Is DMARC record really as simple as it sounds?

Shopify Discussion
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Topic summary

Urgent requirement: merchants must publish a DMARC record by Feb 1, 2024 to satisfy Google/Yahoo. DMARC (policy telling receivers how to handle unauthenticated mail) relies on SPF (authorized sending servers) and DKIM (cryptographic signature) being set first.

Experiences diverge:

  • Some added a simple TXT record (_dmarc.domain) with p=none and an rua address, verified via tools (dmarcian). Others set p=quarantine immediately.
  • Several report DMARC passing but SPF/DKIM failing for some senders (e.g., Mailchimp/Klaviyo/Microsoft 365/Shopify mailer). One user “fixed” SPF checks by adding include:shops.shopify.com, though this conflicted with later guidance.

Latest guidance from Shopify: ensure the 4 CNAME “authenticate” records are added; this creates a mailer subdomain (e.g., mailer123.yourdomain.com) whose SPF Shopify manages, so no extra SPF changes are needed for Shopify on your root domain. You still must configure SPF/DKIM for other providers (Google Workspace, Klaviyo, Mailchimp, etc.).

Recommended approach:

  • Start with p=none + rua to collect reports; analyze via tools (EasyDMARC/dmarcian), then phase to quarantine/reject.
  • Create a dedicated reports mailbox.

Open issues: ongoing SPF fails tied to mailer.shopify.com, DNS host support confusion, Klaviyo subdomain/CNAME conflicts, and how to interpret reports. No final resolution; several users still seeking expert help.

Summarized with AI on December 20. AI used: gpt-5.
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  • Jan 23: our customers getting confirmation emails from ourname@ourdomain.com
  • starting Jan 24 (we made zero changes on our end): our customers getting confirmation emails from store@shopifyemail.com
  • so much for telling us Feb 1 was the deadline when y’all actually flipped the switch without telling us or giving us any warning on Jan 24…

chatting with support is a total waste of time

can’t find anywhere published on shopify support pages where shopify admits they only support 1024 DKIM

can’t even get a straight answer on shopify SFP record…what is it?

p.s. advising folks that either SPF or DKIM is irresponsible and it also doesn’t follow any of the outside-source support links that shopify’s support pages link to