chore: Add guides and comparison pages to landing site
This commit is contained in:
Dries Augustyns
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import React from 'react';
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import {GuideLayout, InfoBox} from '../../components/guides';
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import {CodeBlock} from '../../components/CodeBlock';
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import Link from 'next/link';
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export default function WhatIsDKIM() {
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return (
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<GuideLayout
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title="What is DKIM? Email Authentication Explained"
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description="Learn how DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) protects your emails from spoofing and improves deliverability. Complete guide with setup examples."
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lastUpdated="2025-12-20"
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readTime="8 min"
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canonical="https://www.useplunk.com/guides/what-is-dkim"
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>
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{/* Introduction */}
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<section id="introduction" className="mb-12">
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<p className="text-neutral-700 leading-relaxed">
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DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) is an email authentication method that allows receiving mail servers to
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verify that an email was actually sent by the domain it claims to be from and that the message wasn't altered
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in transit.
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</p>
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<p className="mt-4 text-neutral-700 leading-relaxed">
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Think of DKIM as a digital signature for your emails—like a wax seal on a letter that proves it's authentic
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and hasn't been tampered with.
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</p>
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</section>
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{/* How DKIM Works */}
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<section id="how-dkim-works" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">How DKIM Works</h2>
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<p className="text-neutral-700 leading-relaxed mb-6">
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DKIM uses cryptographic authentication to validate emails. Here's the process:
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</p>
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<div className="space-y-6 mb-8">
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<div className="border-l-4 border-neutral-900 pl-6">
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<h3 className="text-xl font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">1. The Sending Server Signs the Email</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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When you send an email, your email server adds a DKIM signature to the email header. This signature is
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created using a private key that only your server knows.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-neutral-900 pl-6">
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<h3 className="text-xl font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">2. The Signature is Added to Headers</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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The DKIM signature includes a hash of specific email components (like the subject, body, and sender) and
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is added to the email headers as a "DKIM-Signature" field.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-neutral-900 pl-6">
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<h3 className="text-xl font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">3. The Receiving Server Verifies</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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When the email arrives, the receiving server looks up your domain's public DKIM key in DNS, then uses it
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to verify the signature. If everything matches, the email passes DKIM authentication.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-neutral-900 pl-6">
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<h3 className="text-xl font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">4. Delivery Decision</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Passing DKIM verification improves your sender reputation and deliverability. Failing or missing DKIM may
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result in emails being flagged as suspicious or sent to spam.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<InfoBox type="tip" title="Technical Detail">
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<p>
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DKIM uses asymmetric cryptography (public/private key pairs). The private key stays secure on your mail
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server, while the public key is published in your DNS records for anyone to verify.
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</p>
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</InfoBox>
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</section>
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{/* DKIM Record Example */}
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<section id="dkim-record-example" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">What Does a DKIM Record Look Like?</h2>
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<p className="text-neutral-700 leading-relaxed mb-6">
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A DKIM record is a TXT record in your DNS that contains your public key. Here's an example:
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</p>
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<CodeBlock
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language="dns"
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title="Example DKIM DNS Record"
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code={`default._domainkey.yourdomain.com IN TXT "v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=MIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQC3QEKyU1fSma0axspqYK5iAj+54lsAg4qRRCnpKK68hawSJfliq9vKD6czJ..."
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# Breaking down the components:
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# v=DKIM1 -> DKIM version
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# k=rsa -> Key type (RSA encryption)
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# p=MIGfMA0... -> Public key (base64 encoded)`}
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/>
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<InfoBox type="info" title="Selector Names">
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<p>
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The "default" in <code>default._domainkey</code> is called a selector. You can use different selectors to
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rotate keys or separate different email streams (e.g., marketing, transactional).
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</p>
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</InfoBox>
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</section>
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{/* Why DKIM Matters */}
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<section id="why-dkim-matters" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">Why DKIM Matters for Email Deliverability</h2>
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<div className="grid gap-6 md:grid-cols-2 mb-8">
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<div className="rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-3">Prevents Email Spoofing</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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DKIM makes it nearly impossible for spammers to forge emails from your domain. The cryptographic signature
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can't be replicated without your private key.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-3">Improves Deliverability</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Major email providers (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo) use DKIM as a trust signal. Emails with valid DKIM
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signatures are more likely to reach the inbox.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-3">Protects Brand Reputation</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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By preventing domain spoofing, DKIM protects your brand from being used in phishing attacks that could
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damage your reputation.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-3">Enables DMARC</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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DKIM is a prerequisite for implementing DMARC, which provides even stronger email authentication and
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reporting capabilities.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<InfoBox type="warning" title="Gmail & Yahoo Requirements">
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<p>
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As of February 2024, Gmail and Yahoo require DKIM authentication for bulk senders (5,000+ emails/day). Even
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if you send less, implementing DKIM is considered a best practice.
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</p>
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</InfoBox>
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</section>
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{/* DKIM Signature Example */}
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<section id="dkim-signature-example" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">What Does a DKIM Signature Look Like?</h2>
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<p className="text-neutral-700 leading-relaxed mb-6">
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When you send an email, the DKIM signature is added to the email headers. Here's what it looks like:
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</p>
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<CodeBlock
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language="text"
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title="DKIM-Signature Header Example"
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code={`DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed;
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d=yourdomain.com; s=default;
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h=from:subject:date:message-id:to;
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bh=frcCV1k9oG9oKj3dpUqdJg1PxRT2RSN/XKdLCPjaYaY=;
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b=GJwP3Qr8KqKKKNT5HL8j3fjXvLEm9KmZs6YdO2KqEqr...
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# Key components:
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# v=1 -> DKIM version
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# d=yourdomain.com -> Signing domain
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# s=default -> Selector (matches DNS record)
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# h=from:subject... -> Headers included in signature
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# bh=frcCV1... -> Hash of email body
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# b=GJwP3Q... -> The actual signature`}
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/>
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</section>
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{/* How Plunk Handles DKIM */}
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<section id="plunk-dkim" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">How Plunk Simplifies DKIM</h2>
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<p className="text-neutral-700 leading-relaxed mb-6">
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Setting up DKIM manually can be complex, but Plunk makes it automatic:
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</p>
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<div className="space-y-4 mb-8">
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<div className="flex items-start gap-4 p-6 rounded-xl bg-neutral-50 border border-neutral-200">
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<div className="flex h-8 w-8 shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-neutral-900 text-white text-sm font-bold">
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1
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</div>
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<div>
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<h3 className="font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">Automatic Key Generation</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Plunk automatically generates secure DKIM key pairs for your domain when you add it to your account.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div className="flex items-start gap-4 p-6 rounded-xl bg-neutral-50 border border-neutral-200">
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<div className="flex h-8 w-8 shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-neutral-900 text-white text-sm font-bold">
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2
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</div>
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<div>
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<h3 className="font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">Simple DNS Setup</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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We provide the exact DNS records you need to add—just copy and paste into your DNS provider.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div className="flex items-start gap-4 p-6 rounded-xl bg-neutral-50 border border-neutral-200">
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<div className="flex h-8 w-8 shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-neutral-900 text-white text-sm font-bold">
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3
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</div>
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<div>
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<h3 className="font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">Automatic Signing</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Every email you send through Plunk is automatically signed with DKIM. No configuration needed.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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<div className="flex items-start gap-4 p-6 rounded-xl bg-neutral-50 border border-neutral-200">
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<div className="flex h-8 w-8 shrink-0 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-neutral-900 text-white text-sm font-bold">
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4
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</div>
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<div>
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<h3 className="font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">Verification & Monitoring</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Plunk verifies your DKIM setup and monitors authentication status for all your emails.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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</div>
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<InfoBox type="success" title="Ready in Minutes">
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<p>
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Most Plunk users have DKIM fully configured and working within 5-10 minutes. Our dashboard guides you
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through every step.
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</p>
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</InfoBox>
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</section>
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{/* DKIM Best Practices */}
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<section id="dkim-best-practices" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">DKIM Best Practices</h2>
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<div className="space-y-6">
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<div className="border-l-4 border-green-500 pl-6 py-2">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">✓ Use 2048-bit Keys</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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While 1024-bit keys still work, 2048-bit keys provide better security and are recommended by Gmail and
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other providers.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-green-500 pl-6 py-2">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">✓ Implement SPF and DMARC Too</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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DKIM works best when combined with SPF and DMARC for comprehensive email authentication. Use all three for
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maximum protection.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-green-500 pl-6 py-2">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">✓ Monitor DKIM Status</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Regularly check that your DKIM signatures are passing. Most email platforms provide authentication
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reports.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-green-500 pl-6 py-2">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">✓ Rotate Keys Periodically</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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For enhanced security, rotate your DKIM keys every 6-12 months. Plan key rotation carefully to avoid
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delivery disruptions.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-red-500 pl-6 py-2">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">✗ Don't Share Private Keys</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Your DKIM private key should never be shared or stored insecurely. Treat it like a password.
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</p>
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</div>
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<div className="border-l-4 border-red-500 pl-6 py-2">
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">✗ Don't Use the Same Key Across Domains</h3>
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<p className="text-neutral-700">
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Each domain should have its own unique DKIM key pair for security and proper authentication.
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</p>
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</div>
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</div>
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</section>
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{/* Related Guides */}
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<section id="related-guides" className="mb-12">
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<h2 className="text-3xl font-bold text-neutral-900 mb-6">Related Email Authentication Guides</h2>
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<div className="grid gap-4 md:grid-cols-3">
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<Link
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href="/guides/what-is-spf"
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className="block rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6 transition hover:border-neutral-300 hover:shadow-lg"
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>
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">What is SPF?</h3>
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<p className="text-sm text-neutral-600">Learn about SPF records and how they complement DKIM.</p>
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</Link>
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<Link
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href="/guides/what-is-dmarc"
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className="block rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6 transition hover:border-neutral-300 hover:shadow-lg"
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>
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">What is DMARC?</h3>
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<p className="text-sm text-neutral-600">Complete guide to DMARC policies and email security.</p>
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</Link>
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<Link
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href="/guides/email-deliverability"
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className="block rounded-xl border border-neutral-200 bg-white p-6 transition hover:border-neutral-300 hover:shadow-lg"
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>
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<h3 className="text-lg font-semibold text-neutral-900 mb-2">Email Deliverability Guide</h3>
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<p className="text-sm text-neutral-600">Improve your email deliverability with best practices.</p>
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</Link>
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</div>
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</section>
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</GuideLayout>
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);
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}
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