When composing an email to multiple recipients, the To field is not the only place to enter addresses. Two more fields Cc and Bcc also accept recipients.
But what exactly are these fields for, and when should they be used?
What does «cc» mean?
Copy is short for copies . Before mail became digital, carbon paper made it possible to send the same letter to two people without having to write or type it twice.
When an email address is entered in the Cc field, that person receives a copy of the message sent to the person in the To field. This is useful for keeping people informed even if they are not the focus of the message.
You can enter multiple email addresses in the Cc field, and all addresses will receive a copy of the email.
Separate each email address comma.
Disadvantages of Copies
There are some disadvantages to sending electronic copies via email. When using the Cc field, both the original recipient and all copy recipients will see the email addresses to which the message was sent, and some people may object that their email address will be made public.
Plus the crowded Cc fields don’t look good. They can get quite long and take up screen space. It’s even worse when someone answers all in your message, each recipient in the Cc field receives a response.
What does BC mean?
Bcc stands for blind copy . This field hides the email addresses entered in it. Only the original sender of the email can view bcc recipients . Thus, to maintain maximum anonymity, enter your email address in the «To» field and use the Bcc for recipients.
People in the Bcc field also don’t receive reply emails from recipients of To or Cc messages, which is handy during a lengthy mail conversation if you don’t want to send emails to other people’s inboxes.
SC is also useful when you send out a newsletter or send a message to undisclosed recipients .
Add blind copy recipients
Follow the links below for your operating system and email program to learn how to add BCC recipients to your email: