What is domainkeys identified mail
DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) is an email authentication system designed to detect and prevent email spam, phishing, and other types of email fraud. It is a method of verifying the authenticity of an email message by associating a digital signature with the message.
DKIM works by using a public-private key pair, similar to those used in SSL/TLS encryption. The sender's domain (e.g., example.com) generates a private key and a corresponding public key. The private key is used to sign the email message, and the public key is used to verify the signature.
Here's how it works:
- The sender's email server generates a digital signature for the email message using the private key.
- The digital signature is added to the email message.
- The email message is sent to the recipient's email server.
- The recipient's email server verifies the digital signature using the public key associated with the sender's domain.
- If the digital signature is valid, the recipient's email server knows that the email message came from the claimed sender and has not been tampered with.
DKIM provides several benefits, including:
- Authentication: DKIM verifies the authenticity of the email message, ensuring that it was sent by the claimed sender.
- Integrity: DKIM ensures that the email message has not been tampered with or altered during transmission.
- Spam prevention: DKIM helps to prevent spam and phishing emails by making it more difficult for attackers to forge email messages.
- Compliance: DKIM is a widely adopted standard and is often required by email service providers and organizations to ensure compliance with anti-spam regulations.
To implement DKIM, you need to:
- Generate a public-private key pair for your domain.
- Configure your email server to sign email messages with the private key.
- Publish the public key in a DNS record (TXT record) for your domain.
- Configure your email client or server to verify the digital signature using the public key.
DKIM is a powerful tool for securing email communication and preventing email fraud. It is widely supported by email service providers and is an important part of a comprehensive email security strategy.