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ARF

ARF Report Analyzer

Parse ARF feedback reports (RFC 5965). Upload or paste an ARF email to extract feedback type, source IP, domain, and auth results — in your browser.

Drag & drop an ARF report file here

Supports .eml, .txt, and .mime files

What is ARF?

The Abuse Reporting Format (ARF) is defined in RFC 5965 as a standard way to report email abuse. When a mailbox provider receives a complaint about a message (e.g., a user clicks "Report Spam"), the provider can generate an ARF report and send it to the sender's abuse address.

ARF reports are MIME multipart messages containing a machine-readable feedback section, an optional human-readable description, and often the original message headers. They are a key feedback loop for email senders to identify and address deliverability problems.

Feedback Types

TypeDescription
abuseUnsolicited or unwanted email (spam complaint)
fraudPhishing or social engineering attempt
virusMessage contained malware
not-spamFalse positive — message was incorrectly classified
dkimDKIM signature verification failure (RFC 6651)
spfSPF authentication failure (RFC 6652)
otherFeedback that doesn't fit other categories

How ARF Works

ARF is part of the email feedback loop ecosystem. Mailbox providers like Gmail, Yahoo, and Outlook use ARF (or similar formats) to send complaints back to the original sender. To receive these reports, senders must register for feedback loops with each provider and ensure their abuse@ address is configured correctly.

DMARCguard processes ARF reports alongside DMARC aggregate reports to give you a complete picture of your email authentication health and reputation.

ARF Report Structure

An ARF report is a MIME multipart/report message with report-type=feedback-report. It contains up to three parts:

PartContent-TypePurpose
1text/plainHuman-readable description of the complaint
2message/feedback-reportMachine-readable key-value fields (Feedback-Type, Source-IP, etc.)
3message/rfc822The original email message or its headers

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