Create a Disposable Email Address That Works Anywhere

There are a few problems with popular disposable email services such as Mailinator.

1. Email marketing providers regularly sniff domain names used by disposable email services and block them. For example, Aweber, GetResponse and MailChimp will all decline your sign up if you use a Mailinator domain.
2. Disposable email services are not always reliable. Many times emails sent to disposable email addresses will never reach the inbox

What if you could have a permanent, convenient, and reliable disposable email address that works anywhere? I’m gonna show you how. But first, let’s make sure we’re on the same page. Your disposable email should:

• Not obstruct or interfere with your regular email
• Be reliable and always work
• Be readily accessible and be only a couple of mouse clicks away
• Require none to very little maintenance

Cool?

Okay, here’s how you setup your disposable email.

Gmail is the most reliable and flexible free email service available today. In short, you’re gonna open a new Gmail account, i.e. fake.id@gmail.com. Forward all email from fake.id@gmail.com to your permanent inbox.

In your permanent inbox, create a filter to:

1. Label emails sent to fake.id@gmail.com “Disposable”
2. Skip the Inbox (Go directly to archive)

That’s it! Now you have a disposable email address that you can use every where.

If the instructions above aren’t enough, or if you want more tips on how to best setup your permanent disposable email. Read these detailed instructions…

Configuring a new Gmail account to receive disposable emails

Create your fake identity Gmail address at http://mail.google.com/mail/signup. Come up with a fake name. If you’re having a hard time thinking of one, go to IMDB.com, click through to some movie and view the cast. Pick a random name from there that you’ll easily remember.

Once your new Gmail account is created. Go to Settings, Forwarding and POP/IMAP, select Forward a copy of incoming mail to, and enter your permanent email address. From the drop down menu next to that, select Delete Gmail’s copy. You wanna delete this Gmail’s copy because you don’t want your disposable email account to fill up and run out of storage space.

Gmail's forward settings screen

That’s all you have to do in your disposable email account. Now go back to your permanent inbox to setup a filter to automate management of incoming disposable email.

Filtering incoming disposable emails

Now the fun part.

Depending on the client you use to manage your emails, the settings will be different. I use Gmail’s web interface to manage my email, so the instructions here will be specific to Gmail, but the ideas can be applied on any other email program.

Apply “Disposable” label to email sent to fake.id@gmail.com

Or if you use Outlook or other software that supports folders, create a designated disposable email folder and move incoming disposable emails to it.

On Gmail, you’d intercept all emails sent to your fake.id@gmail.com email by creating a filter and filling in your fake.id@gmail.com in the To: field.

Gmail first screen for creating a filter

Then, click Next Step. From the next screen, select Skip the Inbox (Archive it), Mark as read, and Apply the label: “Disposable”.

Gmail second screen for creating a filter

The reason you mark as read all incoming disposable email is because some clients (Gmail included) will show the count of unread items next to the label/folder. You don’t want to be distracted by unimportant email. And you skip the inbox to keep your disposable emails unobtrusive.

So, what do we have now?

Gmail Labels

From now on, whenever you’re unsure about giving out your email address, simply fill in fake.id@gmail.com. Check your “Disposable” email label/folder, you’ll see the emails sent to you there. These emails will never interfere with your other more important emails. Your fake.id Gmail account will never run out of storage because it doesn’t store anything. But you’ll have to occasionally empty your Disposable folder. With Gmail’s storage, you’ll probably have to do that once a year. Or if you’re obsessive like me, once every 2 hours.

That’s it. Now you have your own reliable and very convenient disposable email account. It will work where ever Gmail is accepted!