Should I use mail() or SMTP?

PHP
1

My website allows a person to enter their name and email address when sending out a referral. Then our site composes an email using mail() to send it out. But I think more and more ISPs are rejecting such emails because they think we are spoofing. The FROM: field on the emails going out use their name and their email address but, of course, the email is actually sent from my domain. What is the best way to overcome so much email being blocked?

  1. No longer attempt to use their name and email as the FROM?
  2. Have my site officially login to my STMP server and send once authenticated?

Can someone with experience in this area give me a suggestion?

2

Have you talked to your web host about what they recommend? That would be the first place I would check.

3

Yes, the guy I chatted with, who was on the “Email” side of the tech support department, said he wasn’t sure it would make a difference. What have others here experienced?

Thanks!

4

Maybe it’s better to send it from your own domain (i.e. referrals@oil-testimonials.com) but supply a reply-to address that contains the other person’s address?

Not sure how that would rank for spam checkers though.