US presidential candidates aren't using basic email security

Image Credit: Pixabay (Image credit: Image Credit: Geralt / Pixabay)

New research has revealed that almost all of the upcoming 2020 presidential candidates in the US are falling behind when it comes to email security despite the fact that Hillary Clinton's email accounts were targeted and breached by Russian hackers just three years ago.

The email security company Agari confirmed that only the Democratic candidate Elizabeth Warren is using domain-based message authentication, reporting and conformance policy or DMARC to protect her email accounts.

This email security features resides on top of the Sender Policy Framework (SKF) and the DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) security protocols which use cryptography to verify a sender's email  and can mark emails as spam or reject them if an email fails to be properly validated.

According to Agari, the other 11 candidates whose email security it investigated, including Bernie Sanders, Joe Biden and presidential incumbent Donald Trump, do not use DMARC to security their campaign domains.

DMARC

By not using DMARC to secure their email accounts, Agari warned that the 2020 presidential candidates risk having their campaigns impersonated in spam campaigns and phishing attacks.

The company's Armen Najarian explained why using DMARC to secure one's email accounts has become increasingly important, saying:

“DMARC is more important than ever because if it had been implemented with the correct policy on the domain used to spearphish John Podesta, then he would have never received the targeted email attack from Russian operatives.”

There has been a slight rise in DMARC adoption by Fortune 500 companies since the beginning of this year. However, while most of the companies use DMARC, Agari said that only 16 percent of the 500 world's richest companies reject or quarantine unvalidated email. 

Via TechCrunch

Anthony Spadafora

After working with the TechRadar Pro team for the last several years, Anthony is now the security and networking editor at Tom’s Guide where he covers everything from data breaches and ransomware gangs to the best way to cover your whole home or business with Wi-Fi. When not writing, you can find him tinkering with PCs and game consoles, managing cables and upgrading his smart home. 

Latest in Security
Woman shocked by online scam, holding her credit card outside
Cybercriminals used vendor backdoor to steal almost $600,000 of Taylor Swift tickets
Woman using iMessage on iPhone
UK government guidelines remove encryption advice following Apple backdoor spat
Cryptocurrencies
Ransomware’s favorite Russian crypto exchange seized by law enforcement
Wordpress brand logo on computer screen. Man typing on the keyboard.
Thousands of WordPress sites targeted with malicious plugin backdoor attacks
HTTPS in a browser address bar
Malicious "polymorphic" Chrome extensions can mimic other tools to trick victims
ransomware avast
Hackers spotted using unsecured webcam to launch cyberattack
Latest in News
Apple iPhone 16 Review
Three iPhone 17 model dummy units appear in a hands-on video leak
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge on display the January 22, 2025 Galaxy Unpacked event.
New Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge may have revealed some key details – including its price
Quordle on a smartphone held in a hand
Quordle hints and answers for Sunday, March 9 (game #1140)
NYT Strands homescreen on a mobile phone screen, on a light blue background
NYT Strands hints and answers for Sunday, March 9 (game #371)
NYT Connections homescreen on a phone, on a purple background
NYT Connections hints and answers for Sunday, March 9 (game #637)
WhatsApp
WhatsApp just made its AI impossible to avoid – but at least you can turn it off