The university’s email system uses Microsoft 365 to filter and quarantine messages that may be junk or phishing attempts. As a result, occasionally legitimate emails can be held in quarantine before reaching your inbox. This guide explains how to review those quarantined messages, either directly from the notification email you receive or by visiting the quarantine portal so you can quickly release any valid messages and ensure important correspondence isn’t lost.
Notifications of Quarantine Email
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You may receive an email from “Microsoft 365 Security” (often with “Quarantine” in the subject) indicating that one or more messages have been held for review.
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The notification shows a small preview: sender, subject and when the email was received.
Review the message directly from the notification email
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Open the quarantine notification email.
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Click the Review Message link/button inside that email.
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A browser window will open, which will direct you to the Quarantine section of Microsoft Defender displaying the full details of the held message.
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Examine the sender, subject, and content.
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If you want that message delivered to your inbox, select the message and click Release. It will be released to your mailbox.
- You can block the sender completely by clicking on Block Sender.
View the Quarantine directly from the web
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Open a web browser and go to: https://security.microsoft.com/quarantine
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Once the page loads, you’ll see a list of all messages currently quarantined for your account.
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Scroll through the list to identify any emails you recognize as legitimate or were expecting.
- If you want to have the message delivered, click Request release.
- If you do not want the message, you can select to Delete messages
Things to be aware of
- Messages are held in the Quarantine for 30 days. If they are not released in this time, they will be permanently deleted.
- If the message is not delivered and you are expecting an email that hasn't arrived, you can contact us on the IT helpdesk.
Further Reading
Article on the UIS website about quarantined emails in the University's email service