People use disposable email addresses to get around things like website signup forms that require real-world emails, or when they want to grab a freebie or try out software without signing up for it with their company or personal emails. However, a growing number of cybercriminals also use them to commit fraud and other fraudulent activities online. This is why it’s important for merchants to consider including DEA detection in their fraud prevention and chargeback management strategies.

Throwaway email address detection  involves checking if an email or domain is associated with disposable email addresses and services. This can be done manually or via APIs and list-checking solutions that are specifically designed to detect DEAs. These tools can help prevent marketers from accidentally sending messages to invalid or risky email addresses that can cause damage to their email deliverability, sender reputation and marketing efforts.

Disposable Email Detection: Strengthening Your Online Security

As email continues to be a primary communication channel between consumers and brands, consumers are more skittish than ever about handing over their real-world emails to businesses they haven’t yet built trust with. They are often wary of being spammed, redirected to unwanted landing pages and opening their personal email up to vulnerabilities.

Disposable email addresses are often used to bypass websites or services that require a real-world email address for access and can be automatically deleted after they’re no longer needed. Having many DEAs in your mailing lists can damage your email deliverability, make it harder to communicate with your audience and even cause you to appear untrustworthy.