Summary
In January 2024, email senders experienced delays delivering to Apple domains. These were attributed to a combination of factors, including a brief service disruption on January 17th confirmed by Apple, intermittent MX record issues, and potential server problems on Apple's end. A surge in spam led to increased filtering, and Apple may have rotated their MX IPs. While Google Workspace experienced no widespread issues, experts observed 'blips'. The issues were largely resolved by late January. To maintain deliverability, it's crucial to monitor delivery rates, verify email server configurations, comply with email authentication standards (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), actively monitor blacklists, check rDNS records, and understand potential DNS propagation delays.
Key findings
- Service Disruption: Apple confirmed a brief Mail service disruption on January 17, 2024, resolved within hours.
- MX Record Issues: Reports indicated intermittent issues with Apple's MX records around January 17th.
- Root Causes: The delays were likely due to Apple server issues, increased spam filtering, and potential rotation of Apple's MX IPs.
- Resolution Timeline: The issues appeared to be largely resolving by late January 2024.
- Traffic: Surge in spam traffic.
Key considerations
- Monitoring: Continuously monitor email delivery rates to Apple domains.
- Configuration: Verify email server configurations for optimal delivery, checking DNS and rDNS records.
- Authentication: Ensure compliance with email authentication standards (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).
- Blacklist Monitoring: Actively monitor and address blacklist status to maintain deliverability.
- General Deliverability: Maintain a positive sender reputation through good email practices.
What email marketers say
10 marketer opinions
In January 2024, email senders experienced delays in delivering messages to Apple domains. These delays were attributed to several factors, including potential server issues on Apple's end, increased spam filtering due to a surge in spam, and possible rotations of Apple's MX IPs. The issue appeared to be resolving by late January, with many reporting improved delivery times. Experts recommend monitoring delivery rates, verifying email server configurations, and ensuring compliance with email best practices like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to maintain deliverability to Apple domains.
Key opinions
- Root Causes: Delays were likely due to Apple server issues, increased spam filtering, and possible rotation of Apple's MX IPs.
- Resolution Timeline: The issues appeared to be resolving by late January 2024.
- IP Changes: Apple rotated something causing IP changes.
Key considerations
- Monitoring: Continuously monitor email delivery rates to Apple domains.
- Configuration: Verify email server configurations for optimal delivery.
- Authentication: Ensure compliance with email authentication standards (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).
- Blacklist Monitoring: Actively monitor blacklists to reduce delivery delays.
Marketer view
Email marketer from LinkedIn user EmailPro shares that the Apple email delays in January 2024 were likely due to a combination of server maintenance and increased spam filtering. They mentions that Apple has implemented fixes and the delays are mostly resolved as of late January.
18 Jun 2023 - LinkedIn
Marketer view
Email marketer from Reddit user u/EmailExpert shares that Apple had some server issues in January 2024 that caused delays in email delivery. They mention that the issue seems to have been resolved by late January, with most users reporting normal delivery times.
7 Nov 2022 - Reddit
What the experts say
4 expert opinions
In January 2024, reports surfaced of email delivery delays to Apple domains. Experts at Email Geeks observed these issues, confirming that they were likely related to problems on Apple's side. While a direct cause for the Apple delays is not explicitly stated by SpamResource, they suggest that mailbox providers sometimes implement stricter spam filtering in response to sudden shifts in sending patterns, which may contribute to such delays. Word to the Wise highlights that ensuring deliverability is an ongoing process that requires attention to email reputation, authentication, content quality and list hygiene.
Key opinions
- Root Cause: The Apple email delays in January 2024 were likely due to issues on Apple's side.
- Potential Triggers: Changes in sending volume or content could trigger stricter spam filtering, impacting deliverability.
- Confirmed Issues: Confirmed 'blips' from experts that point to a known issue.
Key considerations
- General Deliverability: Prioritize building and maintaining a positive sender reputation.
- Email Authentication: Implement robust email authentication protocols.
- Content Quality: Focus on crafting high-quality, engaging email content.
- List Hygiene: Maintain clean and engaged email lists.
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks initially mentions hearing about the issue and that it may have cleared up, but later confirms seeing a blip in their dashboards. They pinpoint the start of the issue around noon the previous day, ending 4-5 hours prior to the message.
12 Jan 2023 - Email Geeks
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks shares that she has seen other reports of delays to Apple domains, indicating a potential issue on Apple's side and not the user's.
6 Jun 2022 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
6 technical articles
In January 2024, email delivery delays to Apple domains were experienced. Apple's System Status page confirmed a brief service disruption on January 17th, which was resolved within hours. MXToolbox reported intermittent issues with Apple's MX records around the same date. Google Workspace Status Dashboard indicated no widespread email delivery issues, suggesting the Apple issue was isolated. These delays could also have resulted from network congestion, server overloads as stated in RFC 5321, temporary DNS propagation delays as described by DNSViz and finally a potential lack of rDNS record on the sending server as explained by Digital Ocean.
Key findings
- Service Disruption: Apple experienced a brief mail service disruption on January 17, 2024.
- MX Record Issues: Intermittent issues with Apple's MX records were reported around January 17, 2024.
- Isolated Issue: Google Workspace reported no widespread issues, suggesting the problem was specific to Apple domains.
- Potential Causes: Network congestion, server overloads, and temporary DNS propagation delays could have contributed to the delays.
Key considerations
- rDNS Records: Verify that sending servers have properly configured reverse DNS (rDNS) records to ensure deliverability.
- DNS Propagation: Understand that DNS propagation delays can temporarily impact email delivery.
- MX Record Checks: Monitor your MX records to ensure they are correctly configured
Technical article
Documentation from RFC 5321 (SMTP standard) explains that temporary delivery failures, resulting in timeouts, can occur due to network congestion, server overloads, or temporary unavailability of the destination server (in this case, Apple's mail servers).
29 May 2023 - ietf.org
Technical article
Documentation from Google Workspace Status Dashboard reported no widespread issues that would have affected email delivery in general for January 2024, confirming the Apple issue was isolated. This can be used to compare with other services that were operational at the same time.
31 Jul 2024 - Google
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