On Wednesday, Google announced that in order to verify the legitimacy of certain senders, a blue checkmark would soon start appearing next to their names in Gmail. The new blue checkmarks will appear next to businesses that have registered for Gmail’s Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI) feature.
For senders who have enabled the BIMI/VMC on their domain, users will now see a checkmark icon according to Google, this upgrade will make it easier for users to tell apart messages from authentic senders and those from imposters.
When you browse over a sender’s name with a blue checkmark, you will read a text that says “The sender of this email has verified.” It means they own the domain and logo in the profile image.
“Strong email authentication helps users and email security systems identify and stop spam, and also enables senders to leverage their brand trust,” the company wrote in a blog post. “This increases confidence in email sources and gives readers an immersive experience, creating a better email ecosystem for everyone.”
What is BIMI?
Email senders who use BIMI can have their organization-controlled verified logo displayed in the recipient’s inbox. A validated brand logo contributes to user trust and increases the likelihood that brand emails will be read by their intended audiences.
After being validated by DMARC, DKIM, and SPF, the BIMI record, which is technically a DNS record, is in charge of creating the logo that is used to represent a company’s brand in an email inbox. These three systems are essential for validating the sender’s information and collaborating with BIMI to advise email customers that you (the sender) are a reliable email domain and are not attempting to defraud anyone.
BIMI Pre-Requisites
- DMARC policy should be set at p=quaratine or p=reject stage
- Logo should be Trademark
- BIMI records should be added to DNS records
- VMC certificate should be obtained
GoDMARC is your one-stop destination for implementing BIMI and DMARC services on your domain. We provide the comfort of securing your data from phishers with the best DMARC pricing.
Using the BIMI Record Checker tool, you can verify or create your BIMI record. We provide brand protection services that can help you reach your intended audience and secure your brand from online imposters.
FAQs
Q1. What does blue tick mean?
The identity of an account has been validated when a blue checkmark (also known as a blue check or blue tick) appears. Accounts that are most likely to be copied, such as those of influencers, brands, or celebrities, are typically the only ones that receive verification.
Q2. Why are emails verified?
Account legitimacy is confirmed through email verification. More than a simple database search is needed to validate high-quality emails. Checks are made in real-time to see if the username matches a legitimate mailbox on the host server.
