WebVetted Beta
Recommendation
Caution
Overall Summary
Suspicious
Why we think so

hotmail.co.uk is a publicly known domain owned by Microsoft and associated with Microsoft’s email services, including Outlook and Hotmail. The domain demonstrates significant traffic with over 1.1 million monthly visits, typical for established web services. It uses robust infrastructure and reputable technologies such as Microsoft Azure hosting and Microsoft Exchange Online for email. There are no direct reports of hotmail.co.uk being a scam site. However, as a widely used public email domain, scammers frequently exploit hotmail.co.uk addresses for phishing and fraudulent emails that impersonate Microsoft's support or services. Users should be cautious of unsolicited emails from this domain that request personal information or urgent actions. Major legal or dispute issues are tied primarily to Microsoft as the parent company, not hotmail.co.uk specifically.

Confidence Score
70%

Risk Insights

🛡️

Legitimate Microsoft Domain with Wide Usage

Owned and secured by Microsoft with valid SSL.
Hosts millions of monthly visitors.
Uses reputable Microsoft technologies and services.
⚠️

Frequent Phishing Target

Widely used in phishing scams targeting users.
Scammers impersonate Microsoft via hotmail.co.uk emails.
Users should verify unsolicited communication carefully.

Contradictory Signals

Despite being a genuine domain, hotmail.co.uk is often exploited by scammers impersonating Microsoft.

Signal A: Strong technical legitimacy and domain ownership by Microsoft.

Signal B: Widespread use in phishing attacks and scam emails.

Category Scores

Identity 70/100
Reputation 50/100
Technical 85/100
Content 60/100
Legal 75/100
Business Validity 70/100

Red Flags & Warnings

  • Common use of hotmail.co.uk addresses in phishing and scam emails impersonating Microsoft support.

🔎 Detailed Checks & Analysis

Domain Ownership and Technical Setup

Score: 90/100
Passed

"The domain shows valid registration, legitimate registrar (CSC Corporate Domains), and Microsoft-issued SSL certificates indicating authenticity."

Reason: hotmail.co.uk is a Microsoft-owned domain using strong infrastructure like Microsoft Azure and secure SSL certificates.

Traffic and Usage Signals

Score: 80/100
Passed

"Traffic data from SimilarWeb and Alexa confirm consistent usage, mostly within the UK."

Reason: The domain receives substantial traffic (~1.2 million monthly visits) consistent with an active, legitimate service.

Reputation and Scam Reports

Score: 40/100
Failed

"Multiple consumer warnings highlight scams posing as Microsoft from hotmail.co.uk email addresses, though the domain itself is not fraudulent."

Reason: Frequent reports of phishing scams use hotmail.co.uk addresses as sender emails, increasing risk to recipients.

Legal and Regulatory Issues

Score: 70/100
Passed

"Hotmail.co.uk has been plaintiff against spammers but has no known customer disputes; legal cases against Microsoft do not single out this domain."

Reason: No lawsuits or regulatory actions directly target hotmail.co.uk; legal disputes relate to Microsoft broadly.

Your Next Steps

  • 1
    Do not trust unsolicited or unexpected emails from hotmail.co.uk addresses requesting personal or financial information.
  • 2
    Verify any communication claiming to be from hotmail.co.uk or Microsoft through official channels before responding.
  • 3
    Report any suspicious emails from hotmail.co.uk to Microsoft and local authorities such as Action Fraud in the UK.
  • 4
    Use up-to-date anti-phishing tools and avoid clicking links in unverified messages.
  • 5
    Consider using multifactor authentication on your Microsoft accounts for added security.

Evidence & Citations