BCC

Blind Carbon Copy

A feature in email communication that allows the sender to include additional recipients in an email without revealing their identities to the other recipients of the email. The use of bcc is an evolution of the cc feature and serves a similar purpose, but with the added benefit of increased privacy and confidentiality.

The bcc feature was first introduced in the early days of email communication, but its use became more widespread with the advent of modern email clients and services in the 1990s and 2000s. The feature is typically accessed via a checkbox or field labeled bcc in the email composition interface.

The use of bcc is particularly useful in situations where the sender wants to share information with additional parties without disclosing their identities to the primary recipient or other recipients on the email thread. This may include situations where the additional recipients are not known to each other or where the sender wants to avoid the appearance of favoritism or bias.

The bcc feature has also been used in some cases for malicious purposes, such as secretly copying a supervisor or authority figure on an email exchange without the knowledge of the other parties involved. However, most email providers and organizations have policies in place to discourage or prohibit such behavior.

Overall, the bcc feature has become an essential tool in email communication, allowing for increased privacy, confidentiality, and discretion in sharing information with multiple parties.

• Abbreviation: BCC