No DMARC record, or DMARC not enforcing

DMARC tells receiving mail servers what to do with email that fails SPF and DKIM: nothing (none), junk it (quarantine) or refuse it (reject). It also sends you reports. Start at none to learn who sends as you, then enforce.

Difficulty
easy
Time
about 15 minutes
Last reviewed
2026-10-26

Is this urgent?

This week.

Easy fix, no technical skills

  1. Make sure SPF and DKIM are in place first (see those guides).

  2. Add a TXT record at _dmarc.example.com with: v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:dmarc@example.com; pct=100

  3. After two weeks, read the reports (a free DMARC report service turns the XML into a table). If everything legitimate passes, change p=none to p=quarantine.

  4. After another two weeks, change to p=reject.

Hand it to your IT person

Copy this into an email or chat. Replace the brackets with the details from your alert.

example.com has no enforcing DMARC. Please publish _dmarc TXT v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=mailto:(address), review reports, then move to quarantine and reject.
Technical fix (commands)
  1. Check.

    dig +short TXT _dmarc.example.com

Check it worked

  • Our checker shows DMARC with a policy; reports start arriving within a day.

Build your DMARC record, or check SPF, DKIM and DMARC with the free tool. All free tools.

Prevent it next time

  • Keep the rua address monitored.
  • Add new senders to SPF or DKIM before they go live.

Common questions

Is this urgent?

This week.

Can I fix this without technical skills?

Yes. The easy fix below needs no technical skills; the commands are only for your IT person.

How long does it take?

About 15 minutes once you know who runs the website.

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