Email spoofing, phishing, and other unauthorized email-domain abuse are serious threats — for everyday websites, businesses, and brands of all sizes. That’s where the trio of email authentication standards come into play: DMARC, SPF, and DKIM. When configured correctly, they help ensure your domain’s emails are authenticated, trusted by recipients, and less likely to be marked as spam or rejected altogether.
If your website and email are hosted on HostGator, this guide walks you — step by step — through how to implement DMARC, SPF and DKIM.
Why SPF, DKIM, and DMARC Matter
What is DMARC — and how it builds on SPF and DKIM
- DMARC stands for Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance. It’s a protocol that allows domain owners to declare how receivers (mailbox providers like Gmail, Yahoo, Microsoft, etc.) should handle emails that fail SPF and/or DKIM checks.
- With DMARC, you publish a DNS TXT record that tells receivers whether to simply monitor, quarantine, or reject suspicious emails, and — optionally — where to send reports about them. This helps defend your domain from spoofing, phishing, and other unauthorized use.
- SPF and DKIM are the underlying technologies DMARC builds on:
- SPF allows the domain owner to specify which mail servers (IP addresses) are authorized to send email from that domain.
- DKIM uses cryptographic signatures to ensure that emails haven’t been tampered with in transit — and that they were indeed sent by an authorized server.
- When either SPF or DKIM (or both) passes — and aligns properly — DMARC considers the email legitimate. Conversely, if neither passes with alignment, DMARC’s policy kicks in.
In short — using all three together vastly improves your domain’s email security and deliverability.
Preparing to Configure on HostGator — What You Should Know First
Before jumping into DNS changes, here are a few pre-checks and context for HostGator users:
- If you’re using HostGator’s cPanel hosting (shared hosting, etc.), the platform already supports SPF and DKIM. For accounts using HostGator name servers, certain steps may require special handling.
- If instead you have third-party DNS (i.e. your domain’s DNS is managed outside HostGator), you’ll need to copy the necessary records from HostGator (SPF/DKIM) and add them manually at your DNS provider’s zone editor.
- Avoid publishing multiple conflicting SPF or DMARC records — especially duplicate SPF or multiple DMARC records. Duplicate SPF records can cause authentication failures.
Given that, let’s dive into the actual setup process.
Step-by-Step: Setting Up DKIM & SPF on HostGator
Getting SPF and DKIM properly configured is the foundation — after that, setting up DMARC becomes straightforward.
1. Log in to cPanel and check SPF / DKIM status
- Log in to your HostGator Customer Portal. Go to “Hosting,” then choose the hosting package and click cPanel.
- In cPanel, navigate to the “Email” section and click Email Deliverability (or sometimes “Email Authentication / DKIM & SPF”).
- Here, for each domain you have, you can view the deliverability status. If it shows “Valid,” SPF and DKIM are already enabled. If you see “Problems exist (DKIM and/or SPF)”, click Repair or Generate Local DKIM Key — then Save / Install.
- Once valid, click Manage to show the raw SPF and DKIM records. Copy those values — you’ll need them if your DNS is managed externally.
2. If using external DNS: add SPF and DKIM records in your DNS zone
If your domain’s DNS is not managed by HostGator (i.e. external DNS), you must add two TXT records — one for SPF, one for DKIM:
- SPF record
- Record type: TXT
- Name: yourdomain.com. (replace with your actual domain, and include the trailing dot if required)
- TTL: usually 14400 (4 hours) — standard default
- Value: the raw SPF string you copied from cPanel
- DKIM record
- Record type: TXT
- Name: typically default._domainkey.yourdomain.com. (or whatever selector value HostGator provided)
- TTL: again, usually 14400
- Value: the DKIM signature/key from cPanel (remove extra line breaks if any)
After saving, allow for DNS propagation. Because DNS caching exists globally, changes may take some time to reflect fully.
Important note: Make sure there’s only one SPF record per domain. Having more than one SPF TXT record can break SPF authentication.
Step-by-Step: Publishing DMARC for Your Domain on HostGator
Once SPF and/or DKIM are in place — and working — you’re ready to add DMARC. This gives you control over how unauthorized or suspicious emails are handled.
1. Generate a DMARC record
A DMARC record is a short TXT string with parameters that define your policy. You can use tools like the generator at EasyDMARC (or similar) to build a record matching your preferences.
Typical tags included in a DMARC record:
- v=DMARC1 — version
- p= — policy for domain (e.g. none, quarantine, or reject)
- pct= — percentage of failing messages to which the policy should be applied (commonly 100)
- rua= — URI(s) (mailto:) for aggregate reports, letting you receive feedback on DMARC failures
- (Optional) ruf= — URI(s) for forensic / detailed failure reports
- (Optional) alignment settings: aspf= (SPF alignment) and adkim= (DKIM alignment), often set to “r” (relaxed) by default
Example record (for illustration only):
v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc-reports@yourdomain.com; pct=100;
Starting with p=none is often recommended — it lets you monitor activity without enforcing rejection or quarantine yet. That way you can review reports, confirm legitimate sending sources, and avoid breaking legitimate email flows. Once you’re confident, you can gradually shift to quarantine or reject.
2. Log in to HostGator and add the DMARC record
- In your HostGator account, open cPanel.
- Navigate to Domains → Advanced DNS Zone Editor.
- Click Add Record (or if a _dmarc record already exists — edit it).
- Fill out the form:
- Name: _dmarc (or _dmarc.yourdomain.com. depending on panel)
- Type: TXT
- TTL: Choose a standard value (e.g. 14400 or longer).
- TXT Data: Paste in the DMARC record string you generated.
- Save / Add the record.
Once published, the DMARC record generally becomes active within 24 – 72 hours, depending on DNS propagation delays.
After Setup: What Happens — Deliverability, Reports & Maintenance
With SPF, DKIM and DMARC properly configured, here’s what you get — and what you should watch out for:
- Enhanced email deliverability and trust. Mailbox providers (like Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, Comcast, etc.) will check your DNS for SPF, DKIM and DMARC. Legitimate emails that pass authentication are far less likely to end up in spam or get rejected.
- Protection against spoofing and phishing. When DMARC is enforced (policy quarantine or reject), unauthorized emails claiming to come from your domain are more likely to be blocked or flagged — helping safeguard your domain’s reputation.
- Insight via DMARC reports. If you’ve included rua (and optionally ruf), you’ll receive aggregate (and possibly forensic) reports from receiving mail servers. These reports show which IPs attempted to send mail on your behalf, whether they passed SPF/DKIM, and alignment results. This helps you audit legitimate sending sources (mail servers, third-party services, newsletters, etc.).
- Ongoing maintenance and monitoring. As you add new email-sending services (third-party mailing tools, newsletters, automation, etc.), you must ensure they’re authorized via SPF or DKIM, or else they’ll fail DMARC authentication. Reports will help catch these issues early.
Common Pitfalls & Tips — AutoSPF Style
When working with HostGator, or any hosting + DNS environment, a few common mistakes or pitfalls can disrupt your email authentication. Here’s how to avoid them:
- Don’t publish multiple SPF records. Only one SPF TXT record should exist per domain. Multiple SPF records can cause SPF checks to fail — even for legitimate emails. If using external DNS, don’t forget to copy the exact values. When copying SPF or DKIM from cPanel (or a generator), make sure you copy the full record — including all syntax — and remove extraneous line breaks (especially for DKIM keys).
- Avoid duplicate _dmarc records. If a DMARC record already exists, edit it instead of creating a second. Having multiple DMARC records can cause mail failures or undefined behavior.
- Start with a conservative DMARC policy (p=none). This lets you collect reports and monitor email flows before enforcing stricter policies. Once you’re confident legitimate mail sources are covered, you can move to quarantine or reject.
Check deliverability after changes. After any DNS change (SPF, DKIM or DMARC), send test emails to external providers (Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, etc.) and verify they arrive. Also, check the email headers for DKIM signatures and check SPF alignment results.
Wrapping Up: Why This Matters — And What to Do Next
In today’s world of rampant email spoofing, phishing, and domain abuse, leaving your domain without SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is like leaving your front door unlocked. For any website owner, small business, or even individual building a brand — properly configuring email authentication is essential.
By following the steps above (via HostGator’s cPanel + DNS zone editor), you’ll:
- Authorize the mail servers that can send email on behalf of your domain (SPF).
- Ensure email contents remain intact and are verifiable (DKIM).
- Declare a policy for how recipients should treat emails that fail authentication — and receive reports about such attempts (DMARC).
