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Email Verification

How should I handle catch-all emails?

April 2026

Quick Answer

**Use risk scoring instead of binary accept/reject.** Catch-all domains accept all emails, so validation can't confirm if a specific address exists. Binary accept/reject loses good leads or causes bounces. **Risk scoring factors:** - **Email pattern:** firstname.lastname = lower risk, random_string = higher risk - **Domain signals:** Fortune 500 = lower risk, new domain = higher risk - **Role-based:** info@, sales@ = risky **Risk score thresholds:** - **0.0-0.3:** Safe to send without hesitation - **0.3-0.5:** Send to warmed domains only - **0.5-0.7:** Send only if high-value lead - **0.7+:

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1 months ago

1 Answer

Use risk scoring instead of binary accept/reject.

Catch-all domains accept all emails, so validation can't confirm if a specific address exists. Binary accept/reject loses good leads or causes bounces.

Risk scoring factors:

  • Email pattern: firstname.lastname = lower risk, random_string = higher risk
  • Domain signals: Fortune 500 = lower risk, new domain = higher risk
  • Role-based: info@, sales@ = risky

Risk score thresholds:

  • 0.0-0.3: Safe to send without hesitation
  • 0.3-0.5: Send to warmed domains only
  • 0.5-0.7: Send only if high-value lead
  • 0.7+: Skip entirely

Segmented sending strategy:

  • Push "safe" catch-alls to main campaigns
  • Push "moderate" catch-alls to a separate test campaign with daily limit of ~20
  • Skip "risky" catch-alls entirely
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