Email Verification
Email verification confirms an address exists and accepts mail — beyond format-checking — preventing bounces that wreck sender reputation and deliverability.
What is email verification?
Email verification is the multi-step process of confirming an email address is real and deliverable. Layers: syntax check, domain MX lookup, SMTP handshake (without actually sending), catch-all detection, and risk scoring (disposable, role, free webmail, spam-trap signals).
Why it matters
- Every bounce hurts sender reputation; a 5% bounce rate on a cold campaign is a domain-burning event
- Pre-verification is cheaper than recovery; it takes a few cents and an API call vs. weeks of warming after a hit
- Catch-all addresses look valid via SMTP but accept everything — verify's confidence score flags them
Verification result types
- Valid — high confidence, safe to send
- Risky — catch-all, role address (info@, sales@), free webmail — sender judgment
- Invalid — syntax bad or SMTP rejected; do not send
- Unknown — server didn't respond reliably; usually treat as risky
How TexAu helps
Built into the waterfall enrichment pipeline — every email returned from a finder is verified before it reaches your downstream systems, keeping bounce rate well below the danger threshold.
See it on TexAu
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