What is DMARC? The policy that stops spoofing
DMARC is the rulebook on top of SPF and DKIM: if a message fails authentication, should receivers quarantine it, reject it, or just watch?
What CrowWake checks
We read TXT at _dmarc.yourdomain for v=DMARC1. Missing record = fail. A policy of p=none is allowed but flagged as warn—you are monitoring without blocking spoofed mail yet. The free DMARC checker uses the same lookup with no login. For the repeat “watch this hourly” job, see the dedicated DMARC monitoring guide.
Why it matters
Phishers love sending as [email protected]. DMARC is how brands tell the world “if it is not really us, don’t trust it.” Search demand for DMARC dwarfs most other email-auth terms—operators already know this is the wedge.
What “good enough” looks like
Start with p=none plus rua reporting while you inventory senders. Move toward p=quarantine or p=reject once legitimate mail passes SPF/DKIM alignment. CrowWake’s job in v1 is health of the DNS record—not parsing XML reports.
If CrowWake crows
No DMARC → publish a minimal record. Stuck on p=none forever → plan a move to stronger policy once senders are clean. Broken TXT syntax → fix quoting/spaces in DNS.
Watch this on CrowWake
Add the domain, leave the boxes checked, and the flock will crow when this drifts.
Or try the free DMARC checker with no login.
Deep dive: DMARC monitoring — watch _dmarc so a silent wipe or forever-p=none crows early, with the same free DMARC checker.
Stack overview: email authentication monitoring, what is email authentication. Also: SPF monitoring, DKIM monitoring.