29 Aug 2009 dwmw2   » (Master)

2009-08-22 01:24:51 +0000 1MefLf-0004Xf-3x H=mailhost8a.rbs.com [155.136.80.166] F=<OnlineBanking@Information.natwest.com> rejected after DATA: Your message lacks a Date: header, which RFC5322 says it MUST have.
Dear Mr. Woodhouse,

Thank you for your call of 26th August about not being able to accept notification emails.
...
I have investigated the matter and can confirm that the statement notification emails are sent out with the date on. The rfc5322 is an internet protocol only and we do not have to abide by this.

Our records show that the notification emails failed delivery on the 21st August due to an invalid email address. I hope this is a satisfactory resolution to your complaint.


Christ, where do I start with this? Yes, if you're claiming to be sending Internet email then you really do have to follow RFC5322. That's the standard that defines what Internet email is.

But that seems to be a red herring — he also claims that they are including a Date: header. Unfortunately, he's wrong. He's probably looking at an email which had the Date: header added in transit by the recipient's mail server. That would be obvious to anyone with a clue, because you can compare the datestamps in the Received: headers and observe that it matches one of the later ones, not the first.

And his diagnosis of the reason for the failure seems to be complete nonsense too, given that the SMTP rejection notice contained precisely the above text: "Your message lacks a Date: header, which RFC5322 says it MUST have.".

Well done, Nat West. Bonus points for stupidity today.

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