EasyDMARC reveals alarming rise in suspicious email activity

EasyDMARC, an email security provider, has revealed research indicating an increase in the number of emails being marked as suspicious by email authentication techniques like DMARC, SPF, and DKIM. During the first six months of 2021, around 10.21% of emails were flagged as suspicious, marking a 75% increase from the same period in 2020. Projections indicate that this figure will rise to one in five emails by the close of 2023. Furthermore, EasyDMARC flagged 16,298 emails per domain as potential threats in the first half of 2022, rising to 20,210 in 2023. With Gmail and Yahoo set to strictly enforce DMARC protocols for mass email senders in February 2024, it is predicted that other email providers may follow suit to combat the rising tide of phishing and spoofing emails.

The research also highlights the prevalence of phishing and cyber attacks, with DMARC software intercepting over 769 million domain impersonation attempts out of a total of 4.34 billion emails in the first six months of 2023. This represents a 75% rise from the same period in 2022. The average cost of a cyber attack is $4.45 million globally, and the average click rate on phishing campaigns in 2021 was 17.8%, underscoring the need for simple and effective security solutions.

EasyDMARC CEO and co-founder, Gerasim Hovhannisyan, suggests that adopting protocols like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to verify sender identities is crucial for protecting businesses against phishing attempts. He emphasizes the need for vigilance, training, and the right tools to tackle this growing threat.