Microsoft 365 - Email Authentication (DMARC) Introduction

This document is intended as an introduction to the concept of DMARC, also known as email authentication. We use email authentication to help identify emails that are not from trusted senders. Untrusted email is sent to your Junk email folder.

What is DMARC or Email Authentication?

DMARC is an acronym that stands for Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance. DMARC allows us to define which services are approved to send email using UW-Madison email addresses. This helps us better identify legitimate email from phishing or scam emails.

Email authentication or email authenticity are also terms used to describe whether an email is legitimate and not forged. We frequently use the term email authentication or authenticity in place of DMARC because it is more descriptive of what we are evaluating when we receive an email message.

Most mail you receive should pass email authentication checks and arrive in your inbox. Be suspicious of anything that is routed to your Junk folder. Remember, messages might be sent to your junk folder because they:

  • Received a high spam rating.
  • Failed email authentication checks.
  • Are on your own Blocked Senders list.

I received a legitimate email and it went to my Junk folder. What should I do?

Open a ticket with the DoIT Help Desk. Help Desk staff will gather the information we need to understand the issue. In some cases you may need to contact the sender to let them know that their email isn't passing email authentication checks.

I sent an email and it went to the recipients Junk folder. What should I do?

If you sent the message from your UW-Madison Office 365 account, Google Groups or Eloqua, it is very unlikely that the issue is related to email authenticity. For troubleshooting steps please see: Microsoft 365 - I can't find a message or a message was not delivered or received.

If you believe the sending issue is related to DMARC, you can contact us for an Email Authenticity Consultation.

Note: Email Authenticity (DMARC) consultations are only available to UW-Madison faculty, staff and students. External senders should work with within their own IT organization to resolve deliverability issues.

Internal Notes

For the DoIT Help Desk

If a customer opens a case because a message went their Junk folder and they believe it is legitimate, check to make sure the Sender's address is not list in the recipient's Blocked Sender list or in an Inbox rule that sends the message to Junk. If that doesn't resolve the issue, then please have the customer submit an example of the message or gather the standard information we need to perform a message trace:

  • date/time of the message
  • sender/recipient addresses
  • Subject of the message

If a customer calls in requesting a change to their SPF record, DKIM record, or DMARC record, please gather all of the following information and add it to the WiscIT case notes before escalating the case in WiscIT to the Office 365 Technical/Functional queue:

  1. Email domain for which the customer would like their SPF, DKIM, or DMARC record updated:
  2. Changes the customer has stated they would like made to their SPF, DKIM, or DMARC record:
  3. Date by which the customer needs the SPF, DKIM, or DMARC record changes to be made:

If a customer calls with general feedback or questions about DMARC or email authenticity, please note their questions/feedback and escalate the case to the Office 365 Technical/Functional queue.

See Also


Keywords:
Domain-based message authentication reporting conformance DMARC DKIM SPF TXT DNS email records publish publication phishing spoofing impersonation impersonating consulting
Doc ID:
82804
Owned by:
O365 S. in Microsoft 365
Created:
2018-06-11
Updated:
2024-08-05
Sites:
DoITHelpDesk-external, DoITHelpDesk-internal, Microsoft365-external, Microsoft365-internal