Send Email Headers when Reporting Spam or Phishing Attempts


In this article

If you have received an email message that could be considered spam or a possible phishing attempt, it is recommended that you send the Division of Information Technology (DIT) the full header of the message. To learn how to retrieve the header from the message, follow the steps listed below for the appropriate email client or service.

Gmail

  1. Open Gmail and locate the message you wish to report in the appropriate folder in your Inbox.
  2. Click the three vertical dots next to Reply, at the top-right of the message pane.
    ""
  3. Select Show original. This will cause a new window to open, containing the full message headers.
  4. A window will open, displaying the details of the message. Click Copy to clipboard, or highlight the text in the Message field.
    Gmail Email Headers
  5. Close this window, and return to the original message. Click Forward and address the message to spam@umd.edu. Do not send the email yet.
  6. Paste in the full headers you copied in step four into the Message field. Click Send. 

Outlook

  1. Open Outlook and locate the email you wish to report in the appropriate folder in your Inbox.
    ""
  2. Right-click the message. Select view message source.
  3. A window displaying the full email header for the message will open. Highlight all of the text that appears in this window. Copy this highlighted text.
  4. Open the spam email where the full email headers originated. Select Forward and address it to spam@umd.edu. Do not send the email yet.
  5. Paste the full email headers into the Message field, and click Send.

 Back To Top

Apple Mail

  1. Open Apple Mail and locate the message you wish to report in the appropriate folder in your Inbox.
  2. Click View. Select Message and choose All Headers.
    ""
  3. A window will open displaying the full headers for the message. Highlight and copy the text displayed in the window.
  4. Navigate back to the original email, and right-click the message. Select Forward.
  5. Address the message to spam@umd.edu, and paste the full headers at the top of the message. Click Send.

 Back To Top

Mozilla Thunderbird

  1. Open the Mozilla Thunderbird mail client.
  2. Click on the message you would like to view full email headers for from the appropriate folder in the Inbox.
  3. Click the View menu, and select Message Source.
    ""
  4. A window will open displaying the full headers for the message. Highlight and copy the text displayed in the window.
  5. Return to the message and select Forward.
  6. Paste the full email headers to the top of the Message field. Address the email to spam@umd.edu, and click Send. 

 Back To top