Apple to support verified brand logos in Mail anti-spam feature

As iOS 16 got its second beta release for developers, an unannounced feature has been spotted. It's support for an email standard Called Brand Indicators for Message Identification (BIMI).

"[This] is an emerging email specification that enables the use of brand-controlled logos within support email clients," says the AuthIndicators Working Group on its BIMI website. "BIMI leverages the work an organization has put into deploying DMARC protection, by bringing brand logos to the customer's inbox."

"For the brand's logo to be displayed," it continues, "the email must pass DMARC authentication checks, ensuring that the organization's domain has not been impersonated."

Google introduced the same BIMI feature for Gmail, starting in 2020. It means that when a user sees a company's logo in a specific place in an email, they can know that the message is genuine.

Any spam company can copy a logo, but it won't get displayed unless the email passes a series of authentication tests called DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication Reporting and Conformance)."

As spotted by Twitter user Charlie Fish, the beta of iOS 16 displays the logo in the same spot a regular user's photo or initials appear.

BIMI requires support from the makers of email clients such as Apple with its Mail app. However, it also depends on the company sending the emails to have also gone through authentication processes.

The presence of BIMI support in Apple Mail, though, is likely to encourage more companies to take part.