What is Email Authentication?

Email authentication is a process of confirming the identity of the sender and the legitimacy of emailed messages. Email authentication plays a critical role in any email-based business. It helps users distinguish legitimate emails from spam and phishing emails and limits the potential risk of cyberattacks.

Email authentication solutions like DMARC are becoming a popular method of increasing deliverability and avoiding spam traps. 

How can one define Email Authentication?

Email authentication is the process of verifying that an email message is not fraudulent, or that it has been sent from a legitimate source. It is often used in situations where there is a risk of fraud or phishing, such as when sending sensitive information over email.

How can the authenticity of emails be verified?

There are several common ways to verify the authenticity of an email:

Sender IP address. The IP address of the computer that sent the message (sender) is compared against a list of known good IP addresses. If there's no match, then it's likely that the sender was spoofed.

The domain name in the email address (DNS). The domain name in the From field of an email message (for example, "gmail.com") is compared against a list of known good domains. If there's no match, then it's likely that the sender was spoofed.

The domain name in the message body (DNS). The domain name in the From field of an email message (for example, "gmail.com") is compared against a list of known good domains. If there's no match, then it's likely that the sender was spoofed.