Here are answers to some typical questions regarding the usage of Blind Carbon Copy (BCC:) in email: (If you aren't familiar with BCC:, please read our free How To tutorial by clicking HERE.
Question 1: If I list two email addresses in BCC:, do the recipients see each other’s addresses?
Answer 1: Absolutely not. If you send an email putting two or more people into the BCC: field, each person receiving the email will either see just his or her name or he/she will see a phrase similar to "Undisclosed Recipient List." Which one of these a person sees is dependent on the company providing the email service.
Question 2: How many addresses can I put into the BCC: field before I send the email?
Answer 2: The only limitation on how many email addresses you can put into the BCC: field in one email is the restriction which your email provider puts on how many emails you can send during an hour or during a day. In an effort to curb the sending of spam (junk email), all ISPs (Internet Service Providers, e.g., Comcast, RoadRunner, AT&T) and all email providers (e.g., Hotmail, G-Mail, Yahoo) put limits on the number of emails one person can send during a specific amount of time. For some email providers, it's the number of emails a customer tries to send in one hour; for others, it's how many emails a user tries to send in a day; and, finally, some providers use a combination of the two: only so many emails in an hour or a day. Please note that it doesn't really matter which sending field you use (i.e., TO:, CC: or BCC:), the limits apply to all fields.
Question 3: Can I send myself a copy of the BCC: email and see all the addresses that were in the BCC: field?
Answer 3: If you include yourself in the BCC: field, when you receive the email, you won't be able to see the other addresses that you included. You will either see just your name or you will see something similar to "Undisclosed Recipient List." However, if you have your email set up to automatically put a copy of all emails you send in the SENT folder, that copy of the email will show you all the addresses you put in the BCC: field.
Question 4: When I send an email using BCC:, can I leave the TO: field blank?
Answer 4: The correct answer to this question is "It depends!" Various ISPs and email providers have different rules. We can tell you that G-Mail, Hotmail and Yahoo all allow you to send with email addresses only in the BCC: field (no addresses in the TO: field). If your email provider does not allow an email to be sent without an address in the TO: field, simply put your own address in that field and all the others in the BCC: field and that should work for you!
If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at [email protected].
