gmail issues regarding address specification...

That is an absolute fail of gmail.
I have the same issue, sort of.

Early on, gmail respected the dot in the middle of an email address.

x.y@gmail was one, and xy@gmail was a different address.

Years later, they now ignore that, and allow xy@gmail, and its sort of merged.

I registered my x.y@gmail long, long ago, when gmail was actually invitation only. Early beta. Over a decade ago.
It is mostly my first.last@gmail.com

Some years later, someone on the other side of the country registered xy@gmail.com. And I get all sorts of emails to him.
I know far more about this person than another should know, without active investigation and snooping. Name, address, age, what kind of car he drives, what kind of dog he has (it is overdue for its vet checkup), how much he paid for the movers to move him across town (2 different quotes), his previous and current address, etc, etc, etc...
Where he shops a lot (Walmart), his nieces twitter feed, etc, etc, etc...

According to google ( I asked), my emails at x.y@gmail do no go to him.


If things ever come to a head, he loses that account. Mine was way earlier, and I still have the initial welcome email from Sept 2004.