solarisos

I've been running experiments with several "top-tier" B2B data providers (the ones claiming 95%+ verification). Despite the SMTP handshakes returning "Valid," the actual deliverability and engagement are the worst I've seen in a decade.

It feels like the technical definition of "Verified" no longer correlates with "Reachable."

A few observations:

The Catch-All Silent Drop: Enterprise servers (O365/Mimecast) now seem to "accept" all mail to prevent directory harvest attacks, only to silently drop it or route it to a quarantine folder if the sender isn't on a whitelist.

Resale Fingerprinting: If a "verified" record is sold to 1,000 customers, and even 5% of them send low-quality outreach, do ISPs now "poison" that specific recipient address for all external cold mail?

The Engagement Wall: In 2026, it seems Google/Microsoft filters have moved entirely to reputation based on bi-directional interaction. If you don't have a history with a domain, your "verified" email is effectively treated as shadow-spam.

I’m curious to hear from the community: 1. Is anyone still seeing ROI on purchased lists, or has the "Data Broker" model finally been defeated by AI-driven ISP filters? 2. Has anyone found a technical workaround for the "silent drop" on catch-all domains?

I’ve run into this multiple times and I’m honestly still confused. I’ve tested purchased B2B email lists (including ones sold as “verified”), and deliverability is often terrible — bounces, low engagement, the usual. Is the core problem outdated data, weak verification, catch-all domains, or something else? For people who’ve actually solved this, what approaches worked in practice?