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Email Verification Terminology

Response Format​

 {
        "email": "[email protected]",
        "domain": "gmail.com",
        "isRoleBased": false,
        "isDisposable": false,
        "statusMessage": "The email address exists and is correct.",
        "mxLocation": "US",
        "siteLocation": "US",
        "siteLanguage": "EN",
        "failType": "none",
        "status": "ok",
        "createdAt": "2025-02-09T07:20:49.082Z",
        "updatedAt": "2025-02-09T07:20:54.358Z",
        "deletedAt": null
    },

Email Verification Statuses​

Every email address verification will return one of the following statuses:

  1. Deliverable:

    • This means the recipient's email provider has confirmed that the email address exists.
    • It is safe to send emails to this address.

  2. Risky:

    • This status indicates that the email address might result in delivery problems, such as bounces or low engagement.
    • Possible causes for a risky status include:
      • Accept All: The recipient's domain is configured to accept all emails, whether valid or not.
      • Full Mailbox: The recipient's mailbox is full and may reject new messages.
      • Disposable: The address belongs to a temporary or disposable email service.

  3. Undeliverable:

    • The email address cannot be delivered to for one of the following reasons:
      • The address is syntactically incorrect.
      • The address does not exist.

  4. Unknown:

    • The email provider did not respond to the verification request.
    • The status of the email address could not be determined.

Substatus Codes​

Each verification attempt may include a substatus code that provides more detailed information about the result:

  • ok: The email address exists and is correct.
  • error: Delivery failed, but no specific reason was provided.
  • smtp_error: A technical error occurred with the SMTP service.
  • smtp_protocol: SMTP protocol error; the session was terminated prematurely.
  • unknown_email: The email address does not exist.
  • attempt_rejected: The attempt to deliver the email was rejected.
  • relay_error: There was an error in relaying the email.
  • antispam_system: An anti-spam system has blocked the email.
  • email_disabled: The email account is currently disabled.
  • domain_error: The domain of the email address is incorrect or does not exist.
  • dead_server: The email server is unresponsive or dead.
  • syntax_error: There is a syntax error in the email address.
  • unknown: The error is unknown.

Reasons for Verification Results​

Along with the status, Bouncer provides detailed reasons explaining the result of the verification:

Risky​

  • Low Deliverability:
    • The email address looks deliverable, but the deliverability cannot be guaranteed.
    • Common causes include:
      • The recipient's domain has a catch-all configuration
      • The recipient's mailbox is full
  • Low Quality:
    • The email address has issues that make it risky or low-value.
    • Most often caused by disposable or temporary email addresses.

Undeliverable​

  • Invalid Email:
    • The email address is not formatted correctly
  • Invalid Domain:
    • The domain does not exist or has no valid DNS records
  • Rejected Email:
    • The email address was rejected by the recipient's SMTP server

Unknown​

  • DNS Error:
    • Unable to resolve DNS records or domain misconfiguration
  • Unavailable SMTP:
    • SMTP server unavailable during verification
  • Unsupported:
    • Email provider not supported by verification service
  • Timeout:
    • Verification process timed out
  • Unknown:
    • Unexpected error occurred

Domain Information​

Domain Name​

Accept All​

  • Yes: Domain accepts all incoming emails
  • No: Domain validates recipient addresses
  • Unknown: Configuration cannot be determined

Disposable​

  • Yes: Known disposable email provider
  • No: Not a disposable email
  • Unknown: Cannot determine disposable status

Free​

  • Yes: Free email provider (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo)
  • No: Not a free provider
  • Unknown: Provider type cannot be determined

Account Information​

Role Address​

  • Yes: Function/role-based address (e.g., support@, info@)
  • No: Not role-based
  • Unknown: Cannot determine if role-based

Disabled Account​

  • Yes: Account is inactive
  • No: Account is active
  • Unknown: Account status cannot be determined

Full Mailbox​

  • Yes: Mailbox is full
  • No: Mailbox is not full
  • Unknown: Mailbox status cannot be determined

Provider Information​

  • Identifies the infrastructure provider handling SMTP communication
  • Could be email service provider or anti-spam filter provider

DNS Information​

  • Type: DNS record type (MX or A)
  • Record: Specific DNS record used for verification

Score​

  • Indicates likelihood of successful email delivery
  • Range: 0-100 (100 = highest likelihood)
  • Empty field indicates score could not be evaluated