Ask a new question

Contacts have appeared on my contact list but I didn't add them, I have never added any contacts onto my list. Why has this happened?

At work we have recently switched to the new version of Outlook. I looked at my contact list today for the first time and found that two contacts have already been added. I have never added any contacts myself and am worried that this is unusual activity. Have I been hacked?

I spoke to the IT department and initially they said that this was strange. They looked into it but couldn't find a reason why this would have happened. The guy said that there can be 'background processes' when setting up the switch to the new version but ultimately couldn't explain why it had happened. Should I be concerned with this? If seems odd to me that Outlook would add contacts without me selecting them.

Thanks for any responses and help 

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

Hi Tom,
Are they actual physical contacts you see when you use a card or list view on the contacts folder or did you find them using search?

Search includes addresses on the autocomplete list - they aren't real contacts though, they just look like contacts when you use the people view.
--
Diane Poremsky
M365 MVP, specializing in Outlook, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 apps.

1 person found this reply helpful

·

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

Hi Diane 

They are actual contacts, in the custom list of contacts that I add too. Its not the drop down suggestions when adding recipients to a new email

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

Right - Outlook will display people in the autocomplete list if you search all contacts. The only way to tell its not a contact is there is not option to edit the contact or open it.

The top screenshot is not in my contacts - the bottom one is.

If it is an actual contact in your contact folder, either you added it or you have a utility or macro that did - outlook won't create a physical contact in your contacts folder.

(Outlook 2010 created Suggested contacts, which were physical contacts - but that feature does not exist in current versions - thankfully.)
--
Diane Poremsky
M365 MVP, specializing in Outlook, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 apps.

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

Thanks Diane

I definitely didn't add them (there were 2) as it was the first time I looked in my contacts folder.

Are macros and utilities a normal part of a company setting up the new version? the strange things was I worked with the two contacts a while ago now and more recent and frequent contacts weren't added to the folder. 

1 person found this reply helpful

·

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

No, its not something IT would use or do. Do you sync with a phone? Some phones and other mail clients will create a contact when you reply to someone not in your contacts.
--
Diane Poremsky
M365 MVP, specializing in Outlook, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 apps.

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

My Outlook account isn't synced with a phone, its my work one so I can only access it from a computer at work. Could it be a by product of the switch over from old Outlook to the newer version, we were using a pretty dated one (possibly 2010)

Do you think it could be likely that some has hacked my account? 

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

It shouldn't be due to the change from Outlook 2010 to the new version, but that would be more likely than a hacker. Are the contacts for people you've emailed in the past?
--
Diane Poremsky
M365 MVP, specializing in Outlook, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 apps.

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

Yes I would have at some point, I used to work in their team and emailed them using the old Outlook version. 

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

It sounds like you saved a contact for these people back at that time. It probably won't do any good to check the created and last modified dates on the contacts - if the contacts were imported the dates would be the date of the import.
--
Diane Poremsky
M365 MVP, specializing in Outlook, Exchange, and Microsoft 365 apps.

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

Hi Diane

Thanks for taking the time to help and offer advice : ) 

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

 
 

Question Info

Last updated May 11, 2024 Views 3,143 Applies to: