macOSX Ventura 13.6.3 Mail App marks new mail as read even before I get a chance to read it

Question

Level 1

45 points

macOSX Ventura 13.6.3 Mail App marks new mail as read even before I get a chance to read it

As of 12/12/2023, my macOS and all Apps are 100% up-to-date. The problem I'm having is with the Mail App. As new mail comes in, it is automatically marked as "Read" before I can open it. This happens regardless of the total number of emails I receive. I just saw it happen to 59 new emails.

I have looked at all the settings within Mail and also within System Settings. Unless I'm missing something, I don't see any setting that appears to regulate this type of behavior. The problem has existed for well over a year and I was hoping that the latest upgrades to Ventura would fix the issue. FYI, my iMac cannot upgrade to Sonoma.

Any advice? I have already searched both this Community and Google but haven't come across any solutions for this specific problem. Thank you for your assistance.

iMac 27″ 5K

Posted on Dec 12, 2023 12:28 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

javaDevOps Author

Level 1

45 points

Dec 14, 2023 3:00 PM in response to Old Toad

Option #1 (Shift-Open) worked at first, but the problem came back after a few minutes.

SOLUTION:

Option #2 (Safe Mode) reproduced the issue. I was about to give up, but by pure serendipity, I saw that a new email had come, and at the same time, saw that my iPhone showed a new email notification in locked mode. The email in the Mail App was automatically marked as "Read" without my doing anything. Out of curiosity, I disabled all Mail notifications on my iPhone. This appears to have solved the problem for me. It may just be a configuration issue on my side.

Reply

Answer 2

Old Toad

Level 10

216,488 points

Dec 12, 2023 1:58 PM in response to javaDevOps

Try the following in order as needed:

1 - launch Mail with the Shift key held down.

2 - boot into Safe Mode according to How to use safe mode on your Mac and test to see if the problem persists. Reboot normally and test again.

NOTE 1: Safe Mode boot can take up to 3 - 5 minutes as it's doing the following;

• Verifies your startup disk and attempts to repair directory issues, if needed

• Loads only required kernel extensions (prevents 3rd party kernel/extensions from loading)

• Prevents Startup Items and Login Items from opening automatically

• Disables user-installed fonts

• Deletes font caches, kernel cache, and other system cache files

NOTE 2: if you have a wireless keyboard with rechargeable batteries connect it with its charging cable before booting into Safe Mode. This makes it act as a wired keyboard as will insure a successful boot into Safe Mode.

Reply

Answer 3

javaDevOps Author

Level 1

45 points

Dec 12, 2023 4:23 PM in response to Old Toad

Thanks! Option #1 did the trick. It also appears to have fixed an unrelated issue I was having with Smart Mailboxes which were taking a long time to update.

Reply

macOSX Ventura 13.6.3 Mail App marks new mail as read even before I get a chance to read it

Similar questions