E-Mail accounts Outlook deleting old

[Bernardus]

I tried a program which shows passwords of Outlook. (MPV)
No hacking attempted, just a kind of storing or recovering this important info.
However these E-Mail account settings of Outlook still show accounts which have been deleted long ago.
Somehow Outlook won't delete these info.
This may be a risk if for instance you sell the device later.

Where is this info stored and is there a way to delete or wipe obsolete E-Mail-accounts?

 

[Ranger4]

Depending on whether you use POP3 or IMAP type email accounts. Usually POP3 will be deleted when you use Outlook to delete them, but with IMAP the emails are actually stored on your Internet Service Providers website. This is to allow synchronising email access from other devices such as smart phones as well as Outlook.

You should be able to log onto your ISP's website using your browser & delete those emails directly from there.

 

[Bernardus]

I prefer pop3 because I like to have my mail offline.
I don't know what it will do with old IMAP accounts?
I deleted all IMap maps and accounts in Outlook long ago.
I have a dozen E-Mail accounts and in IMAP these create in Outlook an endless bunch of double maps.
With Pop3 I see them all in one set.

But still there are hidden maps and accounts stored of persons I deleted long ago.
Even cleaning up Outlook, which I usually do before a back up, won't delete this maps or accounts entirely.
There is a PST reader, who often still shows these maps and content are there. Very odd.
Outlook doesn't show them after deleting, which gives you the false impression that the delete was successful.
But it's still in the PST file somehow?

I use a program Mailwasher which has it own set of E-Mail accounts.
But I don't believe these are the same as the Outlook ones.
Mailwasher sometimes show up deleted E-Mailaccounts by importing.
Which proves that they must be stored somewhere.

 

[Ranger4]

Do you still have active IMAP email accounts, if so then those emails that are showing up are most likely still with your IMAP ISP. I did suggest how you can check & delete those emails in Post #2.

I don't know how Outlook stores .pst information, so I can't advise you about that, but as far as I know all Outlook information get stored in the .pst files.

Have you tried archiving some of the old emails.

 

[Bernardus]

I have deleted all Imap accounts long ago.
All obsolete account info is POP 3 and SMTP.
The program which can read PST files en disclose what Outlook can't, show however that these old account info is still there.
I use two programs: Mail Pass view and Kernel Outlook PST viewer.
MPV produces a long list even without WW and so it's a "poor Password" while the real one shows up further on with the long "good" WW version.
Really hilarious what is left behind and hardly changes through the years.
(I'm not aware of any possible information stored by Mailpassview which may contain old account info).

Here is an example of one of the spooky accounts.
The odd thing is that there is no user or profile labeled.
Real name is replaced by me with xxxxxx

Name : [email protected]
Application : MS Outlook
Email : [email protected]
Server : smtp.aol.com
Server Port : 587
Secured : No
Type : SMTP
User :
Password :
Profile :
Password Strength : Very Weak
SMTP Server :
SMTP Server Port :

 

[Ranger4]

I think the .pst files in Outlook retain all the history of all email accounts from the time it was installed.

Normally when you delete an email account there would be no need to ever access any of it's .pst details again, but I think the history is still there.

As you are using a 3rd party software to read the .pst files you are seeing this old history, that would not normally be available. So is it really essential that these are removed?.

 

[Bernardus]

Well perhaps not, but it is there and it shouldn't, since these special programs reveal what is hidden.
Like passwords you may still use, although deleted as obsolete accounts.
Or personal information which could be read, even restored.
May also increase the PST file.
But windows is known to left behind a lot in the registers or logs, or residue's of "deleted" stuff.

 

[Barman58]

I have not used Outlook for a while but there used to be IIRC a compact or similar command for the .PST file that should purge all the deleted records.

Now this was something I was using in industrial/Commercial systems with Thousands of accounts where a few deleted accounts in each PST could build up to a huge amount of storage and I used to do the purges centrally from the Exchange server but I'm sure there should be an option in Outlook itself.

The other method I have seen used (Backup first to two locations), is to convert the PST to an OST and back

This may work with other conversions hence the backups but always create another before any attempt to convert

 

[Bernardus]

Ok I'll could try so
Thanks for the tips.
I always copy the PST before any change on a regular base.
Outlook could really mess up itself.
There is a purge option, I carry that out regularly.
But it didn't delete the old accounts and some private maps.
Wonder if old info is still there left behind by other versions of Outlook?