What is DMARC?

DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting and Conformance) is a technology advancement in preventing email and domain spoofing. It ensures that emails go through a domain based check and then sent to the recipient. It uses DKIM and SPF standards along with additional standards of its own.
It is really challenging to tell apart a fake email from an authentic one. Email providers keep struggling in deciding authentic harmless emails to be delivered to users against the fake harmful emails to reject. DMARC is the solution for these problems. It helps email senders and receivers work together to better secure emails, protecting users and brands from painfully costly abuse.

How DMARC works?

DMARC matches the ‘header from’ domain name with the ‘envelope from’ domain name which is used for SPF Check. It will also match ‘header from’ domain name with the ‘d=domain name’ in the DKIM signature tag. Additionally it will perform its own defined tests.
Once on completion of the tests, DMARC decides what action to take based on the comparison results. DMARC policies are predefined so it doesn’t have to think what to do. Just follow the policies and mark the email approved, quarantined or rejected. With SPF and DKIM only, it is upto the ISP to decide what to do with the results where as DMARC gives you the full control to design DMARC policies as per suited for your business. DMARC lets you tell ISPs what action to be taken case checks fail.

Why is it crucial for your business?

Cyber criminals and hackers are always looking for ways to infiltrate your network via phishing, spoofing or any other means. Emails being widely used in any organization, it is the easiest path for them to penetrate within the network. Many recent attacks have occurred via email spoofing. Hackers enter the network by forged emails appearing to be from trusted sources.