Email Header Security Authentication Analysis Workflow

Workflow Name

Email Header Security Authentication Analysis Workflow

Key Features and Highlights

This workflow automatically parses Gmail email headers, focusing on extracting and analyzing the email’s “Received” path, sender IP address, and its reputation score. It comprehensively checks the SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication statuses of the email. By integrating IP reputation evaluation APIs along with geolocation and organizational data, it delivers an in-depth security assessment of the email source. The analysis results are output in a structured JSON format and can be seamlessly integrated into third-party platforms via Webhook, facilitating automated processing and monitoring.

Core Problems Addressed

• Automatically identify the true sender IP of the email, filtering out internal or private IP addresses to prevent spoofing and fraud.
• Assess the reputation and risk level of the sender IP using IPQualityScore and IP-API services, aiding in the detection of spam and fraudulent activities.
• Extract and parse critical email authentication headers (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) to determine whether the email passes security authentication, enhancing email security compliance monitoring.
• Consolidate multiple authentication data points and IP information into a unified, easy-to-read security analysis report.

Application Scenarios

• Enterprise email security monitoring to automatically detect the trustworthiness and potential risks of external emails.
• Email security services or platforms providing API interfaces for third-party systems to perform email header authentication analysis.
• Anti-spam and anti-phishing solutions to assist in verifying email authenticity.
• Email system operations and security auditing through automated analysis of email authentication and sender IP information.

Main Process Steps

1. Monitor Gmail inbox or receive email data via Webhook to obtain email header information.
2. Extract all “Received” headers, identify the “Received” header closest to the sender, and extract the original sender IP address while excluding private IPs.
3. Verify whether the sender IP was successfully extracted; if yes, call IPQualityScore and IP-API to retrieve IP reputation score, geolocation, and organizational details; otherwise, skip IP checks.
4. Check for the presence of “Authentication-Results” and related authentication headers (Received-SPF, DKIM-Signature, DMARC) in the email headers.
5. Parse and evaluate SPF, DKIM, and DMARC authentication results, categorizing them as pass, fail, neutral, error, or not found.
6. Aggregate all authentication results and IP information, formatting them into structured JSON data.
7. Return the final analysis results to the caller via a Webhook response node, enabling automated integration.

Involved Systems or Services

• Gmail (email data source)
• IPQualityScore API (IP reputation and risk assessment)
• IP-API (IP geolocation and organization lookup)
• n8n workflow automation platform (process orchestration and trigger automation)
• Webhook interface (receives third-party email data and returns analysis results)

Target Users and Value

• IT operations and security teams: automate email security monitoring and quickly identify potential threat emails.
• Email service providers and security solution developers: integrate email header authentication analysis capabilities to enhance product security.
• Enterprise information security managers: strengthen email trust evaluation to protect against phishing and spam attacks.
• Automation developers and technical teams: rapidly onboard via Webhook to achieve automated and scalable email security analysis.

This workflow provides comprehensive and detailed security authentication analysis of email headers, helping users control email security at the source and enhancing the overall protection capability of email systems.