AUSTRALIA, Sydney — December 17, 2025 — As AI-generated phishing attacks flood inboxes with more realistic and personalised scams, DigiCert, a global leader in intelligent trust, today released new research revealing that consumers are turning to verified brand identities in email for reassurance – especially during Boxing Day sales. The study, conducted by independent research firm Vitreous World, surveyed 808 consumers across Australia to understand how verified logos and sender authentication will impact trust, engagement, and safety during the height of online shopping season.
With 85% saying they feel safer when verified logos appear in their inbox, the findings underscore a growing need for organisations to strengthen their email authentication practices. Doing so not only helps protect shoppers from phishing during the busiest online shopping week of the year, but also preserves brand integrity as AI rapidly increases the volume, frequency, and sophistication of phishing emails.
Key Findings
- Australians rely on the ‘vibe’ of an email to determine scams
84% are confident they can spot a fraudulent or fake email, trusting visual cues (84%), messaging cues (79%), and sender cues (79%), to determine the “vibe” and whether it’s a scam. If Australians believe it’s suspicious, they’ll take clear actions, with 64% deleting emails immediately without even opening them.
- Email trust drives clicks and conversions.
59% said they are more likely to click or act on an email that displays a verified brand logo, a critical insight for marketers competing for attention during Boxing Day sales and holiday campaigns.
- Shoppers reward trusted brands.
Given four options, nearly half (44%) said that if two competing brands sent similar offers, they would choose the one with a verified logo, suggesting that verified brand identity is not just about safety — it’s about sales.
- The inbox is the new battleground for brand trust.
With 90% of Australians receiving suspicious emails at least a few times a year and 40% believing email providers should do more to protect them, trust in the inbox has become both a security and customer experience issue.
“Australians send and receive billions of emails every day, and that volume brings significant risk. With nearly $260 million in scam losses reported in the first nine months of this year, according to the ACCC, consumers are more cautious than ever, which makes trust the defining factor in whether a brand’s email is opened or deleted”, said Daniel Sutherland, Regional Vice President of DigiCert Australia and New Zealand.
“Australians already have strong instincts to protect themselves against scams, and during key sales periods, they’re particularly vigilant,” Daniel continues. “Our research shows that getting these details right is no longer a design preference for businesses. It’s a core component of security and reputation. As we enter the peak Boxing Day sales period, the brands that take these practical steps to demonstrate authenticity not only rise above the inbox noise, but also build lasting consumer trust and confidence in every interaction”.
The Role of Verified Mark Certificates (VMCs), Certification Mark Certificates (CMCs), and DMARC
Verified Mark Certificates (VMCs) and Common Mark Certificates (CMCs), supported by strong DMARC authentication, form the foundation for displaying verified brand logos in email. Together, they ensure that a brand’s logo appears only when the sender’s identity has been cryptographically confirmed and their domain properly authenticated. This combination not only deters phishing and spoofing attacks but also provides consumers with instant, visual assurance that the message is genuine, transforming trust into a tangible element of the inbox experience.
Resources
- Download the study overview here
- Learn more about DigiCert Mark Certificates
About the Study
The Consumer Interaction With Verified Logos in Email report was commissioned by DigiCert and conducted by Vitreous World. The study surveyed 5,000 adults in the U.S., U.K., Australia, and New Zealand, each of whom uses a personal email account. The findings provide a snapshot of how verified sender identity influences trust, engagement, and purchasing decisions across markets.
About DigiCert
DigiCert is a global leader in intelligent trust. We protect the digital world by ensuring the security, privacy, and authenticity of every interaction. Our AI-powered DigiCert® ONE platform unifies PKI, DNS, and certificate lifecycle management, to secure infrastructure, software, devices, messages, AI content and agents. Learn why more than 100,000 organisations, including 90% of the Fortune 500, choose DigiCert to stop today’s threats and prepare for a quantum-safe future at www.digicert.com.
