# Comcast Email Failure: Other Victims?



## P220ST (Jun 7, 2007)

I recently discovered that Comcast, my ISP/Email Server has failed to transmit numerous emails both to and from my account. I had received no notification of any problem from Comcast. The failures represent a small percentage of the total emails associated with my account. The absolute number is well over thirty, but I have no means of being accurate. Comcast is denying responsibility. My problem seems to have begun in mid-May. Sent items show up normally in your "Sent Items" box (name depends on email client; I happen to use Outlook Express). Items ostensibly delivered to you have no trace nor notification, i.e you have not a clue until someone complains to you that you are ignoring them. The symptoms of my dilemma are strikingly similar to those described in the debacle that besieged England's ISP, _Tiscali_ last month. Here's The Telegraph's story about _Tiscali's_ crisis.

Has _anyone_ else with *Comcast* as their ISP/email server _had problems_ with their email being sent or delivered?

Take Care,
-P220ST


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## amerikat (Sep 5, 2007)

About every four months I have a problem with Comcast (my server) but ONLY when sending emails to BT Internet. When I call and complain, they blame BT and BT blames Comcast and then suddenly everything clears up. However, now my problem has been going on since late April (and here it is, the beginning of September). Any mail I send to a BT Internet address takes days to get there, and many times I will receive notification that it can't be sent (I get this several days after I've sent the email) and then I find out that the email got through anyway. However, the person I'm sending email to who uses BT Internet has no problems sending me email. Comcast told me AND I QUOTE-Don't worry, your email will eventually get there. Jerks. Any help from anyone??


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## amerikat (Sep 5, 2007)

By the way, I'm in Michigan...far cry from Oregon but I guess Comcast can screw up on both sides of the country.


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## grayfox_rkc (Nov 19, 2007)

I had Roadrunner cable service including ISP until Comcast bought them out in our city. Roadrunner was OK overall even though their webmail was terrible. Comcast is a total disaster. They've screwed up everything but I'll focus this message on the email service. About 5 weeks ago, my emails (from Outlook) to my most common recipient (in Europe/critical business contact) were returned with the message:

_This is an automatically generated Delivery Status Notification. Delivery to the following recipients failed permanently:_

So, I tried sending it via webmail. Same answer. I sent it from my gmail account -- no problem. OK -- block on one of the two ends! Called Comcast -- more than 50 minutes later I gave someone the IP and ISP's name. Explained the problem. Told them I had pinged the IP and it was OK. However, webpage blocked when tried to open in browsers (tried both IE and Firefox). They said: "Must be blocked at their end because IP doesn't show up on blocked list". At their end, they checked for blocks on incoming Comcast emails (my associate had no trouble sending emails to me!) and everything was OK.

I went online into a CHAT -- waited in the queue as #12, took 83 minutes to have someone come "into the room". Explained everything. I have copy of the CHAT. He said he thought the problem must be in Outlook! Too dumb for words. When I explained that I had used Webmail and other comcast email users were also blocked from sending to that ISP (a large, well-kinown ISP in Germany), he promptly "left the room" and ended the "CHAT".

I emailed comcast with my complaint. Two days later received a computer-generated answer

"Dear _______________ , Thank you for your recent e-mail inquiry. We will respond to your e-mail within the next 24-48 hrs.
TWC - Houston Customer Care."

That was it! and the answer was still a carry-over from TWC before Comcast took over!

While at my daughter's in Round Rock, TX I sent an email the European associate using my comcast account, changing only the SMTP to what I used to use when I had RoadRunner. It went through, NO PROBLEM!

When I returned home, I started up the battle again -- with this additional info and had another CHAT. The Techie was very nice -- tried to send from her own account and failed so she "Opened a ticket" on the problem, ostensibly this was the first "ticket" opened since I had addressed the problem with comcast. She even promised to send it to a "higher level support" and gave me the ticket number. Two days later I received this response:
____________________
Thank you for contacting Comcast Customer Security Assurance. We have received and reviewed your RBL removal request.

Below each IP address you submitted in your request, we have included the result of our research. Please do not reply to this message.

73.209.xx.xxx

Your request for IP block removal has been denied for the following reason:

- You have been blocked from emailing the Comcast network because we have determined that you are sending email from a dynamic/residential IP within the Comcast domain. Comcast does not allow subscribers to send email from a mail server other than smtp.comcast.net. All mail should be sent through Comcast's mail server. For information on configuring your machine to use smtp.comcast.net, please follow the link below.
http://www.comcast.net/help/faq/index.jsp?faq=Email117481

If you need to run your own mail server, please contact our Commercial Services organization at [email protected]

Sincerely,
Comcast Customer Security Assurance
___________________________

Of course, this was totally bogus because (a) I was already using the proper SMTP (2) the problem began BEFORE I used my daughter's SMTP, and (3) EVERYONE on comcast is blocked from sending to clients of this European ISP. Does this mean that one user (not knowing this strange comcast rule about SMTPs uses another person's SMTP while visiting them and the recipient(s) and their ISPs are permanently blocked for ALL comcast email users??? I sent a follow-up email for clarification and a proper fix OR I would take my story public. No answers from comcast, so here you are!!!


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## tedwaltman (Dec 7, 2007)

Close to mid-November Comcast stopped doing reverse lookups on all but the primary domain hosted by our servers. I've already been on Chat with them for a couple of hours--of course they blame us for the problem. Doesn't matter that everyone else can send emails to our domains (e.g. gmail, Yahoo, you name it)--but when someone whose smtp points to mail.comcast.net when they send mail to our domain it never gets to us--and they never receive error or delivery failure notice!

If everyone else can send us mail, don't you think someone at Comcast would own up to having a problem on their end?


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

I ran the eicar.com test on my pc some time back.
http://forums.techguy.org/reviews/336046-results-pc-security-test-v.html?highlight=eicar

Comcast delete the attachments but I did get delivery failure notice.

I ran the test again on 11/06/07 and email from comcast to myself and to other web base accounts and from the other web base accounts to my comcast email account.

Comcast is now just deleting the emails because I don't get any delivery failure notice or anything.

I have also posted at the comcast forum a month ago and comcast has not reply to my post yet.

http://forums.comcast.net/comcastsupport/board/message?board.id=2&thread.id=112187


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## vdolmstead (Jan 31, 2008)

They were being blocked by Comcast for alleged "spam" on my part. They had closed port 25 to outgoing messages from my address. When i challenged them on the subject they were evasive. I have yet to receive any explanation. I found this message on a search of Comcast for SPAM and Terms of service. I wanted to read all the fine print to see if the FCC would say they have any leg to stand on. Sounds, however, like I'm not alone in abuse by Comcast. And to think they want me to report to [email protected]. They know who they are, don't they!


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## hewee (Oct 26, 2001)

Lots on comcast blocking email.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=comcast&as_q=blocking+email&btnG=Search within results


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## tomdkat (May 6, 2006)

vdolmstead said:


> They were being blocked by Comcast for alleged "spam" on my part. They had closed port 25 to outgoing messages from my address. When i challenged them on the subject they were evasive. I have yet to receive any explanation.


I've been hit by this as well. The funniest thing is, I run Linux on my system! 

Currently, I'm having problems with a credit card company NOT being able to send me e-mail due to Comcast blocking them, for some reason. They are aware of the problem and are supposedly working with Comcast to fix it.

I gave up on trying to use third party SMTP servers and have been using Comcast's SMTP server. *Sigh*

Peace...


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