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Monitoring and Detection: Email Analysis and SMTP Logs

In this lab, you'll practice email and SMTP log analysis. After completing it, you'll be able to investigate suspected spam or phishing, determine its validity as well as the principles and configurations behind SMTP open relays.

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Lab Info
Rating
(24)
Level
Beginner
Last updated
Aug 05, 2025
Duration
50m

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Table of Contents
  1. Challenge

    Getting Started in the Lab Environment

    Here are the initial instructions and explanation of the lab environment. Read this while your environment is busy creating itself from nothing. Yes, this violates physics; we know. How fun!

  2. Challenge

    Identifying Email Provenance

    Let's check where an email is from. Does it seem to be legit? Is it coming from a source that is authorized to email on behalf of this domain?

    We'll find out!

  3. Challenge

    Verifying Email Legitimacy Using DKIM

    The finance team has sent money to a vendor, who claims not to have received it. The finance team had received an email asking for funds to be deposited to a new bank account.

    Can we prove it really came from that vendor?

  4. Challenge

    Investigating SMTP relays

    Someone has reported to your team that your email server is being abused as a relay for spam. We will investigate server logs and configuration to determine if that is the case.

  5. Challenge

    The Last Challenge

    Welcome to the final challenge! This is your last chance to experiment in the environment. Clicking Finish Lab will end this little world that flittered into existence just for you.

About the author

Guillaume Ross is an experienced information security professional, providing services to many organizations as the lead consultant and founder of Caffeine Security Inc.

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