Spam traps are email addresses used by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and blocklist operators to identify senders who aren’t following email best practices. These spam trap email addresses may have been legitimate at one time, but are now abandoned or invalid.
When an email is sent to one of these inboxes it is because the sender doesn’t follow approved methods for sign-ups and just collects random email addresses off the internet.
The impact of spam traps varies depending on the type. Hitting a pristine (new emails) spam trap is more severe than hitting a recycled (pre-existing email addresses) trap. If you’ve emailed a pristine spam trap, your domain or sending IP address could be immediately blocklisted. If you send email to recycled spam traps regularly, you could start to see your emails being routed to the junk folder. To avoid spam traps, be sure to regularly clean up your contact lists.