{"id":825,"date":"2025-12-19T09:54:36","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T08:54:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/?post_type=manual_kb&#038;p=825"},"modified":"2026-05-30T16:53:43","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T14:53:43","slug":"protocols-pop3","status":"publish","type":"manual_kb","link":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/","title":{"rendered":"Protocols &#8211; POP3"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 (Post Office Protocol version 3) is a protocol used to retrieve email messages from a mail server to a local device. It is designed to download emails and store them locally, typically removing them from the server after transfer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 is one of the older email retrieval protocols but is still supported in many email systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_86 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#How_POP3_works\" >How POP3 works<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#POP3_connection_process\" >POP3 connection process<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#POP3_ports\" >POP3 ports<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#POP3_vs_IMAP\" >POP3 vs IMAP<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#Security_considerations\" >Security considerations<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#Practical_use_cases\" >Practical use cases<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#Practical_implications\" >Practical implications<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/knowledgebase\/protocols-pop3\/#Summary\" >Summary<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_POP3_works\"><\/span>How POP3 works<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n<div id=\"mybox-2428708026\" class=\"mybox-content mybox-entity-placement\"><div class=\"early-access-banner-inpost\">\r\n  <div class=\"banner-left-inpost\">\r\n    <div class=\"icon-box-inpost\">\r\n      <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/square-info-icon.svg\" alt=\"Info\">\r\n    <\/div>\r\n    <div class=\"text-box-inpost\">\r\n      <span class=\"label-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Early access<\/span><\/span>\r\n      <h4><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Still need help?<\/span><\/h4>\r\n      <p><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Contact our customer service team.<\/span><\/p>\r\n    <\/div>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n\r\n  <div class=\"banner-right-inpost\">\r\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/panel.mybox.com\/helpdesk2\/v\/list\/\" class=\"banner-button-inpost\"><span class=\"translation-block translation-block-banner-text\">Message us<\/span><\/a>\r\n  <\/div>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"translation-block translation-block-merged\"><p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 operates using a simple client\u2013server model:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>the email client connects to the mail server<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the user is authenticated using login credentials<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>emails are downloaded from the server to the local device<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>messages are optionally deleted from the server after download<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once downloaded, emails are usually stored locally and managed on the device.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"POP3_connection_process\"><\/span>POP3 connection process<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A typical POP3 session includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>establishing a connection to the mail server<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>authenticating the user<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>listing available messages<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>downloading selected or all messages<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>closing the connection<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After completion, emails are no longer required to remain on the server (depending on configuration).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"POP3_ports\"><\/span>POP3 ports<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 commonly uses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Port 110<\/strong> \u2013 standard (unencrypted) POP3 connection<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Port 995<\/strong> \u2013 secure POP3 using SSL\/TLS (POP3S)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"POP3_vs_IMAP\"><\/span>POP3 vs IMAP<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>POP3 \u2260 IMAP<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th>Feature<\/th><th>POP3<\/th><th>IMAP<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>Storage<\/td><td>Local device<\/td><td>Server<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Synchronization<\/td><td>No<\/td><td>Yes<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Multi-device support<\/td><td>Limited<\/td><td>Full<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Server usage<\/td><td>Minimal<\/td><td>Continuous<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 downloads emails to a single device, while IMAP keeps messages synchronized across multiple devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Security_considerations\"><\/span>Security considerations<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By default, POP3 does not encrypt communication. This means credentials and messages can be transmitted in plain text if no encryption is used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Secure POP3 (POP3S) uses SSL\/TLS to protect data during transmission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practical_use_cases\"><\/span>Practical use cases<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 is used for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>downloading emails to a single device<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>offline email access<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>reducing server storage usage<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>simple email configurations where synchronization is not required<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Practical_implications\"><\/span>Practical implications<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because POP3 removes emails from the server by default, it may not be suitable for users who access email from multiple devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Incorrect configuration can lead to missing messages on other devices if emails are downloaded and deleted from the server.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In modern hosting environments such as mybox, IMAP is typically preferred for multi-device synchronization, while POP3 remains available for legacy setups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Summary\"><\/span>Summary<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">POP3 is an email retrieval protocol that downloads messages from a server to a local device. It is simple and efficient but limited in multi-device synchronization compared to IMAP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","manualknowledgebasecat":[25],"manual_kb_tag":[286,1776,863,1777,864,1778,866,1779,1706,1780,1728,1781,1736,1782,1758,1783,1768,1784,1769,1785,1770,1771,1772,1773,1774,1775],"class_list":["post-825","manual_kb","type-manual_kb","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","manualknowledgebasecat-hosting","manual_kb_tag-mail-server","manual_kb_tag-message-deletion","manual_kb_tag-pop","manual_kb_tag-list-command","manual_kb_tag-email-protocol","manual_kb_tag-retrieve-command","manual_kb_tag-mail-client","manual_kb_tag-delete-command","manual_kb_tag-network-protocols","manual_kb_tag-quit-command","manual_kb_tag-web-protocol","manual_kb_tag-application-layer-protocol","manual_kb_tag-protocols","manual_kb_tag-receive-emails","manual_kb_tag-user-authentication","manual_kb_tag-mail-retrieval","manual_kb_tag-post-office-protocol","manual_kb_tag-email-client","manual_kb_tag-email-retrieval","manual_kb_tag-pop-over-tls","manual_kb_tag-inbox-management","manual_kb_tag-mail-downloading","manual_kb_tag-email-encryption","manual_kb_tag-plain-text-protocol","manual_kb_tag-session-management","manual_kb_tag-password-authentication"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/825","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/manual_kb"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/825\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9055,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb\/825\/revisions\/9055"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"manualknowledgebasecat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manualknowledgebasecat?post=825"},{"taxonomy":"manual_kb_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybox.com\/help\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/manual_kb_tag?post=825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}