How Do I Fix My DMARC?

Keep your domain safe from email spoofing by checking (and fixing) your DMARC record with these simple steps.

DMARC helps protect your domain from being spoofed (when someone fakes an email to look like it’s coming from you). But if your DMARC record isn’t set up right, it won’t do much to stop those fake emails from landing in inboxes. Luckily, there are a few common issues, and they’re fixable.

You can run a free check at mxtoolbox.com/emailhealth to see what’s going on. Then, either fix the record yourself or reach out to your domain/email provider or web developer for help (which we recommend)

Common DMARC Issues and How to Fix Them

No DMARC Record Found
This means your domain has no protection in place at all. You’ll need to add a DMARC record through your DNS settings. Most email providers or web hosts can walk you through this, or handle it for you.

DMARC Quarantine/Reject Policy Not Enabled
If your policy is set to p=none, your DMARC record is more like a suggestion than a rule. Update the policy to quarantine or reject to actually block suspicious emails.

Invalid DMARC Record
Your DMARC record exists, but something’s written wrong, maybe a typo or missing tag. Even a tiny formatting error can break it. Ask your provider or dev to double-check and fix the formatting.

Multiple DMARC Records Found
There should only be one DMARC record. If more than one exists, email systems get confused and may not follow any of them. You’ll need to delete the extras so there’s just one clean, valid record.

Not Able to Get a Response From Name Servers
This usually means your DNS is slow or temporarily down, so the check times out. Try again later. If it keeps happening, contact your hosting provider to see if there’s an issue.

What Should a Valid DMARC Record Look Like?

Just for reference, here’s an example of a properly formatted record: