Why email verification stays off until DKIM is live

Turning on mandatory email verification before SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are aligned guarantees support load and user lockout. The readiness endpoint exposes email as a first-class check so operators see the gap honestly.

When SMTP is configured on the production MTA, run the verify script, send a test to a real inbox, then enable verification and any newsletter flows. Reader Revenue and transactional mail should share the same reputation discipline.

This is boring infrastructure — and boring is what keeps a launch from becoming a deliverability incident.