AutoSPF Blog

Intermediate

How can I simplify a complex SPF record flagged by Kitterman without losing legitimate senders?
ByBrad Slavin December 20, 2025December 20, 2025 Reading Time: 10 minutes

To simplify a complex SPF record flagged by Kitterman without losing legitimate senders, audit and inventory every real sender, consolidate and restructure mechanisms to reduce DNS lookups (favor aggregated ip4/ip6 and short, vetted includes), safely flatten where needed with automated updates, segment via redirect or dedicated sending subdomains where appropriate, and implement tight monitoring and…

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Advanced

How do SPF, DKIM, and DMARC interact when receivers are rejecting messages for authentication failures?
ByBrad Slavin December 19, 2025December 19, 2025 Reading Time: 11 minutes

Receivers reject messages for authentication failures when neither an aligned SPF nor an aligned DKIM result passes and the domain’s DMARC policy dictates rejection (p=reject, or sometimes p=quarantine via local receiver policy), after independently evaluating SPF and DKIM, computing DMARC alignment to the RFC5322.From domain, and applying provider-specific enforcement thresholds. Email authentication is a layered…

Read More How do SPF, DKIM, and DMARC interact when receivers are rejecting messages for authentication failures?
Intermediate

Why email authentication rules are stricter for bulk senders (and what to do about it)
ByBrad Slavin December 19, 2025December 19, 2025 Reading Time: 6 minutes

As phishing rates rise, email authentication is no longer a ‘nice to have’ even for low-volume senders. However, if you are a bulk sender, the rules are stricter for you. Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, and other major mailbox providers now require both bulk and general senders to implement and actively manage SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. Any…

Read More Why email authentication rules are stricter for bulk senders (and what to do about it)
Intermediate

How can I create an SPF record for Office 365 without breaking other mail services?
ByBrad Slavin December 18, 2025December 18, 2025 Reading Time: 10 minutes

To create an SPF record for Office 365 without breaking other mail services, inventory all legitimate senders, build a single v=spf1 record that includes include:spf.protection.outlook.com plus your other providers and IPs while staying under the 10-DNS-lookup limit (using subdomains or flattening if needed), roll out with a soft qualifier (~all), test and monitor via SPF/DMARC…

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Advanced

Mastering SPF & DKIM for SendGrid — An AutoSPF Guide to Email Authentication
ByBrad Slavin December 18, 2025December 24, 2025 Reading Time: 5 minutes

In today’s digital world, email is still one of the most powerful tools for communication — whether for marketing, notifications, or transactional messages. Yet, sending emails without proper authentication can lead to delivery issues, reputation damage, and even security vulnerabilities like spoofing. That’s why at AutoSPF, we emphasize the importance of correctly configuring email authentication…

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Advanced

What Are The Best Practices For Keeping SPF Record Syntax Short And Maintainable?
ByBrad Slavin December 17, 2025December 17, 2025 Reading Time: 11 minutes

To keep SPF record syntax short and maintainable, use explicit ip4/ip6 ranges and a minimal set of a/mx/including mechanisms, avoid ptr/exists/exp, centralize vendor authorization behind one or two include domains or redirects, manage the 10-lookup limit through consolidation and dynamic automation (or flattening with monitoring), and institute tooling, GitOps, and ongoing audits—ideally automated by AutoSPF….

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Foundational

What is an SPF lookup and why does it matter for email delivery?
ByBrad Slavin December 17, 2025December 17, 2025 Reading Time: 12 minutes

An SPF lookup is the DNS-based check mail servers perform to verify that the sending IP is authorized by a domain’s SPF record, and it matters for email delivery because it directly influences whether messages pass authentication, avoid spoofing, and land in the inbox rather than being rejected or spam-foldered. Sender Policy Framework (SPF) tells…

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Foundational

AutoSPF’s Complete Guide: How to Add an SPF Record in Namecheap
ByBrad Slavin December 17, 2025December 17, 2025 Reading Time: 5 minutes

In today’s digital world, securing your email domain against spoofing, phishing, and spam isn’t just a technical best practice — it’s essential for protecting brand reputation, ensuring deliverability, and preserving trust with your customers and partners. One of the foundational email authentication protocols that every domain owner should implement is SPF, or Sender Policy Framework….

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Intermediate

How to set up SPF for Avanan– A step-by-step guide
ByBrad Slavin December 16, 2025December 17, 2025 Reading Time: 5 minutes

Avanan is a cloud-native email security platform that helps secure email in Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. Unlike traditional gateways, it connects directly via APIs; so, it doesn’t sit in your mail servers and consume resources. This way, Avanan can scan emails once they land in your inbox, but before you open or interact with…

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Foundational

Complete Guide to Setting Up FreshMail DKIM and SPF Records
ByBrad Slavin December 16, 2025December 16, 2025 Reading Time: 7 minutes

In today’s email ecosystem, ensuring your messages are authenticated and trusted by recipients isn’t just a nice-to-have — it’s essential. Every day, millions of emails are sent for marketing, notifications, and transactional purposes. But without proper authentication, your carefully crafted messages could land in spam folders — or worse, be blocked entirely. At AutoSPF, we…

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