Summary
Shopify sent DMARC setup emails to all users, including those who already had DMARC records, for a combination of reasons related to security, practicality, and comprehensive coverage. The primary drivers include: the relative ease of sending blanket notifications compared to developing complex targeted messaging systems; ensuring all merchants, regardless of technical proficiency or current configuration, are aware of and adhere to best practices for email authentication; mitigating the risk of overlooking vulnerable accounts and reinforcing the importance of DMARC; educating users about security standards; and addressing the complexities of DMARC deployment and evolving email security standards. The consensus is that while some redundancy might occur, the benefits of broad awareness and security outweigh the potential annoyance.
Key findings
- Ease of Implementation: It's simpler and more efficient to send blanket emails than to individually audit configurations and develop complex targeted systems.
- Security Reinforcement: Blanket notifications reinforce the importance of email authentication standards and ensure continuous compliance, even among technically proficient users.
- Vulnerability Mitigation: Sending emails to all users helps mitigate the risk of overlooking vulnerable accounts susceptible to phishing or spoofing attacks.
- Broad Awareness: Blanket emails ensure that all merchants are aware of best practices, especially given that many businesses are not fully aware of email authentication standards.
- Addressing Complexity: Sending updates helps users understand their obligations under evolving standards, given the complexities of DMARC deployment.
- Proactive Strategy: This is part of a proactive security strategy that ensures continuous compliance and prevents potential security risks by prompting reviews of setup settings
Key considerations
- Potential Annoyance: Some users may find redundant notifications annoying if they have already correctly configured DMARC.
- Aggregate Store Access: Ideally, messaging would be limited based on aggregate store access rather than individual accounts.
- Message Specificity: Tailoring messages to acknowledge existing configurations could reduce redundancy.
- Brand Reputation: Over-communication ensures protection to domain reputation.
What email marketers say
12 marketer opinions
Shopify sent DMARC setup emails to all users, even those with existing DMARC records, for several reasons. The primary motivations include promoting better security across the platform, ensuring no user is missed during security updates, reinforcing the importance of email authentication standards, educating users on best practices, and mitigating risks associated with phishing or spoofing attacks. This blanket approach prioritizes comprehensive coverage and risk prevention over potential user annoyance or redundancy.
Key opinions
- Security Promotion: Shopify aims to promote platform-wide security by prompting all users to review their DMARC settings.
- Risk Mitigation: Sending emails to all users helps mitigate the risk of overlooking vulnerable accounts susceptible to phishing or spoofing.
- Email Authentication: Blanket emails ensure that all users are reminded about email authentication best practices.
- Avoiding Assumptions: Shopify avoids assumptions about the correctness of user configurations by notifying everyone.
- Education: Many businesses are not fully aware of email authentication, and these emails serve as an educational tool for Shopify users.
- Prevent security risks: It's more important to cover all basis to avoid risks of users missing out on security and domain requirements than to avoid a few people complaining about being informed when they already knew the details.
Key considerations
- Potential Annoyance: Sending redundant notifications can annoy users who have already implemented DMARC records.
- Messaging: Using generic messaging like `please check and confirm u have a dmarc record` allows users who already have a record to move onto missing authentication steps.
- Urgency: Shopify is causing a bit of urgency with stores because this is not the time for them to be dragging their feet.
- Aggregate store access: It would have been ideal to limit the messages based on aggregate store access, vs individual, which is what caused the message proliferation.
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Geeks shares that they tried to use generic messaging like `please check and confirm u have a dmarc record` to hopefully allow users who already had a record to move onto missing authentication steps.
25 Apr 2023 - Email Geeks
Marketer view
Email marketer from Email Vendor Guide answers that many businesses are not fully aware of email authentication, Shopify sends emails to educate it's users to protect domain reputation.
9 Dec 2021 - Email Vendor Guide
What the experts say
5 expert opinions
Shopify's decision to send DMARC setup emails to all users, regardless of their existing DMARC configuration, is primarily attributed to the ease of implementation and the complexities involved in targeted messaging. It's simpler to send blanket reminders and universal advice than to individually audit configurations and write complex scripts for targeted emails. This approach aims to ensure all users meet email authentication standards and review their settings, even if it means some receive redundant notifications.
Key opinions
- Ease of Implementation: Sending blanket emails is easier and requires less complex coding than targeted messaging.
- Resource Efficiency: It's more efficient to provide universal advice than to individually audit configurations.
- Email Authentication Standards: Sending DMARC setup emails aims to ensure all users are meeting the necessary email authentication standards.
- Complexity of Targeted Messaging: Targeted messaging requires complex scripts and accounting for many variables, making it more difficult to implement.
- Simplified Scripting: Writing DMARC checking code is not easy - it can be much easier to just mail everyone.
Key considerations
- Redundant Notifications: Some users may receive redundant notifications if they already have DMARC configured correctly.
- Lack of Individual Auditing: The approach avoids individual auditing of configurations, potentially missing nuanced issues.
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise responds that sometimes platforms send blanket reminders because it's easier to give universal advice rather than individually audit configurations, ensuring everyone reviews their settings regardless of existing configurations.
4 Apr 2022 - Word to the Wise
Expert view
Expert from Email Geeks elaborates that sending targeted messages, even with thousands of domains, requires a more complex script to pull out relevant accounts compared to sending a blanket email. This requires accounting for many variables.
5 Aug 2024 - Email Geeks
What the documentation says
4 technical articles
Shopify sends DMARC setup emails to all users, even those who already have DMARC records, as a proactive security strategy and to ensure all merchants are aware of and adhere to best practices for email authentication. This approach reinforces the importance of email authentication standards and ensures continuous compliance, even among technically proficient users. The redundancy is intended to address the complexities of DMARC deployment and to keep users informed of evolving standards.
Key findings
- Proactive Security: Frequent DMARC reminders are part of a proactive security strategy.
- Awareness of Best Practices: Blanket notifications ensure all merchants are aware of best practices for email authentication.
- Continuous Compliance: Redundant notifications reinforce the importance of email authentication standards and ensure continuous compliance.
- Addressing DMARC Complexities: Sending updates ensures users understand their obligations under evolving standards, given the complexities of DMARC deployment.
Key considerations
- User Experience: Users who have already implemented DMARC might find the notifications redundant and potentially annoying.
- Message Tailoring: Future iterations of the strategy might consider tailoring messages based on existing DMARC configurations to reduce redundancy.
Technical article
Documentation from Shopify Help Center explains that Shopify may send blanket notifications regarding security settings like DMARC to ensure all merchants are aware of best practices, even if they have already implemented them.
21 Jul 2022 - Shopify Help Center
Technical article
Documentation from DMARC Analyzer suggests that platforms like Shopify might send redundant notifications to reinforce the importance of email authentication standards and ensure continuous compliance.
18 Nov 2022 - DMARC Analyzer
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