What You Need to Know About SPF, DKIM, and DMARC and how changes made by email providers could affect your business.
In today’s digital world, ensuring the security of your email communications is more important than ever. Email remains a primary tool for personal and business communication, but it's also a common target for spammers and cybercriminals. To protect your inbox and enhance the security of your emails, technologies like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC play a crucial role. Let’s explore what these technologies are and how they benefit you.
Why Email Security Matters
Email security is essential in safeguarding your personal and business information. Cybercriminals often use email to conduct scams, phishing attacks, and spread malware. Implementing robust email security measures helps protect against these threats, ensuring that your communications remain secure and reliable.
What Are SPF, DKIM, and DMARC?
1. SPF (Sender Policy Framework)
SPF acts like a security guard for your email domain. It’s a measure to authenticate who is allowed to send emails from your domain name. Emails that look like they come from your domain are verified against this policy.
Example: For a domain like example.com, the SPF record would specify that only your authorised servers (such as your email service provider and your website's server) can send emails from example.com. While SPF doesn't prevent all spam, it helps identify and authenticate legitimate senders.
2. DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail)
DKIM adds a digital signature to your emails, which helps verify that the email has not been tampered with and truly originates from your domain. This is similar to placing a tamper-proof seal on your email, ensuring its integrity.
3. DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance)
DMARC builds on SPF and DKIM by setting rules for handling emails that fail these checks. It lets domain owners decide whether to reject, quarantine, or allow emails that don't pass SPF or DKIM. DMARC also provides reports on email activities, helping domain owners monitor and improve their email security.
What Do These Changes Mean for You?
1. Enhanced Security
By implementing SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, email security is significantly improved. These technologies make it much harder for spammers and phishers to send fraudulent emails that appear to come from legitimate domains, reducing the risk of email scams. However, it's important to note that these measures don't stop all spam. For comprehensive spam prevention, Cosmic offer products like Vipre – If you would like to know more about this then please get in touch.
2. Better Email Deliverability
Emails that adhere to these standards are more likely to reach your inbox, and emails you send will be regarded as legitimate (important for sending). Major email providers like Google and Microsoft increasingly rely on these technologies to filter spam and verify legitimate emails. Compliance with these standards ensures that legitimate emails are trusted and delivered.
3. Potential Impact on Forwarded Emails
Emails forwarded from one address to another might sometimes be affected. If an email fails SPF or DKIM checks due to forwarding, it could be rejected by DMARC policies. If you notice issues with forwarded emails, it may be due to these security checks. Have you seen a reduction in emails? Are you concerned this could be happening? Speak to us and we can help.
Working with External Email Providers
If you use external suppliers such as Zendesk, Mailchimp, or similar services to send emails on your behalf, it's crucial to ensure that these services are also configured correctly with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. These providers should have contacted you with the necessary updates to maintain the security and deliverability of your emails.
Ensuring Compliance with External Providers
We've worked extensively to update and configure these settings for many of our clients who use external email services. If we do not manage your domain then we cannot implement some of the changes required but we can provide you with instructions on what you need to do.
Here's what you need to know:
1. Stay Updated: If you receive any communication from your email service providers about necessary updates to SPF, DKIM, or DMARC, make sure to pass this information on to us. This allows us to ensure your settings are properly configured and up to date.
2. Regular Checks: Periodically review the email settings provided by your external suppliers. They may have specific instructions or changes that need to be implemented to keep your email secure and compliant with the latest standards.
3. Coordination with Providers: We have already coordinated with many providers like Zendesk and Mailchimp to ensure that your email settings are optimised. If you use any new or additional services, please let us know so we can ensure they are properly configured.
Our Commitment to Your Email Security
We are committed to providing you with the best support and ensuring that all aspects of your email communication are secure. By working together, we can maintain high standards of email security, reducing the risk of fraud and improving the reliability of your communications.
How We Can Help
Feeling overwhelmed or unsure about email security? That’s where we come in. As quality tech support providers, we’re here to help you navigate and implement these essential security measures. Whether you need assistance setting up SPF, DKIM, and DMARC, or want to ensure your email systems are secure and reliable, we’ve got you covered. Additionally, we offer products to further reduce spam and enhance your email security.
Stay Informed and Protected
Understanding these technologies can help you protect your email communications. There are plenty of resources available online, but having professional support can make all the difference. Our team is ready to assist you in enhancing your email security.
If you have any concerns about email security or need help implementing these measures, don’t hesitate to reach out. Our experts are here to provide the support you need to keep your communications safe. Contact us now