How can I get my DKIM identified?

Question

I’m struggling to prevent my emails from vanishing or ending up in the email spam folder, and it looks like it is my DKIM record that is not identified correctly, so is there anyone who knows how to set up the DNS records correctly for this?

I followed this tutorial https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-install-and-configure-dkim-with-postfix-on-debian-wheezy.

I’m using an Ubuntu 16.04 droplet with WordPress and Postfix, and all email is hosted at Office 365, except a few emails which are posted via a web form on the website, and that’s where this issue comes into the picture.

This is my authentication report:

==========================================================
Summary of Results
==========================================================
SPF check:          softfail
DomainKeys check:   neutral
DKIM check:         neutral
SpamAssassin check: ham

This is my SPF record:

TXT	
example.com
v=spf1 +a +ip4:1.1.1.1 ~all
3600

This is my DKIM record:

TXT
mail._domainkey.example.com
"v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=MIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA4GNADCBiQKBgQC5N3lnvvrYgPCRSoqn+awTpE+iGYcKBPpo8HHbcFfCIIV10Hwo4PhCoGZSaKVHOjDm4yefKXhQjM7iKzEPuBatE7O47hAx1CJpNuIdLxhILSbEmbMxJrJAG0HZVn8z6EAoOHZNaPHmK2h4UUrjOG8zA5BHfzJf7tGwI+K619fFUwIDAQAB"
3600

In my mail tester feedback I got the following result:

[SPF] Your server 1.1.1.1 is authorized to use www-data@example.com

[Sender ID] Your server 1.1.1.1 is authorized to use inquiry@example.com

Your message is not signed with DKIM

You do not have a DMARC record

Your server 1.1.1.1 is successfully associated with example.com

Please note that it’s only emails from a web form on the website that ends up in a spam folder, and all emails sent via the website uses Postfix and a PHP mail() function.

I’m not sure I can set a MX record, because last time I tried the Office 365 stop working, so any other advice on how to correct this is appreciated.

Jonathan Tittle · Answer

@richardp When it comes to PHP, the mail() function relies on sendmail (handled by Postfix), though setting up proper validation for SPF, DKIM, and DMARC is a little more in-depth to the point where you would be managing your own mail server. The issue there is that, as noted in your OP, you’re using Office 365 and setting up your own mail server and MX would require replacing your Office 365 MX with that of your mail server; they both can’t easily co-exist. When it comes to setting up a working mail server, you need a valid PTR (Reverse DNS) record, which is easily handled as DigitalOcean takes care of that for you so long as you name your Droplet exactly the same as your hostname. By the above, I mean that your Droplet name should be a fully qualified hostname, i.e: mail.yourdomain.com and then you need to set your hostname to match (from the CLI): hostname mail.yourdomain.com Once the above is set, you can check your PTR records by logging in to the DigitalOcean CP, visiting the Networking section (link in the header navigation), and then clicking on PTR Records. You’ll see a IP next to each Droplet name. Once that’s done, you’re shouldn’t have to worry about your PTR, but it’s worth noting as without valid PTR records, you’re mail will most likely still land in the spam box even after you’ve setup SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. That being said, once you’ve got a valid PTR Record, you’ll now need to configure Postfix and install all bits and pieces required to get SPF, DKIM, and DMARC working. But, if you’re not going to use the Droplet as a fully functional mail server, it’s honestly not worth the hassle or investment. What I would recommend is instead using a service such as Mailgun or SendGrid and using their API to send mail. This relieves you of having to worry about server-side configurations, IP blacklists, etc. You can use PHP libraries such as phpMailer or SwiftMailer to integrate with the above services pretty easily, and these services will definitely make life easier (i.e. more time programming, less time worrying about proper setup, security, and other aspects of running a mail server). Mail Services http://mailgun.com http://sendgrid.com PHP Mail Libraries https://github.com/PHPMailer/PHPMailer http://swiftmailer.org How To Setup DKIM, DMARC, and SPF https://www.skelleton.net/2015/03/21/how-to-eliminate-spam-and-protect-your-name-with-dmarc/

richardp · Answer

I’ve just installed and tried the https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-mail-smtp/ plugin, but it was never used for sending the email, and I’m not sure what change to make, for it to work either. I however, noticed that the password for this SMTP service in this plugin was written in clear and readable text in the database, so I’m not sure if this plugin is that secure to install :) Well, I’ll dig a bit more…

richardp · Answer

Thanks for a great answer - it’s a real headache. I’m not familiar with anything mentioned above, but the PHPMailer or Swiftmailer looks promising, so do you happens know if there’s any tutorial on how to install any of those libraries on my DigitalOcean droplet? Is there a requirement to signup for a third-party service to make this work, or can I simply use predefined Office 365 email with credentials to send all emails, or how will it work with my Office 365 hosting? I tried to follow this tutorial https://gordan.jandreoski.me/how-to-configure-postfix-relay-to-office365-on-ubuntu-14-04/ , but that failed miserable, so will above setup be similar? Cheers

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