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Q & A Email Auth · September 11, 2026

Does Cloudflare proxy break DMARC?

No — Cloudflare’s proxy (orange cloud) affects HTTP/HTTPS traffic, not email. DMARC operates on email delivery and looks up DNS TXT records (_dmarc.yourdomain.com). Cloudflare serves those TXT records straight through, unmodified. Your MX records should stay set to ‘DNS only’ (grey cloud) because Cloudflare doesn’t proxy SMTP anyway. Common confusion: some users think proxying breaks email — it doesn’t. Verify your DMARC record with the DMARC lookup tool and mail flow with the email authentication checker.

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What Is DMARC?
DMARC is the enforcement layer of email authentication. SPF and DKIM do the checking — DMARC tells receiving servers what to do when they fail, and reports back to you who's sending email using your domain.
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