EMAIL GLOSSARY

What is an IP Address?

An IP address is a numerical number that is assigned to every computer that uses internet protocol to connect to a computer network. The address is used to identify the connecting machine, both for location purposes and for security reasons.

An IP address is useful in email for several reasons:

  1. Delivery: When you send an email, your email client sends it to your email server, which then sends it to the recipient’s email server. The recipient’s email server needs to know where to send the email, and this is where the IP address comes in. The IP address is used to route the email to the correct email server.

  2. Identification: An IP address can be used to identify the location of the sender. This can be useful in detecting spam or other malicious emails.

  3. Authentication: Some email servers use the IP address to authenticate the sender. If the IP address matches an approved list, the email is more likely to be delivered to the recipient’s inbox rather than their spam folder.

  4. Troubleshooting: If there is a problem with an email delivery, the IP address can be used to track where the email got stuck or delayed in the delivery process.

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