List verification
Catch-all detection
How EmailPal detects catch-all domains by probing a mailbox that cannot exist before trusting RCPT TO on your contact.
The probe
Many business domains accept mail to any local part. A verifier that only asks "does jane@company exist?" hears yes for jane, for asdfghjkl, and for your typo. Those later bounce — or worse, sit in a bit bucket.
EmailPal asks about an address that cannot be a real mailbox first. If that is accepted, the domain is catch-all. Your contact is not confirmed.
No message is sent. RCPT TO only.
FAQs
Should I ever mail catch-alls?
That is your risk budget. We will not pretend they are valid. Many teams drop them; some mail them at lower volume.
Can a domain be catch-all for some MX and not others?
We report what the server we reached told us. If results look mixed, the domain may be greylisting probes — verdict unknown is the honest answer.