Yahoo Accused of Holding Email Users Hostage

Yahoo has blocked users from automatically forwarding incoming emails to an account with a rival provider. Many are interpreting it as an attempt to stop users jumping ship after revelations of a major security breach.

The forwarding feature is pretty much a standard feature across the webmail industry, and means users can change from one account to another without having to worry about missing out on an important message during the switchover.

Officially Yahoo says the feature is only temporarily disabled. It says the move was planned in advance and is to allow it to work on a range of improvements to its service for people with multiple email accounts.

Users Cry Foul Over Timing

However, several tech experts and users quoted by the Associated Press say they are extremely suspicious of the timing. They believe Yahoo is intentionally making it more awkward for users to quit the service: not having auto forward means they will have to keep checking their old accounts to make sure they haven't missed out on telling anyone of their change of address. (Source: ap.org)

Some users have opted for the workaround of including an out-of-office message explaining they've got a new account and giving the new address. The problem is that this won't work for many automated emails such as newsletters and promotional offers.

Yahoo Suffers Dual PR Blow

While no firm figures are available, it's seems plausible that the number of people wanting to quit Yahoo would be on the rise right now. Last month it emerged that hackers had accessed details including passwords and security questions affecting more than 500 million accounts. Questions over what Yahoo knew and when have even led to calls for a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation.

That was followed by separate revelations that Yahoo had given the FBI access to incoming emails to scan for a specific string of characters as part of an investigation into a terrorist group. Although backed by a court order, the scan caused controversy as it involved looking at the emails of all users rather than specific suspects. (Source: nytimes.com)

What's Your Opinion?

Do you believe Yahoo's claim that the auto-forwarding has been blocked as part of routine maintenance? If it is deliberately trying to deter customers from leaving, is it acting fairly? Should auto-forwarding be a right for email users?