Securing Parked Domains: Why your parked domains need DMARC

If your business sends any customer emails whatsoever (and we are guessing it does), becoming DMARC compliant is of utmost importance. Regardless of which type of domain is used to send your messages (e.g., local, subdomain, parked) to current and prospective customers, the value of implementing DMARC on all outbound options is significant.

DMARC Protection

The goal of the DMARC protocol is to safeguard legitimate sent email against harmful spoofing/phishing efforts while delivering each message securely to the intended recipient(s). Once DMARC is applied to your outbound domains, you ensure your online customer communications are protected, which increases clients’ confidence in your brand. In other words, DMARC is the most beneficial step you can take regarding the security of your company’s emails.

Parked Domains

A parked domain is an alias domain name of your primary domain. Often used for advertising purposes or temporarily unavailable designations, it will point to the same webpage that your primary domain points to (i.e., multiple domains, same website).

For example: chiefdomain.com/index.htm and parkeddomain.com/index/htm will both point to the same “index.htm” webpage.

In other words, a parked domain is one not currently being used that is set aside for future utilization. Moreover, it refers to the registration of a domain name without that domain actually being associated with any available services (e.g., email, website) at the time. Although you might not think applying DMARC to these domains is important now, doing so will maintain a clean reputation until they eventually become active and utilized. Plus, setting up DMARC now for all of your outbound domains will save you time down the road when any parked options are needed for use.

Regarding subdomains, being proactive and getting them DMARC compliant will help prevent your business from being associated with damaging phishing, spoofing, and malware campaigns. Because corresponding subdomains will already be legitimized via DMARC, the ability of online scammers to alter your authentic customer messages and impersonate your brand will be negated. Therefore, the reasons to act now benefits your business, as well as your clientele.

Summation

By being proactive regarding DMARC implementation for every domain you own, your business email will be taken care of long-term. The sooner you utilize DMARC on any active, parked, and future-use domains, the better off your company’s email practices will be. MxToolbox is your one-stop option for all email delivery needs, so be sure to rely on our team of experts to bring your delivery rates up and keep your brand reputation stellar.