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ralft - 30 Oct 2007 04:10 GMT

I just made a big mistake when I sent an email with some personal
information. It should not have been sent and it will cause needless severe
embarrassment. The recipient is traveling and has most likely not seen it. Is
there anyway to remove it from the addressee's inbox?

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Bruce Hagen - 30 Oct 2007 04:21 GMT

No. It is on the recipient's server a split second after you sent it,
waiting to be downloaded when they get home and connect to their e-mail
server.

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Bruce Hagen
MS-MVP Outlook Express
Imperial Beach, CA

>I just made a big mistake when I sent an email with some personal
> information. It should not have been sent and it will cause needless
> severe
> embarrassment. The recipient is traveling and has most likely not seen it.
> Is
> there anyway to remove it from the addressee's inbox?

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ralft - 30 Oct 2007 04:30 GMT

Has this always been true? I think I recall that this was done in an
interoffice environment. Isn't there a webmaster or the like associated with
the isp of the addressee?

> No. It is on the recipient's server a split second after you sent it,
> waiting to be downloaded when they get home and connect to their e-mail
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
> > Is
> > there anyway to remove it from the addressee's inbox?

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Bruce Hagen - 30 Oct 2007 04:40 GMT

There is/was a way to delete a news message, but that is seldom honored
anymore. There may be someone at the recipient's ISP that could remove it
from the server, but even if they can, they would only do it for the person
with the account, not for you. Sorry.

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Bruce Hagen
MS-MVP Outlook Express
Imperial Beach, CA

> Has this always been true? I think I recall that this was done in an
> interoffice environment. Isn't there a webmaster or the like associated
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
>> > Is
>> > there anyway to remove it from the addressee's inbox?

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N. Miller - 30 Oct 2007 08:22 GMT

>>>I just made a big mistake when I sent an email with some personal
>>> information. It should not have been sent and it will cause needless
>>> severe embarrassment. The recipient is traveling and has most likely
>>> not seen it. Is there anyway to remove it from the addressee's inbox?

>> No. It is on the recipient's server a split second after you sent it,
>> waiting to be downloaded when they get home and connect to their e-mail
>> server.

> Has this always been true?

For traditional Internet SMTP, yes. Keep in mind, POP3 is just a retrieval
protocol. From message submission to message delivery to the mail box (the
POP3 server, not the Inbox) everything is SMTP. Once a message submission
server, or MTA, sends "Message queued for delivery", it is beyond recall.

> I think I recall that this was done in an interoffice environment.

I am no expert on MS Exchange in an enterprise environment; but, I believe
that MS Outlook (*not* MS Outlook Express!) in an office environment,
connecting with an Exchange server may have that function, if so configured.

> Isn't there a webmaster or the like associated with the isp of the addressee?

A Postmaster, yes. But he will only provide service for the account owner,
not for people sending to that account.

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Norman
~Shine, bright morning light,
~now in the air the spring is coming.
~Sweet, blowing wind,
~singing down the hills and valleys.

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