Deleted emails

Ted Harris 0 Reputation points
2026-10-11T20:30:14.1766667+00:00

In outlook my incoming emails are going directly to my Deleted Items files.

Outlook | Web | Outlook.com | Email
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  1. AI answer

    2026-10-11T20:30:25.9233333+00:00

    Common causes are an Outlook conversation being set to Ignore, or a rule moving mail to Deleted Items.

    Try these checks:

    1. Check whether Ignore is enabled for the affected conversation
      • Open Deleted Items.
      • Select one of the messages that was moved there.
      • On the Home tab, select Ignore.
      • If prompted, select Stop Ignoring Conversation.
      • If the Ignore button is highlighted, that conversation is currently being ignored. After stopping it, the selected message is moved back to its original folder, and future messages in that thread should stop going to Deleted Items.
    2. Check Outlook rules
      • In Outlook on the web or Outlook.com, review Mail > Rules and remove any rule that deletes messages or moves them to Deleted Items.
      • Also check for any suspicious forwarding or sweep settings if the issue started unexpectedly.
    3. Check blocked or junk settings
      • Review Mail > Junk email.
      • Remove legitimate senders or domains from Blocked senders.
      • If messages are landing in Junk Email instead of Deleted Items, mark them as Not junk.
    4. If this started after suspicious account activity
      • Review mailbox rules and blocked senders in Outlook on the web, because malicious rules can remain even after a password change.
    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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  2. John Jefferson Doyon 89,735 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-10-11T21:13:25.2533333+00:00

    Hi, @Ted Harris

    To help narrow down the issue:

    1. Is this happening with all incoming emails, or only emails from certain senders?
    2. Also, when you move one of the affected emails from "Deleted Items" back to the Inbox, does it stay there or move back to "Deleted Items" again?

    In the meantime, if you haven’t already already:

    In Outlook.com, please go to "Settings" > "Mail" > "Rules" and check whether any rule is set to delete messages or move them to "Deleted Items." If you find one, temporarily disable it and send yourself a test email. Microsoft confirms that Outlook.com rules can automatically move or delete messages as soon as they arrive: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/manage-email-messages-by-using-rules-in-outlook

    If the issue persists, please provide more details by answering my questions.

    Click "Add comment" to let me know.

    Thanks!

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