I have noticed an issue affecting forum members who are automatically unsubscribed from new topic and reply email notifications -- especially users on enterprise email systems such as NHS mail. Although the unsubscribe link in notification emails leads to a confirmation page, some important members have reported they did not intentionally unsubscribe yet no longer receive notifications.

Through investigation, I believe enterprise email security solutions (e.g., Microsoft Office 365 Advanced Threat Protection) might be automatically clicking unsubscribe links or even confirming unsubscriptions as part of their email scanning processes. This results in users being unsubscribed unintentionally without their knowledge.

Currently, the unsubscribe workflow allows immediate unsubscription once the confirmation button is pressed, which could be triggered by automated scanners or bots.

Suggested Improvement

To prevent accidental unsubscriptions caused by these automated systems, I suggest introducing an additional step in the unsubscribe process that requires explicit, deliberate user interaction. For example:

• A feedback page after clicking the unsubscribe link asking "Why did you unsubscribe?" with selectable options such as:

  1. Too many emails

  2. Content not relevant

  3. Other (with text input)

• Requiring users to select a reason and then click a final "Confirm Unsubscribe" button.

This extra step can help differentiate genuine user unsubscribe actions from automated link scans by security tools that do not interact with forms or selections, reducing unintended opt-outs and improving user communication.

This approach is commonly used in enterprise-grade email platforms to avoid accidental unsubscriptions triggered by email scanners or bots.

Thank you for your consideration. Implementing this feature would greatly improve notification reliability and member experience for forums serving users behind enterprise email protections.