Email is a vital medium of communication in the modern digital era. It gives individuals a method to remain in contact with their peers, family, and coworkers, but it also gives companies a chance to engage with current and prospective consumers. Email may unfortunately serve as a haven for spam or other nefarious activity. DKIM steps in to help with it. In this blog, we’ll go in-depth on DKIM records and offer a step-by-step tutorial for generating, adding, and verifying DKIM records.
What is DKIM?
Domain-Keys Identified Mail (DKIM) is an email authentication method that allows email receivers to verify that an email message was indeed sent by the domain owner and has not been tampered with during transmission. This verification is carried out by comparing the public key in the DNS record of the sender’s domain with the cryptographic signature in the header section. In order to stop spam and other harmful activities, email services like Google, Yahoo, & Microsoft frequently utilise DKIM, which is a crucial component of the email authentication mechanism.
Creating a DKIM Record.
To create a DKIM record, you will need to follow a few simple steps:
Step 1: Generate the Private/Public Key Pair
The creation of a public and private key combination is the first stage. While the public key is made available in the domain’s DNS record, the private key serves to certify emails that are sent out.
Step 2: Publish the Public Key in the DNS Record
The next stage is to publish the public key inside the domain’s DNS record after creating the key pair. You must update the DNS zone file with a new TXT record in order to do this. The domain name, the public key, or the DKIM version must all be included in the TXT record.
Step 3: Set Up the DKIM Signing Policy
Setting up the DKIM signature strategy in the email server is the last step. This policy details which emails need to be signed as well as how to apply the DKIM signature to the header section. You simply need to activate it and supply the location to the private key file because the majority of email servers, notably Google, already have a DKIM signature capability built in.
Adding a DKIM Record.
To add a DKIM record to your email messages, you will need to follow these simple steps:
Step 1: Check if DKIM is Enabled
The first step is to check if DKIM is enabled for your email account. You can do this by sending an email to any email account and checking the email header for a DKIM signature.
Step 2: Create a DKIM Record
If DKIM is not enabled, the next step is to create a DKIM record, following the steps outlined in the previous section.
Step 3: Update the DNS Record
Once you have created the DKIM record, you will need to update the DNS record of your domain to include the new public key.
Step 4: Update the Email Server Configuration
Finally, you will need to update the email server configuration to enable DKIM signing and specify the path to the private key file.
Checking a DKIM Record.
To check a DKIM record, you will need to follow these simple steps:
Step 1: Find the DKIM Signature
The first step is to find the DKIM signature in the email header. You can do this by viewing the email source or header.
Step 2: Check the DKIM Signature
Once you have found the DKIM signature, the next step is to check it against the public key published in the DNS record of the domain. You can use an online DKIM validator tool to do this.
Congrats for successfully mastering DKIM records! You have improved the security of your emails by taking this action. But were you aware that there are additional sophisticated techniques for safeguarding your emails from dangers online? In order to protect your email’s confidentiality – schedule your free demo now to learn more.