Common Mistakes to Avoid When Configuring Your DMARC Record

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Configuring Your DMARC Record 1

What is DMARC?

Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) is a technology that identifies and stops email spoofing by authenticating incoming email messages. It’s an email authentication protocol designed to give email domain owners the ability to protect their domain from unauthorized use, such as phishing scams and spam. DMARC provides a feedback loop for domain owners to receive reports from email receivers, such as whether an email is delivered, failed, or quarantined.

Why is DMARC important?

DMARC helps to prevent malicious actors from impersonating your domain, thus protecting your organization and customers from phishing and fraud. Organizations that use DMARC can feel confident that only authorized senders can use their domain name, meaning that emails that are not authenticated are more likely to be phishing attempts, and can be treated accordingly. DMARC also provides you with visibility and control over traffic sent to your domain, including which email providers are sending email on your behalf.

Common mistakes to avoid when configuring your DMARC record

Configuring the DMARC record can be confusing and cause errors, especially if you are not an experienced IT professional. Here are some common mistakes to avoid when configuring your DMARC record.

  • Not understanding how email authentication works: Understanding SPF(Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM(Domain Keys Identified Mail) is crucial before setting up DMARC. DMARC is built on top of both SPF and DKIM, so it’s important to know how they work to understand how DMARC works.
  • Setting policy to “none”: It’s recommended to start with a DMARC policy of “none” before progressing to a gradual enforcement of DMARC. However, not ensuring that you have the right policies in place, such as SPF and DKIM, before setting your DMARC policy to “none” can result in email not being delivered.
  • Forgetting to include a DMARC policy for subdomains: Your DMARC policy will only apply to the domain or subdomain from which the email message is sent. If your organization uses subdomains to send emails, you’ll have to create a specific DMARC for each subdomain. Include a separate DMARC policy for each subdomain you are using to send emails.
  • Not making corrective changes to comply with the DMARC report: There’s no sense in running a DMARC record if you’re not prepared to make improvements to email authentication issues. Utilize the daily reports delivered to you to evaluate and review your activity and encryption protocols.
  • Not testing your configuration: It’s imperative to test your DMARC implementation once you’ve configured it. Failure to test may result in email deliverability problems and damage your reputation
  • Conclusion

    Configuring your DMARC record may not be easy, but it is essential to protect your organization from email-based abuse. Mistakes in the configuration can lead to email deliverability problems, meaning your customers will not receive important communication from your organization. Taking the time to learn and understand DMARC, as well as avoiding mistakes when configuring DMARC, can enhance your security posture and improve your email deliverability rates. Find extra information on the subject in this external resource we suggest. dmarc record https://www.tangent.com/solutions/security-compliance/dmarc, continue expanding your knowledge!

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