. This promotional strategy has become a significant issue and a major source of unproductivity. Worse yet, certain forms of spam are used for malicious and criminal purposes, so falling victim to them can jeopardize your sensitive data.

Whether you’re looking to protect yourself from such emails or stop unwanted mail from a legitimate sender, this guide will help by 

teaching you how to block an email address in a few quick steps

. You’ll learn how to do it with common 

 and what additional steps you can take to prevent unsolicited mail.

Skiff Mail uses elaborate security measures to keep your email address off the radar

Regain control over your email

 on the desktop/browser version or the mobile app. Here are the steps you should take if you’re on your computer:

Open any email from the sender you wish to block

Click the vertical three-dot icon in the upper-right corner of the email

Open the email through which you want to block the sender

Tap the horizontal three-dot icon next to the sender’s address (not to be confused with the same icon in the upper-right corner of the screen)

Unlike some other email providers, Gmail 

won’t automatically delete all emails from a blocked sender

—it will only prevent new correspondence from reaching your inbox. All future emails will 

, where they’ll stay for 30 days before 

How to block someone’s email address in Outlook

, you should take the same steps regardless of whether you’re using the dedicated desktop app or the web version:

Click the three-dot icon in the upper-right corner of the email

 mobile app doesn’t have a clearly laid out block option

, so doing it on your desktop or laptop is much more convenient. If you still want to do it in the app, you must first report a concern, after which you’ll get an option to block someone.

 you once you block them. All emails will either 

 if you’re a personal user or to the End-User Quarantine if you use the 

 of Microsoft 365. Note that in the latter case, 

your administrator must enable the Quarantine

 before emails can be sent to it automatically.

 is similar to Outlook in that it only offers a block feature on the desktop/web version. You can use the block feature by following these steps:

Click the three-dot icon above the message

As you can see in the above image, Yahoo offers a unique option unavailable with its main competitors—

one-click deletion of all existing emails from a blocked sender

. This feature is a convenient way to purge unwanted mail and 

What to do when blocking spam emails doesn’t prevent them

Spam mail doesn’t work the same way as regular emails, so blocking a sender may not stop further unwanted correspondence. Spam typically isn’t sent from a single email address and device, but an entire network of them called a botnet.

When your email address enters a botnet’s database, it is often 

distributed among connected devices, becoming a target to numerous addresses

. While you can block each email address, doing so is ineffective and time-consuming.

Besides, spam emails can often look like a legitimate party sent them. If such an email also contains any calls to action (e.g., “

. Phishing emails can fly under both your and the email provider’s radar, and falling for them might result in 

stolen data, account takeover, and even financial fraud

 and stop your inbox from being flooded with spam:

In most cases, phishing emails are easy to spot if you know what to look for. Some tell-tale signs include the following:

The email address doesn’t match the sender’s name or looks strange

—You may get an email from a seemingly legitimate sender (e.g., PayPal), but when you tap on the name, you’ll notice the address is spelled strangely or is completely random

—Most reputable senders will address you by name, whereas a phishing email will only use a generic “

The email contains grammar or spelling errors

—Broken English is almost always a sign of phishing. The only exception is if you have communicated with the sender in the past and know they’re not a native speaker

There’s a forced sense of urgency and/or random rewards

—To make their calls to action effective, the scammer might impersonate a service you’re using and threaten to restrict your access to it in some way. There may also be unrealistic promises of money or rewards, so consider if an offer seems too good to be true

Keep in mind that some phishing emails can be quite sophisticated and 

virtually indistinguishable from genuine correspondence

. Stay cautious and verify any urgent requests using another form of communication whenever possible.

Whether you notice a harmless commercial spam email or a phishing attempt, the best thing you can do is report it. Doing so warns the provider about the email and makes spam detection more effective.

, so you can refer back to the steps and images in the corresponding sections of this guide. You can also find these options in the 

Yahoo doesn’t have a dedicated option to report phishing

—you can only mark an email as spam by clicking the corresponding button above the email.

Note that reporting spam might not yield immediate results. 

You may need to do it for each spam or phishing email you receive

 until the provider’s detection algorithms start sending them to Spam/Junk automatically. This method may only be worth the effort if you plan on using the same provider in the long run.

Unless you have a strong reason to keep using the current email address, there’s a 

Switch to another email address or provider

If unsolicited emails are getting out of hand, the best way to wipe the slate clean is to change your email address. 

Consider switching to a new provider altogether

—especially if you’re using one of the Big Tech services covered in this guide.

The main reasons to make this change include:

don’t offer adequate protective measures

, exposing users’ data to significant risks

—Unless you’re using a privacy-mindful service, your provider has the means to open your messages

weak encryption stands out as a particularly dangerous one

 protocol to encrypt data in transit, which is outdated and full of vulnerabilities. Data at rest is typically encrypted using AES-256, an industry-standard protocol seemingly offering strong protection.

encryption keys are created by the provider and stored on their servers

, which means they can decrypt messages and read their contents. You don’t get anywhere near as much privacy as you should.

To enjoy a worry-free email experience, you need an 

. This type of encryption is superior because it:

Encrypts emails on your device before you send them

Nobody but the recipient has the decryption key

If you want a platform that comes equipped with such advanced security, 

Get instant E2EE support and use Skiff aliases for complete anonymity

Access advanced protection

Skiff Mail—Complete privacy for every user

Skiff Mail is a privacy-first email service that uses 

 to give you full control over your correspondence and personal data. It safeguards your emails using two separate encryption keys, as explained in the following table:

—they’re created on your device, ensuring no unauthorized users can decipher or read your emails.

Skiff Mail is equipped with various security measures besides strong encryption, most notably:

—Uses the Authenticator app to generate a one-time passcode that must be entered after login credentials, which makes it effective against phishing

—Encrypts critical account data and other encryption keys to further protect against data breaches and account takeovers

—Blocks email trackers used to gather information on your 

If you want to learn more about these features, you can 

, so the entire codebase is publicly available.

Skiff Mail is suitable for casual and advanced users, thanks to its robust features and intuitive user interface. The platform is 

, and the free plan doesn’t limit feature availability to mere basics.

, which is significantly more than most privacy-first options offer. Skiff Mail also offers 

 without storing unencrypted information on its 

If you’re worried about hackers stealing your email address from websites and adding it to a botnet’s database, you can 

use Skiff.com aliases to sign up for different services

. Deactivate the alias when it’s no longer needed, and you won’t need to deal with unwanted emails.

Other notable features of the free Skiff tier include the following:

Integration with various crypto wallets (

Your workflow likely consists of various tasks beyond emailing. To accommodate this and keep your data private, Skiff offers three additional end-to-end encrypted products at no additional cost—

Thanks to excellent cross-platform support, the Skiff product family can 

. You can access it through the following operating systems:

How to block an email address—a step-by-step guide

OneNote is one of the most useful apps in the 

. It’s a robust note-taking solution featuring many tools that let you jot down quick thoughts or create comprehensive documents.

Still, the platform is far from perfect. 

It might be too complicated for casual users

 or those needing an app for everyday personal notes. Its user interface is also 

outdated compared to most OneNote competitors

, as it hasn’t undergone major overhauls in a while.

 Microsoft isn’t considered a particularly safe provider

—an issue that extends to all its platforms.

you’ll learn what features to look for in a OneNote alternative

 to enjoy a better, more secure note-taking experience. You’ll also discover some of the main OneNote competitors catering to different user groups to find the best option.

Explore end-to-end encrypted note-taking and collaboration with Skiff Pages

Safeguard your ideas

Factors to consider when choosing an alternative to OneNote

While comparing different note-taking apps, you should consider the following aspects:

An app’s user interface directly impacts ease of use and productivity, so it should be clutter-free and easy to navigate.

OneNote’s layout isn’t particularly complex

—it resembles Microsoft’s other apps like Word and 

, so it’s packed with features but might not be to everyone’s taste. Many other options provide the same features while having a more modern look.

Of course, esthetics should never come at the cost of functionality. Some note-taking apps like 

offer a clean, minimalistic look but overcomplicate note editing

 by requiring the knowledge of simple coding languages. These types of apps are not the best choice for users who aren’t tech-savvy.

strike a balance between robust features and a user-friendly layout

The features to expect from a note-taking app depend mainly on what you’ll use it for. Still, there are a few 

universally desirable note-taking features

 every solid platform should offer, such as:

An average user should be able to perform all their tasks with the above features, but 

you may need other components depending on your workflow

. Start by defining everything you’ll need for comprehensive note-taking, and then see which platform checks all the boxes.

Every app has a unique approach to organization. For example, 

 and display them visually, while others use the more traditional methods and stick to simple hierarchies.

 like comprehensive dashboards letting you glance at the key information without opening specific notebooks. Ideally, you’ll find a solution that fixes this issue.

OneNote is free to use despite being equipped with various advanced features, which isn’t the case with many platforms. When browsing alternatives, ensure you still get

rich free plan or affordable paid options

 offering all the necessary features without exceeding your budget.

While you can expect to pay for some of the most advanced features of an app, 

you should be able to complete basic tasks without commitments

. Decide on the features you need the most to avoid overpaying for those you don’t need.

You should always assess an app’s security features before committing to it, as doing so is crucial to ensuring your notes and 

. Unfortunately, most apps—including OneNote—don’t implement adequate security measures.

While you can secure your Microsoft account with two-factor authentication (2FA) and lock individual sections of your notebooks, 

OneNote fails to implement the encryption necessary to keep your notes private

The platform relies on two security measures:

AES-256 algorithm that encrypts data resting on Microsoft’s 

These encryption methods don’t guarantee privacy

 because the provider creates and stores your decryption keys. They can decipher your notes at any time and put you at risk of data leaks.

The best way to retain control of your data is to 

. It keeps all data secure between endpoints by encrypting it on the user’s device. 

, so they can’t access your notes. The potential attack surface is also much smaller than with a typical encryption standard, so the risk of your data falling into the wrong hands is minimal.

Skiff Pages uses end-to-end encryption to ensure your notes stay confidential

Keep your notes private and protected

6 OneNote alternatives you should check out

Now that you’re familiar with the main factors to consider, take a look at the concise feature overview before diving into detailed reviews of six popular options:

From intuitive interfaces to specialized features, these options cater to a range of preferences and work styles.

 if you need a simple note-taking app without over-the-top features. It’s

 thanks to its clean layout and intuitive functions.

Adding notes is easy, and you’ll find them all on your home screen as 

. You can change their colors, backgrounds, and labels to organize them quickly and 

pin the most important ones to the top of the screen

You can add some simple elements to your notes besides text

If you’re looking for advanced elements or formatting features, you should look beyond Google Keep. You can only format the text in the Android app, so 

This solution is free, which is another argument for using it if you plan to do it casually. 

You get 15 GB of storage compared to OneNote’s 5 GB

, but it’s combined with other Google services and might run out quickly if you 

the main downside of Google Keep is weak security

, as the app uses the same encryption protocols as OneNote. Generally, 

, so including sensitive information in your notes might not be a good idea.

Zoho Notebook is another free OneNote alternative, except it’s far more capable than Google Keep. You get a plethora of features and editing options that let you create rich notes and share them with your team.

You can split notes into categories called Cards

, with each Card serving a different purpose. There are seven options to choose from:

Most Cards are self-explanatory and indicative of the content type you can add. The only exception is Smart, which 

lets you save web content to Zoho Notebook

The app automatically syncs notes across all devices, and you can 

share them with others to let them contribute

. There’s no real-time collaboration, though, so the platform might not be ideal if you want to simultaneously work with all your collaborators.

Another disadvantage is limited storage—

. Even if you upgrade to the paid plan at $1.99 per month, you can unlock up to 100 GB, which may not be enough for advanced users and teams.

 is one of the best OneNote alternatives if your main focus is collaboration and project management. Besides letting you create robust notes, the app makes scheduling and monitoring tasks easy without additional software.

 regarding the content types you can add to notes. Besides plain text, 

it supports code blocks, web snippets, videos, and many other content types

. Still, the platform falls short when it comes to text formatting, as it’s much less flexible than OneNote. You can only choose between 

Notion’s main strengths lie in project management

, as it offers numerous useful features, most notably:

Several viewing options (table, calendar, Kanban, etc.)

The platform offers a rich free plan with all the essential features plus a few useful extras, like various integrations and a seven-day page history. If you want to expand its functionality, 

—$10/user per month ($8 with annual billing)

—$18/user per month ($15 with annual billing)

Unfortunately, Notion doesn’t go beyond basic security measures and encryption—

, so your notes are not en-to-end-encrypted.

Gilbert Zhang