support could have told me this, rather than me having to find out the issue myself!

[ravenstar68]

@Anonymous 

If I might explain, it's not really possible to spoof the IP address of SMTP connections.  This is because there is a 3 way TCP handshake needed to set up the connection in the first place - And that's before we get to the back and forth of the messages needed to actually complete the SMTP send.

In the past, we've found such devices is Amazon Firesticks and Kodi boxes responsible with unsupported third party software to be the culprit in these cases.

The CSS is a real time blacklist, also from reading their documentation they don't blacklst straight away, it takes two or 3 events from the same IP before it's listed.  Furhermore, if no further traffic is seen then a listing drops off after 48 hours.  In other words, if your system really is clean, you don't have to ask for a delisting.

IP Spoofing is a thing, it's used in DDOS attacks - but it makes use of a transport mechanism called UDP and things such as poorly configured DNS and Network Time Protocol Servers.

Just because your AV scans haven't found anything doesn't mean it's not there.

Tim

[Anonymous]

I've been in touch with Spamhaus and there has been no activity since 22 September thats suspicious, so its been delisted. 

I do undersatnd the protocols involved, I'm a CS lecturer.

[ravenstar68]

Then I'm sure you'd understand why IP spoofing can't be used in this case.

Tim

[jem101]

Those that can do, whose that can’t…….