This morning I picked up a call from a user who wanted to know why the press release she had tried to send out got rejected for a bunch of people. My response was that I would need to see the error messages before I could even begin to figure out the problem. So, she hangs up and a minute later I receive a forwarded NDR with HUNDREDS of failed recipients. As I start to scroll down through the list of names and the corresponding diagnostic codes generated by the mail server, I quickly receive several more messages from the user with ideas about why it might have failed. The second of these catches my eye – “Is it because I used other_person’s_name_here address? Sure enough, I go back and, at the bottom of the list of addresses, just before the several pages worth of diagnostic codes, is the info I need: “This message could not be sent. You do not have the permission to send the message on behalf of the specified user.”
OK, I know that her position allows her to send mail using other addresses (e.g., shared mailboxes, group accounts, etc.) so I figure it’s just a simple permissions issue. A moment later, she sends another e-mail that I just can’t believe – a screenshot of the original message showing that she’s attempting to send mail on behalf of…username@domain_that_isnt_ours.net. That’s right – a send on behalf for another person whose account is COMPLETELY OUTSIDE OUR MAIL SYSTEM. smh…
I take it back – she’s actually a super-hacker who can just forge e-mails for any address she wants – NOT!!!