Email authentication refers to the technical settings that validate the mailbox identity and authorization at domain level. Basically, this process will allow mailbox providers to verify that an email is sent from the sender they claimed to be. If your domain is failing in authentication you will very likely face problems related to the deliverability of your emails, because emails that fail the authentication will have higher chance to be marked as spam.
When we speak about email authentication, we’re essentially talking about three authentication protocols:
- Sender Policy Framework (SPF)
- Domainkeys Identified Mail (DKIM)
- Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance (DMARC)
| In your Domain Health Center you can check important information about the technical configuration of your mailboxes, including the status on email authentication. |
In this article we will be covering the steps to authenticate the SPF, DKIM, and DMARC settings for your domain.
How to authenticate for SPF
- Sign in to your domain account on your domain host's site (not your Google Admin Console). This can be GoDaddy, Squarespace, Namecheap, etc.
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Go to the page for updating your domain’s DNS records. DNS Management, Name Server Management, or Advanced Settings.
- Find your TXT records and check if your domain has an existing SPF record. The SPF record starts with “v=spf1…”.
- If your domain already has an SPF record, remove it.
- Create a TXT record with these values:
- Name/Host/Alias - Enter @ or leave blank
- Time to Live (TTL) - Enter 3600 or leave the default.
- Value/Answer/Destination - Enter v=spf1 include:_spf.google.com ~all
Please note that these records can take up to 48 hours to have an effect.
How to authenticate for DKIM
- Log in to Google Admin: admin.google.com
- In the navigation menu on the left-hand side menu > Apps > GSuite > Gmail
- Generate a DKIM Key
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Create a DNS TXT Record with the DKIM key generated in the previous step. For this, you will need to go to your domain provider. e.g. GoDaddy, Squarespace, Namecheap, etc.
- Click Start Authentication in Google Admin
How to authenticate for DMARC
- Go to your domain administrator’s site. Find DNS Management or Settings.
- Add this TXT record to your DNS:
- Host Name: _dmarc
-
VALUE (with email): v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; rua=mailto:{email}; pct=90; sp=none
The email version will send reports to whatever email you put in there. This is totally optional and if you do not wish to receive reports on your domain you can enter the following value.
- VALUE (no email): v=DMARC1; p=quarantine; pct=90; sp=none
Testing Email Authentication in Amplemarket
- Sign in to your Amplemarket Account
- Click Domain Health Center in your left sidebar
- Check the status in the Authentication column
If the authentication status is Passed, it means you successfully completed authentication for your domain.
If the authentication status is Failed, it means authentication is failing for at least one of the protocols. Click on the Failed status, a pop-up will appear with the details of which of the protocols authentication is failing.
If you have more questions about email authentication reach out to support@amplemarket.com