As a business owner or administrator, it’s important to ensure that the emails you send are secure and trusted by your recipients. One way to do this is through the use of domain keys identified mail (DKIM).
DKIM is a method of verifying the authenticity and integrity of an email by attaching a digital signature to the email’s header.
This way, whenever a message is sent from Desk365 on your behalf, the mail server knows it is sent on your behalf with authorization and is never sent to the junk folder.
We support DKIM (Domain Key Identified Mail) for domain verification, which means we’re compliant with DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance). This process allows you to validate communication between you and your customers.
In this blog post, we will explore the process of email domain verification using DKIM and how it can help protect your emails from being marked as spam or phishing attacks.
DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is an email authentication method that allows email senders to add a digital signature to their messages to verify the authenticity of the message source ensuring that an email message has not been modified in transit.
For each email being sent, the sender’s email server attaches the digital signature to the message, and the recipient’s server can verify the signature by looking up the sender’s public key in the DNS.
This signature is used to verify the authenticity of the sender and helps protect email senders and recipients from spam, phishing, and other forms of email fraud. By using DKIM, companies are able to thwart spammers and attackers who attempt to send emails impersonating them, while allowing Desk365 to send emails on their behalf without the risk of them being flagged as spam.
How does DKIM work?
DKIM is an email authentication method that uses public-key cryptography to add a digital signature to an email message.
When an email is sent, the sender’s mail server generates a DKIM signature by applying a hash function to the email’s header and body.
This signature is then attached to the email as a DKIM-Signature header and is associated with the organization’s registered domain name.
When the recipient’s mail server receives the email, it uses the sender’s public key, which is published in the DNS records for the sender’s domain, to verify the DKIM signature. If the signature is valid, the recipient’s mail server knows that the email is from the domain it claims to be from and has not been altered in transit.
By verifying the domain of the sender, recipients can be sure that the email is not from a fake or spoofed domain. This can help to protect both individuals and organizations from receiving malicious emails.
Added advantage of having DKIM is that it can improve the deliverability of legitimate emails.
When an email is signed with DKIM, it is more likely to be delivered to the recipient’s inbox rather than being flagged as spam. This is because many email providers use DKIM verification as a factor in their spam filters.
How to set up a DKIM record
Setting up DKIM records is an easy and one-time process.
We’ll provide you with the DKIM records that should be updated with your DNS provider. These should be added as CNAME records.
Note: Please check the correct format to use to add CNAME records for your domain name provider. For some providers like GoDaddy, you’ll need to enter the CNAME record without your subdomain at the end.
For example, “l2h3455zsnoochebldsfoqbnmylviivg._domainkey” instead of “l2h3455zsnoochebldsfoqbnmylviivg._domainkey.kanidesk.com” while for other domain providers you’ll need to enter as it is.
Your domain name provider will have more information on the correct format to use.
How to update your DNS records with the Desk365 domain key (in your domain registrar):
1. Login to your domain registrar’s control panel with the correct credentials used to register your domain name.
2. To change the DNS records, locate and find the option called Manage DNS, Name Server Management, DNS Management, or Advanced Settings.
3. Search for an option to create a CNAME record.
4. Copy the CNAME records that we provided you and publish it in your DNS server/domain provider’s account.
This is just a one-time configuration step you need to set up per domain name.
5. Let us know after you’ve entered them and we will check on our side and confirm if everything is good to go.
We would have received notification that you’ve added your DKIM CNAME records and we’ll verify it.
Note: It may take around 24-48 hours for your DNS changes to propogate to all servers.
In conclusion, as email remains a vital form of communication in personal and professional settings, it is crucial to take measures to secure it.
Email domain verification is an essential aspect of email authentication, and DKIM is a valuable tool for achieving this goal.
Implementing DKIM is a simple and effective way to ensure that email messages are not altered in transit and that they are coming from trusted sources, reducing the risk of spam and phishing attacks.