For security reasons, users cannot share an email address within our system. Each user must have their own unique email address associated with their account, and no email address can be used by more than one user.
Why Must Everyone Have Unique Email Addresses?
Unique email addresses are essential for several reasons:
Verification and Communication: To prove account ownership and verify identity, we rely on sending correspondence to the email address on file. If multiple users share an email address, it would hinder our ability to verify a user's identity and communicate effectively.
Security and Identity Protection: Allowing multiple users to have the same email address could potentially lead to unauthorized access and identity misrepresentation. By enforcing unique email addresses, we prioritize security and protect users' identities and data from malicious intent.
What if the Account is Deactivated?
Deactivating a user account will not resolve the conflict related to email addresses. An email address will continue to remain associated with the original user and will be unusable by any new user account, even if a user account is deactivated.
Creating an Email Address
For users without an email address, we recommend creating a free email account. Setting up an individual email address ensures a smooth and secure user experience, allowing users to access the full benefits of our platform. There are several free email providers where users can easily set up their own email addresses, such as:
Gmail: www.gmail.com
Yahoo Mail: mail.yahoo.com
Outlook.com: outlook.office.com
ProtonMail: www.protonmail.com
Handling Conflicts
If multiple users try to use the same email address, the system will identify it as a conflict and prevent its use on more than one account. If the original user wishes to remove their email address from their account to alleviate the conflict, they must be aware of the following:
Removing the Email Address: The original user can log in to their user account, navigate to the Personal Profile page, choose the Email Addresses tab, and remove the email address causing the conflict. However, it's important to note that all users must have at least one verified email address attached to their user account at all times. Therefore, if the original user wishes to remove the email address, they must replace it with a different verified email address before the conflict can be alleviated.
Reactivating an Account: If the original user's account has been deleted or deactivated by their officiating organization, the original user will need to ask their officiating organization to reactivate their account. This will allow them to log in and make changes to the email address attached to their profile.
Using a Different Email Address: If the original user is unable or unwilling to remove/change their email address, the new user involved in the conflict must use a different email address for their user account.
Creating a Personal Account Instead: New users impacted by shared email address conflicts are advised to register a new account using their own unique, personal email address. Steps include selecting a reliable email provider, ensuring private control of the email account, and enabling security features such as two-factor authentication (2FA).
Shared or Transferrable Email Addresses
It is important to note that we do not support email addresses that are shared or transferred to multiple users. That includes shared family email addresses and generic email addresses that organizations may setup and give to their management team. Issues may also arise when shared email addresses are linked to two-factor authentication (2FA). For example, if 2FA is tied to a prior user’s phone number, even having access to the shared email may not allow successful authentication. This highlights the importance of using uniquely personal email accounts.
For example, if an organization has its own email system and gives its scheduler the email address scheduler@myorganization.com and that email address is verified by that user, it will become unavailable for use by any other user account. User accounts are also not transferable, so if the organization changes schedulers, the new scheduler will need to use a different email address in the software. Alternatively, they can ask the original user to remove or replace the scheduler@myorganization.com email address in their profile before the new scheduler can attach it to their new user account. In addition, user accounts on the platform are strictly non-transferable and registered solely for the individual named. This means that even if the shared email address belongs to a generic role, access or ownership cannot be reassigned to another person.
Conclusion
By requiring unique email addresses for each user account, we prioritize security, identity verification, and effective communication within our system. Setting up individual email addresses ensures a smooth and secure user experience, allowing users to access the full benefits of our platform. For further security, we recommend users enable two-factor authentication (2FA), use strong passwords, and avoid sharing account credentials. Ensuring compliance with these practices enhances personal account security significantly.