Multiple qcopies of same email sent

[#1]

Here's an odd one. It may not be a PN problem but here goes.

An email was sent once by me and it shows in the Sent list. The recipient had over a dozen copies! 

It's the only time it's happened so far as I can tell.

Has anyone had a similar experience and if so was it a PN issue?

Email is IMAP, hardware iPad Air 1 running iOS12. Software: Apple Mail app.

TIA

[#2]

I'd guess there was a network error and the email transmission failed repeatedly until it successfully completed..............

[#3]

@Champnet  If the email transmission failed repeatedly how did the recipient receive multiple copies?

[#4]

Simple, the receiving end recieved the email but the confirmation receipt back to the sender was probably corrupted so the sending end sent it again & again until both ends were happy................

[#5]

Interesting hypothesis.

Sounds more like a [-Censored-]ation of the internet.

[#6]

Thanks, Champnet, that's a possibility I had suspected.

[#7]

OK, I think we're a bit closer.

The email was copied to ano, that recipient received one email. This points to a"handshake" fault.

So, I looked at webmail (my app shows one send which is fairly obvious) to see if any further clue lies there.

Wrong! The webmail Sent folder is odd but as it happens holds useful old stuff. The app shows 2 sent folders, one is what it has sent locally and the other is the spurious webmail folder with items 9 or 10 years old. Webmail only shows the latter not current. (Edit: I just checked the app and sent emails are set to be deleted from the webmail server after one day.)

Unfortunately I can do no more, I guess I will have to raise a ticket.

[#8]

@Mardler that's probably because your email app uses a different name for the sent folder. Webmail will use 'Sent' as the default folder name , some apps typically use 'Sent items'. So in this case you actually have two IMAP folders unless you manully configure the app to use the same folder name!.

[#9]

@Mardler A long shot, but has the recipient of the multiple copies still got  them on their system? If so, can they check the sent/received times? If those times are all the same, I suspect @Champnet  in post #4 is correct in his assumption.

[#10]

@jab1 The retry on error timings can be manually set, so on a percieved failed delivery the retry could be seconds, minutes or hours. You'll be looking for equal timed spaces between the recieved emails.

[#11]

Good point, @Champnet , but I was going on the very few duplicates I have had, they appear to have had the same times.

[#12]

@MisterW thanks but both folders have the same name: Sent. The app has its own Sent folder which isn't replicated in webmail. The other Sent folder in the app IS the webmail one the latest item of which is 10 years old and all 70+ items are useful. See my next comment.

[#13]

@jab1 thanks, the recipient had another copy at 7pm yesterday (!) and I noticed when he forwarded it to me that the sent time was the original 13:56. So, yes, @Champnet is correct.

I'm hoping my friend hasn't had any more!

[#14]

@Mardler Eventually the sending system will give up then you, as the sender, will recieve messages explaining why the email could not be delivered even though the intended recipient has recieved the email many times................

[#15]

@jab1 John, that's interesting. As you have had a similar experience to me, to what exactly was the fault attributed? My theory is the recipient email service which I suspect might be his own not proprietary.

If I am right on both counts knowing what the PN service is expecting by way of receipt acknowledgement should be very helpful.

Btw, this is the first time I have had this issue or the first time someone has told me!

Richard