
Ask HN: Why can't gmail distinguish properly between dot/no dot email addresses - ethnologica
Any suggestions how to file a bug report?
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27182818284
It is a feature not a bug.

Similar to how you can do username+randomstring@gmail.com and still receive
the email.

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smt88
Gmail doesn't treat dots as significant. This is considered a "feature," not a
bug. I do think it probably cuts down on people sending emails to the wrong
person or creating confusing email addresses in order to commit fraud.

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novalis78
What if two people have the same name but their email address is different
JUST by the dot in between their first and last names? In this case they'd be
sending personal privacy related information to each other. Sounds to me like
the very opposite of cutting down on fraud. I could go in and set up a dot/non
dot email address to people I know and just wait until I receive an email that
was supposed to be for them but now goes to my email account.

~~~
jerryszczerry
> I could go in and set up a dot/non dot email address to people I know and
> just wait until I receive an email that was supposed to be for them but now
> goes to my email account.

Err, you can't do that?

The fact that somebody's email address is johndoe at gmail.com, and the fact
that Gmail strips all the dots from the username, imply that john.doe and
john.d.oe and so on… are taken as well.

You just can't register as e.g. john.doe and get johndoe's mail redirected
because for Google, these two aliases are the exact same username!

(An exercise for the reader: if you have a Google account, try to log in by
putting random dots in your username. Then, try to create a new account by
putting random dots in your login.)

