What is spoofing—are there ways to prevent spoofing?
Spoofing can mean many different things, but in the context of email, spoofing is a technique commonly used by spammers to hide the origin of their emails. When an email is delivered, it appears to be from one email address, when the email actually is from another address.
Think of a letter you received in the mail with a return address that was forged to appear to come from someplace else. A common reason that spammers spoof your email is to attempt to trick the recipient into making a damaging statement or releasing sensitive information, such as passwords.
- How do I know if I have been spoofed?
- How can I prevent my email address from being spoofed?
- How do I re-point my domain to the My Advanced DNS Manager within my Network Solutions account?
- How do I add this text record to My Advanced DNS Manager within my Network Solutions account?
How do I know if I have been spoofed?
There are a few ways to tell if you have been spoofed:
- Reports from users who received an email from your email address that seemed suspicious.
- Bounce-back notifications from email addresses that you never sent an email to.
How can I prevent my email address from being spoofed?
There are many ways to help prevent spoofing. Most of these methods are very complicated and technical. Unfortunately, none are foolproof. However, Network Solutions does provide a great method to help prevent spoofing that can be very effective.
This method involves adding a DNS record to your domain, called a Sender Policy Framework (SPF) record, to allow receiving servers to check whether the mail originated from you. This method is dependent on the receiving servers actually verifying this information.
Not all servers do this level of authentication, but this level of security is rapidly increasing. To do this, add the following TXT record to your advanced DNS settings within your Network Solutions account:
- Webmail version 7.10.2:
v=spf1 include:spf.registeredsite.com ~all - Cloud mail:
v=spf1 include:spf.cloudus.oxcs.net ~all - Hosting package with a contact form, but also works with either cloud mail or webmail version 7.10.2:
v=spf1 include:spf.registeredsite.com include:spf.cloudus.oxcs.net ~all
How do I re-point my domain to the My Advanced DNS Manager within my Network Solutions account?
Advanced DNS records are already configured to use your Network Solutions services. Advanced users may wish to modify these records to do the following:
- Add new hosts to the domain
- Change IP addresses.
- Modify where email messages are delivered.
This option is helpful if you want to keep one of your Network Solutions services active, for example, your email box, and host your other service, such as your website, with another provider.
To use the Advanced DNS Manager, your domain's nameservers must be moved to Network Solutions-managed nameservers. For assistance changing your nameservers, view How to manage DNS and Advanced DNS Records.
How do I add this text record to My Advanced DNS Manager within my Network Solutions account?
Text (TXT) records have several functions. One common function is to use the TXT record to create a Sender Policy Framework (SPF) record. SPF records stop email spammers from forging the From fields in an email, which allows the owner of a domain to designate the IP address that can be used to send email from that domain.
For assistance adding a TXT record, view How to manage DNS and Advanced DNS Records.