Mystified as to how this was potential, Guardio observed that the phishing emails all originated on an SMTP digital server routed by way of Office365 On-line Trade earlier than coming into a domain-specific relay server operated by Proofpoint.
Importantly, that remaining Proofpoint server was the place the DKIM and SPF authenticity can be handed as respectable, primarily permitting it to route emails on behalf of its prospects.
“EchoSpoofing”
The bypass turned out to have two components to it. The primary was to beat the SPF IP-to-domain examine, which was achieved by sending their spoofed emails from an SMTP server of their management by way of an Office365 account. This stops spoofing when e-mail originates on these accounts however not, crucially, when relaying emails from exterior SMTP servers.