A DMARC record is where DMARC rulesets are defined. This record informs Internet service providers whether a domain is set up to use DMARC. The record contains the policy and should be placed in your DNS.
The implementation of DMARC policies is dependent on the Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and the Domain Keys Identified Mail protocol (DKIM). These two standards provide protection against spam by authenticating domains of the inbound email.
DMARC record enables domain’s owner to publish policy that is based on either one or both standards. However, the problem arises in the implementation since both protocols can be prone to error while sending emails from a domain and handling email failures.
What are the issues that an organization faces while creating DMARC record for the first time?
When an organization creates DMARC records for the first time, it often faces confusion in following instructions meant for setting up DMARC records. It is possible that the organization will encounter issues related to content and syntax. Improper use of wildcard domain name system entries is one of the most frequent mistakes. These entries can return both non-DMARC and DMARC records including DKIM keys and SPF records. Problems also arise when implementers do not change default configurations. If the default configuration has not been updated, DMARC verification will take place but any email that fails these tests will not trigger any action.
During the configuration of DMARC, administrators must review the suggested solutions at least two times. This will help in avoiding confusion that can be caused by visually ambiguous characters since the intelligent parser checker is not available when the administrator enters text incorrectly.
However, this issue can be tackled with the help DMARC record generator and analyzer tools like KDMARC that generate and analyse the DMARC record.
What can KDMARC help?
DMARC record generator and analyser tools like KDMARC analyse the already existing DMARC record and builds new record for organizations. The tool helps organizations in an effective DMARC deployment.
It analyses the already existing DMARC record
The tool checks if the already set DMARC record is secure or not. It is important that the DMARC record is properly set since inaccurately set DMARC record will not effectively prevent malicious emails from entering the inbox.
Generates DMARC record
DMARC record generator and analyzer tools help in generating DMARC record. With the help of a questionnaire, the domain owner can set DMARC record. KDMARC helps the email community in establishing a consistent policy to deal with messages that fail to authenticate.
Secure your email domain
Prevent unauthorized use of your email domain against cyber threats such as phishing. Properly set DMARC records prevent the unauthorized use of the owner’s email domain thus, enhancing the security of email. This leads to simplified email delivery and domain owners gain visibility into the use of email domain.
Increased visibility
The tool enables the domain owner to gain unprecedented visibility into genuine and fraudulent email that has been sent using organization’s domain name. Detailed analytics on emails that have been sent via organization’s domain is provided. This includes the number of DMARC capable, threat emails as well as forwarded emails.
Protects email tampering
DKIM helps in verifying whether the email that has been sent from the claimed domain and if the message has been tampered on its way or not. SPF record detects spammers and prevents them from sending messages with forged sender addresses on your domain. A DMARC policy allows the sender to indicate that the message is protected through either DKIM and SPF or any one of them.
Email Deliverability
Email deliverability refers to the arrival of a message in the recipient’s inbox as intended. An effective business strategy involves smooth email deliverability. An email that passes on the parameters of SPF and DKIM land in the inbox. With the help of KDMARC, policies are set to ensure the delivery of the email in the inbox.
Email has always been extremely popular among cyber-attackers for deploying cyber-attacks. It has been estimated that by the year 2022, the number of email users will reach 4.3 billion. This ultimately expands the scope for cyber-attacks. Therefore, it is extremely important to adopt policies that help in maintaining the security of your email domain.
