Email Security
How to Check If Someone Is Forwarding Your Emails
An unknown forwarding rule can send copies of your emails to another address and may expose password resets, financial notices, or private conversations. Check forwarding and delegation settings from your official email provider, remove anything unfamiliar, and change your password.
Why are forwarding rules dangerous?
Forwarding can silently copy messages to another mailbox. If someone added a rule after accessing your account, they may continue receiving password resets and sensitive notifications even after you change a password.
- Unknown forwarding address
- Messages disappearing or being marked read
- Unexpected mailbox rules
Could forwarding be legitimate?
You may have created a rule years ago, or an employer or family account may have authorized delegation. Check the destination and date before removing a rule, but treat an unknown destination as urgent.
- Check the destination address.
- Review delegates and connected apps.
- Confirm authorized rules.
What should remain private?
Never send your password or authentication code to someone offering to inspect the mailbox. Use the provider's official settings page.
Review forwarding, filters, and delegates
Open your mailbox settings directly. Review forwarding addresses, filters, automatic replies, delegates, connected apps, recovery methods, and active sessions. Remove settings you did not create.
- Remove unknown forwarding.
- Delete suspicious filters.
- Revoke unknown app access.
Change the password and sign out
Use a unique password and sign out of other sessions. If the password was reused, replace it on every service where it appeared.
- Use a unique password.
- Sign out other sessions.
- Change reused credentials.
Enable multifactor authentication
Enable multifactor authentication and store recovery codes securely. Check that the recovery email and phone number belong to you.
- Enable MFA.
- Review recovery methods.
- Protect backup codes.
Monitor for follow-up activity
Review account alerts and important services for reset requests or changed settings. An exposure check may add context for an owned email, but it cannot inspect mailbox rules and a negative result is limited evidence.
Frequently asked questions
Can a forwarding rule remain after I change my password?
Yes. Review and remove rules separately, then sign out other sessions and check connected apps.
Should I delete every filter?
Remove filters you do not recognize. Preserve legitimate rules after verifying their destinations and purpose.
Can 4safer detect email forwarding?
No. Forwarding is an account setting, not an exposure-record match.
Sources
This guide is reviewed against official guidance. External pages may be updated by their respective owners.