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// Real-time threat analysis

Email
Security

Check MX, SPF, and DMARC status to prevent email spoofing.

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What is Email Security and Why Does It Matter?

Email is the primary vector for cyberattacks globally. Because the original SMTP email protocol was built without authentication, anyone could theoretically forge an email to look like it came from "billing@yourcompany.com".

To stop this, the industry introduced standard TXT records (SPF, DKIM, and DMARC). These act as cryptographic digital signatures and guest lists, ensuring only authorized servers can send mail on your behalf.

The Danger of Spoofing

Without proper records, cybercriminals can:

  • Send Ransomware: Employees might open an attachment if it looks like it came from their boss.
  • Steal Client Money: Attackers can send fake invoices claiming to be from your finance team.
  • Destroy Brand Reputation: Your domain gets blacklisted by Gmail resulting in all your mail going to spam.

How Our Mail Scanner Works

Our tool performs a multi-stage validation check against your domain's authoritative DNS to look for mail-specific misconfigurations.

  • SPF Validation: Checks for the existence and strictness of the Sender Policy Framework.
  • DMARC Alignment: Inspects your DMARC policies to see if you are actively rejecting unauthorized mail.
  • Raw Parsing: Shows you the exact TXT values so you can debug missing includes or malformed tags.

Why Trust QuantNest Checks?

We strictly adhere to standard RFC protocols instead of making arbitrary guesses about your security.

  • Accurate Parsing: We handle nested SPF lookups and multiple TXT values correctly.
  • Privacy Focused: We don't proxy your emails; we only read public DNS configurations.
  • Actionable Insights: We highlight the difference between a weak policy (~all) and a strict policy (-all).
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Common Email Configuration Errors

If your emails are constantly landing in the spam folder, check to see if you are making one of these mistakes:

1. The SPF "Too Many Lookups" Error

SPF records have a strict limit of 10 DNS lookups per record. If you include too many services (like Mailchimp, Sendgrid, Zoho, etc. all at once), your SPF record becomes invalid and mail will bounce.

2. "Soft Fail" vs "Hard Fail"

An SPF record ending in `~all` means "Soft Fail" (usually accepted but marked as spam). Modern security practices recommend `-all` ("Hard Fail") to outright reject spoofed messages.

3. Missing DMARC Policy (p=none)

Having a DMARC record that says `p=none` means you are passively monitoring abuse but doing nothing to stop it. It needs to eventually be moved to `p=quarantine` or `p=reject`.

4. No Dedicated IP

If you use shared hosting, your email might be sharing an IP address with spammers. A dedicated IP isolates your domain reputation.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is SPF?

Sender Policy Framework (SPF) is a list of IP addresses and services approved to send email on your behalf.

What is DMARC?

Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) tells receiving servers what to do if an email fails SPF or DKIM checks (e.g., delete it or mark as spam).

Why are my emails still going to spam if my records are fine?

Your records might be fine, but if you have a poor IP reputation from sending too many bulk emails, Gmail and Outlook will filter your messages. You need to warm up domains properly.