Summary
To avoid Gmail security warnings, a multi-faceted approach is required, focusing on authentication, sender reputation, content, and infrastructure. Proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are essential for domain authentication and alignment. A clean and consistent IP address, warmed up appropriately, builds a positive reputation. Personalized, engaging content without URL shorteners or direct attachments is crucial. Regular list hygiene and monitoring sender reputation via Google Postmaster Tools help maintain deliverability. Valid SSL certificates and avoiding sending 'to' and 'from' the same address ensure secure connections and valid sending practices. Reviewing landing page content is also a consideration.
Key findings
- Email Authentication: Proper domain authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is critical for Gmail to trust your emails and avoid security warnings.
- Sender Reputation: Maintaining a clean and consistent IP address, warming up IP/domains, and engaging in consistent sending practices are crucial for a positive sender reputation.
- Content Security: Personalized, engaging content without URL shorteners or direct attachments improves engagement and reduces the risk of being flagged.
- List Hygiene: Regularly auditing email lists and removing inactive subscribers maintains a healthy sender reputation.
- Infrastructure: Check your infrastructure - including SSL certification, DNS records - is setup correctly.
Key considerations
- DMARC Alignment: Ensure your 'from' address aligns with your DMARC policy to prevent authentication failures.
- Link & Content Audits: Regularly check for compromised links and scrutinize information requests to maintain content integrity.
- Google Postmaster Tools: Actively monitor sender reputation using Google Postmaster Tools and address deliverability issues promptly.
- IP Management: Manage your IP address and warm it up to help build a good sending reputation.
- Best Practices: Follow email best practices to minimise being flagged as spam by Gmail.
What email marketers say
10 marketer opinions
To avoid Gmail security warnings on emails, various strategies can be employed focusing on authentication, sender reputation, and content. Ensuring proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are in place is crucial, alongside using a consistent sending IP address and warming up IPs/domains. Avoiding URL shorteners and attachments directly in emails, while personalizing content and regularly auditing email lists, contributes to a positive sender reputation. Monitoring sender reputation through tools like Google Postmaster Tools and ensuring the 'from' address matches the domain in the DMARC policy are also essential. Finally, SSL certificates for sending domains should be valid to secure connections.
Key opinions
- Authentication: Properly configured SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are critical for authenticating emails and preventing Gmail from flagging them.
- IP Reputation: Using a consistent sending IP address and warming up IPs/domains are essential for building and maintaining a positive sender reputation.
- Content Quality: Personalized content and avoiding generic templates can improve engagement and reduce the likelihood of Gmail flagging emails as suspicious.
- List Hygiene: Regularly auditing email lists and removing inactive subscribers helps maintain a healthy sender reputation.
- Secure Connections: Ensuring the sending domain has a valid and non-expired SSL certificate builds trust and avoids warnings related to insecure connections.
- Address Integrity: Double check the 'to' and 'from' addresses are not the same, and avoid using free email provider addresses as the sender.
Key considerations
- DMARC Alignment: Ensure the 'from' address matches the domain you authenticated in your DMARC policy to avoid authentication failures.
- Content Risks: Avoid using URL shorteners and attachments directly in emails, as they are often associated with phishing attempts.
- Reputation Monitoring: Consistently monitor sender reputation through Google Postmaster Tools to identify and address deliverability issues.
- Address Checks: Ensure you are not sending from and to the same address which may cause a security warning.
- Authentication: Ensure your SPF, DKIM, and DMARC configurations are setup correctly and you have no issues with your configuration.
Marketer view
Email marketer from SendGrid explains that consistently monitoring sender reputation through Google Postmaster Tools can help identify and address deliverability issues that might trigger security warnings.
21 Jul 2022 - SendGrid
Marketer view
Email marketer from Litmus shares that regularly auditing your email list and removing inactive subscribers helps maintain a healthy sender reputation and reduces the risk of Gmail security flags.
20 Apr 2022 - Litmus
What the experts say
3 expert opinions
To avoid Gmail security warnings, it's essential to focus on domain authentication, sender reputation, and content security. Ensure domains are authenticated and aligned with DMARC, check for compromised links, and scrutinize information requests in emails. Maintain a clean IP address with consistent sending practices and volume. Proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is crucial for Gmail to trust your emails, requiring correctly configured DNS records.
Key opinions
- Domain Authentication: Ensuring proper domain authentication and alignment with DMARC is critical.
- Content Security: Checking for compromised links and carefully considering information requested in emails is important.
- IP Reputation: Maintaining a clean IP address and consistent sending practices are vital for avoiding spam flags.
- DNS Configuration: Correctly configured DNS records for SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are essential for Gmail to trust your emails.
Key considerations
- DMARC Implementation: Pay close attention to DMARC alignment and ensure all authentication methods are correctly set up to avoid warnings.
- Link Security: Regularly audit and check all links in your emails to prevent users from being directed to compromised hosts.
- IP Health: Monitor IP reputation and adhere to consistent sending volume to maintain a good sending history.
- Infrastructure: Make sure your infrastructure is properly configured to correctly perform authentication of emails.
Expert view
Expert from Spamresource responds by emphasising the importance of maintaining a clean IP address. They explain that a history of good sending practices is essential to avoid Gmail flagging emails as suspicious. Consistent volume and engagement metrics are vital.
14 Dec 2022 - Spamresource
Expert view
Expert from Word to the Wise explains that proper authentication (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) is crucial for ensuring Gmail trusts your emails. They emphasize that incorrect or missing authentication records can lead to Gmail displaying security warnings or filtering messages as spam. Ensuring DNS records are properly configured is vital.
20 Jul 2021 - Word to the Wise
What the documentation says
3 technical articles
To avoid Gmail security warnings, the central theme across all documentation is the critical importance of email authentication. Setting up proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records for your sending domain is essential. Implementing DMARC allows domain owners to specify how email receivers should handle unauthenticated emails, reducing spoofing risks. Using DKIM signing helps verify the sender's authenticity, preventing spoofing and related warnings.
Key findings
- Authentication is Key: Email authentication using SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is paramount to avoiding Gmail security warnings.
- DMARC Control: DMARC provides control over how receivers handle unauthenticated emails, reducing spoofing.
- DKIM Verification: DKIM signing verifies the sender's authenticity and reduces the risk of security warnings.
Key considerations
- SPF Setup: Ensure your SPF records are correctly configured to authorize your sending sources.
- DKIM Implementation: Implement DKIM signing for all outgoing emails to prove your identity.
- DMARC Policy: Establish a DMARC policy to instruct email receivers on how to handle unauthenticated messages from your domain.
- DNS Records: Validate that all DNS records for SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are correctly published and error-free.
Technical article
Documentation from Google Workspace Admin Help explains that Gmail displays security warnings when messages are not authenticated. To avoid this, ensure proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records are set up for your sending domain.
1 Jun 2022 - Google Workspace Admin Help
Technical article
Documentation from DKIM.org explains that using DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) signing for outgoing emails helps verify the sender's authenticity, preventing spoofing and reducing the risk of security warnings.
14 Jan 2025 - DKIM.org
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