DMARC compliance
Our platform automates every step of DMARC compliance. From creating records to analyzing reports and enforcing policies, Sendmarc gives you everything you need to protect your domain from spoofing and impersonation.
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What is DMARC compliance?
DMARC compliance refers to the process of implementing and maintaining the Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) protocol on a domain to authenticate outbound emails and guide receiving email servers on how to handle messages that fail authentication. DMARC builds on two foundational email authentication standards: Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM).
- SPF allows domain owners to specify which email servers are authorized to send messages on their behalf.
- DKIM adds a cryptographic signature to outbound emails. This enables the receiving server to verify that the message hasn’t been modified in transit.
DMARC ties these two standards together by enabling domain owners to publish a DMARC record. This record instructs receiving servers on how to handle emails that fail SPF or DKIM checks and specifies where to send reports on email authentication activity.
Why is DMARC compliance important?
Without DMARC, threat actors can spoof a domain and send fraudulent emails. This opens the door to phishing attacks, malware distribution, and significant damage to a brand’s reputation.
DMARC compliance helps businesses:
- Protect their domain from impersonation
- Reduce email-based fraud
- Improve email deliverability and sender reputation
- Build trust with customers and partners
How DMARC works: A summary
| Step | Description |
|---|---|
| SPF check | The receiving server verifies whether the sending IP is authorized in the domain’s SPF record |
| DKIM check | The receiving server verifies the DKIM signature to ensure the message’s integrity and authenticity |
| DMARC policy | Based on SPF and DKIM results, the receiver might apply the domain owner’s DMARC policy |
| Reporting | Authentication results are sent back to the domain owner through aggregate and forensic reports |
Benefits of DMARC compliance
DMARC compliance provides multiple benefits that go beyond basic email security. These advantages support not only technical teams but also business operations, brand reputation, and regulatory requirements.
Enhanced email security
DMARC compliance significantly reduces the risk of email spoofing and phishing by ensuring that only messages authenticated via SPF and DKIM are delivered (with the correct policy and settings). This protects employees, customers, and partners from fraudulent emails that could lead to data breaches or financial loss.
Improved email deliverability
Emails that pass DMARC checks are more likely to be trusted and accepted by recipient email servers. This reduces the likelihood of legitimate emails being marked as Spam or rejected. As a result, marketing campaigns and operational communications become more effective.
Brand protection and trust
By blocking attackers from impersonating your company’s domain, DMARC helps maintain brand integrity. Customers and partners can trust that messages from your organization’s domain are authentic, which enhances its reputation.
Visibility and control
DMARC provides detailed reporting on email activity, showing who’s sending emails on your business’s behalf. This visibility enables rapid detection of unauthorized senders, making it easier to respond before threats escalate.
Regulatory compliance
Many regulators require strong email security to meet their standards, such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) v4.0 and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). DMARC compliance helps support these requirements by securing emails and generating auditable reports.
Start protecting your company’s domain today and gain a better understanding of Sendmarc’s DMARC compliance solution.
Achieving DMARC compliance
Achieving DMARC compliance is a structured process that requires careful planning and ongoing management. The following steps outline how to implement DMARC successfully.
Step 1: Publish a DMARC record
Start by publishing a DMARC record for your organization’s domain. This record includes DMARC tags that define your policy, reporting preferences, and other parameters. Configuring DMARC tags correctly is the foundation of meeting DMARC requirements and achieving compliance.
- The version of the record
- The DMARC policy (
p=), which can be:none: Monitoring onlyquarantine: Marks suspicious emails as Spamreject: Blocks unauthenticated emails
- Email addresses to receive aggregate (
rua) and failure (ruf) reports - Optional settings, such as subdomain policies (
sp) and reporting percentages (pct)
Example DMARC record:
| Host | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|
| _dmarc.yourdomain.com | TXT | v=DMARC1; p=reject; rua=mailto:[email protected]; fo=1; |
Step 2: Start with monitoring (policy: none)
Begin with a p=none policy to collect data without affecting email delivery. This allows your business to gain visibility into which messages are passing or failing authentication before enforcing stricter policies.
Step 3: Analyze DMARC reports
DMARC aggregate reports are XML files, which are generally sent daily by email providers. They include:
- The number of emails sent
- The sending domains
- The authentication statuses
- Potential issues
Manually reviewing these reports is difficult and time-consuming. Sendmarc automates the entire process – reading, visualizing, and analyzing DMARC data, so your company can easily identify misconfigurations, unauthorized senders, and authentication failures, as well as ensure DMARC compliance.
Step 4: Optimize SPF and DKIM records
- SPF: Ensure your organization’s SPF record includes all legitimate senders, including third-party providers. Avoid exceeding DNS lookup limits (maximum 10).
- DKIM: Configure DKIM signing for all outbound emails.
Step 5: Gradually enforce DMARC policies
Once confident that all legitimate emails are properly authenticated:
- Transition from none to quarantine
- Progress to reject to block unauthenticated messages entirely
This approach ensures the highest level of DMARC compliance and improves domain protection without disrupting business operations.
Step 6: Continuous monitoring and maintenance
DMARC compliance is an ongoing responsibility. As your company adopts new tools and services, its email authentication configuration must evolve. Regularly reviewing DMARC reports ensures:
- Detection of new unauthorized sources
- Early identification of security issues
- Continuous alignment with compliance goals
Use cases for DMARC compliance:
DMARC compliance isn’t just for security teams. It delivers value for:
- Organizations protecting customer communications: Prevents phishing attacks that impersonate trusted brands
- E-commerce and financial institutions: Safeguards transactional emails and reduces the risk of fraud
- Marketing teams: Improves email deliverability and campaign performance through stronger authentication
- IT and security teams: Provides visibility into unauthorized use of a domain
Try Sendmarc’s DMARC compliance solution
Sign up for a free trial and start securing your business’s domain. Sendmarc’s platform simplifies DMARC compliance by making it easy to check your domain’s authentication status, analyze reports, and enforce policies that protect your emails from spoofing and fraud.