Description

Email header analysis and enrichment refers to the process of analyzing the headers of incoming emails in order to gather additional information about their origin and potential risks. Email headers are a hidden part of an email message that contain a variety of information, such as the sender's email address, the recipient's email address, and the route that the email took to reach its destination. By analyzing this information, security professionals can identify potential threats, such as spam or phishing emails, and take appropriate action to protect against them.

To perform email header analysis and enrichment, security professionals typically use specialized tools that can automatically parse and analyze the headers of incoming emails. These tools can provide a detailed breakdown of the email's headers, highlighting any potentially suspicious information and providing additional context and analysis. For example, if an email's headers indicate that it originated from an IP address that is known to be associated with spam or phishing activity, the tool can flag the email for further investigation and take appropriate action, such as quarantining the email or blocking it entirely.

Techniques

Examples

Analyze phishing email senders, URLs, & attachments | Library | Tines

Analyze email headers for IPs and spoofing | Library | Tines

Analyze an email address in multiple services | Library | Tines

Analyze, document and triage suspicious emails with Tines cases and records | Library | Tines

References

Sublime Security's Josh Kamdjou: The state of today’s email threat landscape and how to defend without reinventing the wheel | Tines

Email Analysis - Understanding Email Header Analysis including SPF, DKIM, and DMARC

How to Spot Malicious Emails with Email Header Analysis (SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and More)

EmailRep: Free API to query email reputation and report malicious senders