Python imap_ssl.search one letter name

[Linh Lee]

resp_code, mails = imap_ssl.search(None, '(FROM "a")')

I want to search emails from a specific one letter named user, "a".
Example:
<[email protected]>
<[email protected]>


Problem is, search results cause all users with an "a" as part of their name to be returned.
Example:
[email protected]
[email protected]

Any way to isolate the search to one letter name?

 

[menator01]

you could try pythons startswith

string = 'apple has an a in it'
print(string.startswith('a'))
print(string.startswith('c'))

output

True
False

 

[Deleted member 2829]

It takes a bit of digging to find the details of IMAP search criteria : https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc3501#section-6.4.4
Indeed the FROM returns all entries containing the specified string, as you already found. It doesn't say if you can use regular expressions, so that you could use "$a^". It's worth a try. Otherwise you need to loop through the result list and pick out the ones that exactly match a.

 

[Linh Lee]

It takes a bit of digging to find the details of IMAP search criteria : https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc3501#section-6.4.4
Indeed the FROM returns all entries containing the specified string, as you already found. It doesn't say if you can use regular expressions, so that you could use "$a^". It's worth a try. Otherwise you need to loop through the result list and pick out the ones that exactly match a.

Thank you for the IMAP search criteria info!

I attempted to discover anything common among his spam, and unique amongst other spammers, only one thing so far, in the HEADER.

I'm having a hard time with the syntax for the Header fields:
HEADER <field-name> <string>

field-name is: Authentication-Results
string is: header.i=@

What I have, but syntax is wrong, could use some help on this please:

resp_code, mails = imap_ssl.search(None, '(HEADER "Authentication-Results" "header.i=@")')

I'm not even sure that small snippet from the field-name will work!

 

[Deleted member 2829]

I am having a hard time with the imaplib select and fetch calls as well... Bah, this is so badly documented with hardly an explanation or example. Good working examples are very hard to find. I saw someone remark that imaplib is a good library, but it's IMAP itself that is incomprehensible. I feel like giving up and saying I can't help you 😳

 

[Linh Lee]

@cbreemer ,
I fully understand, I would probably do the same.
I appreciate all your advice, and your willingness to help!!
Thank you!

​

 

[Deleted member 2829]

I might have another go at it later, if you haven't worked it out by then.

 

[Linh Lee]

No, still in the dark.
I appreciate it!!

 

[Deleted member 2829]

I must confess not having thought about this anymore, since my last dig in the documentation got me more confused and infuriated than ever.
Are you still struggling with it ?

 

[Linh Lee]

I was so stressed over this, I ended up paying a programmer.
He wrote 5 lines of code, and it does exactly what I needed!
Thank you for checking in!

 

[Deleted member 2829]

I was so stressed over this, I ended up paying a programmer.
He wrote 5 lines of code, and it does exactly what I needed!
Thank you for checking in!

Ok
It should have been an easy task... and lord knows we tried....if only the documentation wasn't so atrocious 😯
Good that you found someone who evidently knows this stuff.