Starting from February this year, and fully implemented on 1st April 2024, Google and Yahoo will reject emails from bulk senders, unless they meet the new authentication requirements.
This strict rule aims to reduce the amount of spam that lands in Gmail inboxes and enhancing the security of Gmail users.
Strict Domain Authentication Rules To Start April 1
In a Gmail product update notice posted October 2023, Gmail’s group product manager, Neil Kumaran, explains that “many bulk senders don’t appropriately secure and configure their systems, allowing attackers to easily hide in their midst.” Validation that someone sending email is who they claim to be, particularly when we are talking about those sending large volumes, is a critical requirement as far as email security is concerned.
According to Google, a ‘bulk sender’ is defined as someone who sends “close to 5,000 messages or more to personal Gmail accounts within a 24-hour period.” This includes all emails sent from the same primary domain, regardless of sub-domains used. We have seen some effect on these rules from accounts that have sent less than 5,000 to Gmail accounts and the rules only started last month.
Click To Unsubscribe Will Become Mandatory On June 1
Starting on June 1st, all bulk senders must include a one-click unsubscribe option. Anyone who has tried to unsubscribe from a mailing list will appreciate how convoluted a process it can be. Kudos to Google for trying to make this process quicker and easier for Gmail account holders. The new regulations will also require those bulk senders to process unsubscribe requests within 48 hours.
Find out more about new Gmail security rules:
When do the new rules come into effect?
From April 1st, 2024, Google has begun rejecting non-compliant traffic.
If you haven’t already, it’s essential to take action to avoid disruption to email delivery.
Upcoming Key dates.
- April 2024 – Gmail will start rejecting a percentage of non-compliant email traffic. The rejection rate will gradually increase as time goes on;
- June 2024 – The deadline for senders to implement a one-click unsubscribe link. Otherwise, Gmail and Yahoo will start rejecting emails.
These dates apply only to Gmail for now, but we fully expect other email service providers to come up with similar timelines.
Gmail requirements for bulk senders
As discussed above bulk senders are email services, or software used by online businesses, that send over 5,000 messages to Gmail accounts in one day.
Starting February 2024, bulk senders will have to:
- Set up SPF – SPF prevents spammers from sending unauthorised messages that appear to be from your domain.
- Make sure their sending domains/IPs have valid forward and reverse DNS records
- DKIM – Turn on DKIM for the domain that sends your email
- Add ARC headers – which indicate the message was forwarded – to outgoing email if they regularly forward email
Google and Yahoo now require bulk senders to set up all these mechanisms.
You can read more about Google requirements here.
Finally
Staying on the right side of email law amid Gmail and Yahoo’s evolving policies requires a proactive approach and adherence to best practices for email deliverability.
Prioritising authentication, easy unsubscription, and sending relevant content will ensure compliance and contribute to a positive sender and email delivery.
If you need assistance to implement these new rules for your newsletters and email marketing campaigns please get in touch.
