DNS Spoofing: A Deceptive Attack

Published on: 2023 November 15

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15 min read

Ever wonder how, when you enter a domain name, your computer knows where to find a website? The domain name mechanism, or DNS for short, is the mechanism that holds the key to the solution. This approach is not without its shortcomings, though. One such vulnerability is DNS spoofing, a cyberattack that can have detrimental effects on both people and companies.

When a specific DNS server's records are deliberately "spoofed" or changed to reroute traffic to the attacker, this is known as DNS spoofing. The attacker can distribute malware, steal data, and do other things thanks to this traffic redirection. An attacker may establish a false website that looks just like the original website, or they could create a whole different website and use the spoof DNS record to divert all traffic that was dependent on the right DNS record.

DNS spoofing is quite problematic for website owners as well as visitors. The primary goals of an attacker conducting a DNS spoofing attack are either virus distribution or self-interest. Consequently, it is crucial for website owners to select a DNS hosting company that is dependable and makes use of modern security measures.

This article discusses DNS spoofing in general as well as a number of related subjects, including what it is, how it operates, and how to protect oneself from it, as follows:

• What is DNS Spoofing?
• How does DNS work?
• What are the Common Methods Used in DNS Spoofing Attacks?
• What are the Risks of DNS Poisoning?
• How Can You Detect DNS Spoofing Incidents?
• Which Tools Are Effective for DNS Spoofing Detection?
• How to Prevent DNS Spoofing and Cache Poisoning?
• How DNSSEC enhances the security of the Domain Name System?
• How to Distinguish DNS Spoofing from DNS Cache Poisoning, DNS Hijacking, and Other DNS Attacks?
• Case Studies: Notable DNS Spoofing Incidents?
• What are the Best Practices for Preventing DNS Spoofing?

What is DNS Spoofing?

DNS spoofing is a kind of cyberattack in which a hacker intercepts DNS requests and responds with fake information. If you attempt to visit google.com, for instance, a hacker may intercept your DNS request and reply with a phony IP address that directs you to a harmful website.

Typically, DNS spoofing is used to send visitors to a phony website that imitates a genuine one. Phishing attacks are what these are called, and they can be used to steal credit card numbers, login credentials, and other private data. DNS spoofing can occasionally be used to route people to malicious websites, where malware can infect their systems and steal data or harm them.

One of the more cunning cyber threats is DNS spoofing. You could be tricked into believing that a website has been hacked if you don't know how the internet links you to websites. Sometimes, it might be limited to your device. Even worse, cybersecurity suites are only partially effective against threats connected to DNS spoofing.

How does DNS work?

The DNS (Domain Name System) system on the Internet works like a phone book, maintaining the link between names and numbers. That is, DNS servers translate name requests into IP addresses, thereby managing which server a user accesses when they enter a domain name in their web browser.

DNS resolution is the process of translating a hostname, such as www.example.com, into an IP address that is understandable by computers, like 19.16.1.11. Every Internet-connected device has an IP address, which is required to identify the correct device, much like a street address is needed to identify a certain residence. The text that a user types into their web browser (example.com) and the machine-friendly address required to find the example.com webpage must be translated when a user wishes to load a webpage.

It's critical to comprehend the many hardware components that a DNS query must pass through in order to comprehend the mechanism underlying DNS resolution. Apart from the initial request, the DNS query for the web browser happens "behind the scenes" and doesn't require any input from the user's machine.

The basic DNS resolution process occurs in this order:

1. First of all, this is a web address or domain name written to the browser by the user.
2. The main reason the browser sends a request to the network, known as a recursive DNS query, is to determine whose IP address or network address the domain corresponds to.
3. The role of the Internet service provider (ISP) is usually to manage the recursive DNS server to which the query is sent, also called the recursive resolver. If the address is in the recursive resolver's database and is also returned to the user, the web page will be loaded as a result.
4. If the recursive DNS server is unable to resolve the issue, the following servers will be contacted:
   • DNS, primary name servers,
   • Nameservers for top-level domains (TLDs)
   • Name servers that are authoritative.
5. The three server types will continue to redirect until they are able to retrieve a DNS record containing the required IP address. The user's requested web page is loaded only once this data is submitted to the recursive DNS server. TLD servers and DNS root name servers rarely provide resolution; instead, they often divert queries.
6. The recursive server keeps or caches the A record for the domain name, which contains the IP address. Rather than contacting other servers, it can respond immediately to the user the next time it receives a request for that domain name.
7. When a query is submitted to the approved server, it sends an error message if the data cannot be found.

Requesting several servers only takes a few seconds, so the user is often not even aware of the process.

Both queries from inside and outside of their own domains are answered by DNS servers. If a server receives a request for information about a name or address within the domain from a location outside the domain, it responds with an authoritative response.

A server directs requests for names or addresses that are outside of its domain, typically from within its domain, to a different server that is typically run by the server's Internet service provider.

What are the Common Methods Used in DNS Spoofing Attacks?

DNS spoofing operates by intercepting DNS requests and returning bogus data. Hackers have multiple options for accomplishing DNS spoofing:

• MiTM (Man in the Middle): Using this technique, users' connections with a DNS server are intercepted in order to reroute them to a malicious or alternative IP address. MiTM attackers can spoof DNS replies and direct users to unwanted websites by putting themselves in the way of the user and the DNS server.
• DNS Server Vulnerability: Using this technique, hackers take control of a DNS server that is set up to return a malicious IP address. They can take control of the DNS resolution process and modify the results to reroute users to malicious websites by hacking the DNS server.
• Making Use of Time-To-Live (TTL): The Time-To-Live (TTL) values in the DNS server cache are exploited by this method. In order to make sure that erroneous DNS entries remain active for longer, attackers modify the TTL values. They lengthen the attack's duration and raise the pool of possible victims by doing this. In the event that the corrupt DNS replies are kept in the cache, users who were not the intended target may be forwarded to malicious websites.

The security and integrity of DNS resolution are seriously threatened by each technique, which emphasizes how crucial it is to put strong defenses against DNS spoofing attacks in place.

What are the DNS Spoofing Steps?

Attackers can carry out DNS spoofing attacks in a few different ways, but they all aim to fool users and their servers into believing that a counterfeit website is authentic. Attackers usually take these three actions to do this:

DNS spoofing directs people to malicious websites by using DNS data that has been tampered with.

1. Making a DNS server connection: An attacker must first obtain access to the DNS server or DNS resolver cache in order to carry out this attack. This procedure entails figuring out the MAC address and software versioning of a DNS server, as well as checking for vulnerabilities and figuring out whether DNS encryption or DNSSEC (domain name system security extensions) is being used. Sadly, the majority of DNS requests and answers lack security, which makes it easy for hackers to obtain access and divert traffic to a server under their command.
2. Redirecting Links: An attacker can substitute fictitious IP addresses for stored ones if they gain access to a DNS server or resolver. Attackers can deceive these systems into keeping a fake entry that points to a malicious website because they lack the ability to distinguish between a legitimate IP address and a malicious one. After this procedure is finished, the faked entry stays in the system and points any connected users to the malicious website rather than the trustworthy one.
3. Getting Sensitive Information: A rogue website may ask users to input their login credentials as usual as soon as they land on it. The victim is unaware that they are giving the attacker critical information because the fraudulent website mimics the real one identically. DNS spoofing is another tool that attackers might employ to infect a user's device with malware or divert traffic to fraudulent websites. This is particularly typical for websites that offer banking and retail services.

What are the Risks of DNS Poisoning?

DNS poisoning can lead to censorship, malware infections, delayed security upgrades, and data theft. The major risks of DNS poisoning are as follows:

• Theft of Data: Theft of data can be especially profitable for DNS spoofing attackers. Popular e-commerce sites and banking websites are frequently targeted, making it possible for any credit card number, password, or personal data to be stolen. The websites to which you would be sent are phishing ones that aim to steal your personal data.

  The user may be sent to a phishing website by an attacker, where they can obtain their personal data. It is transmitted to the attacker when the user inputs it, and they can use it themselves or sell it to another criminal.

• Malware Acquisition: Another frequent concern associated with DNS spoofing is malware infestation. If a fake is used to reroute you, the website you find yourself on could be contaminated with harmful files. One simple technique to automate the infection of your machine is through drive-by downloads. In the end, you run the risk of encountering malware such as worms, spyware, or keyloggers, if you don't use internet security.

The user might be sent to a website by a cybercriminal that installs malware on their computer. This can be accomplished by malicious links on the website that install malware, such as a Trojan virus or a botnet, or by drive-by downloads that inadvertently install malware on the user's computer.

• Suspended Security Patches: An attempted DNS spoof may cause security updates to stop. A website belonging to an internet security service can be hacked. It will not be possible to complete valid security upgrades on spoof websites that contain internet security providers. This could expose your machine to further dangers, like Trojan horses or malware.
• Censorship: In fact, censorship is a risk that is widespread in various regions of the world. China, for instance, modifies the DNS to guarantee that any websites visited within the nation are authorized. The "Great Firewall", a national firewall, is one illustration of the potency of DNS spoofing.

In addition to all of these factors, there is a significant chance of DNS cache poisoning because it can propagate from one DNS server to another. Once a DNS server is compromised, the malware will begin to propagate to further DNS servers and residential routers. As a result of DNS poisoning, more users will receive incorrect responses from computers that query DNS entries.

You run the danger of losing your important data until the poisoned DNS cache is removed from each of the impacted DNS servers, which is when this problem will be fixed and DNS security is provided.

What are the Real-World Examples of DNS Poisoning?

Here are several instances of DNS poisoning attacks:

• Due to a DNS poisoning incident, China's Great Firewall was forced to temporarily breach its borders by restricting the internet in the United States until the issue was fixed.
• Attackers recently focused on WikiLeaks, who utilized a DNS cache poisoning attack to divert traffic to their spoof website. This deliberate attack was successfully carried out in an attempt to reroute traffic away from WikiLeaks.

How Can You Detect DNS Spoofing Incidents?

Keep an eye out for any signs of potential attacks on your DNS servers. The volume of DNS requests you will need to keep an eye on is too much for humans to handle computationally. To distinguish between attacks and typical DNS behavior, incorporate data security analytics into your DNS monitoring.

Thus, using website monitoring software is essential. In addition to monitoring online availability indicators, these systems notify administrators when there is a decrease in performance or suspicious DNS activity. Typical indicators of DNS poisoning include the following:

• Many queries for domain names: For instance, a single source can request several domain names from a DNS server without receiving a response. By examining DNS activity from a single source, you can find this issue.
• Increased DNS traffic pertaining to just one domain: Another instance would be a sharp rise in DNS activity from a single source for a single domain. Keep an eye out for unusual activity in the file system and Active Directory events, in addition to DNS monitoring. Even better, add important context to your cybersecurity strategy by using analytics to correlate behavior across all three vectors.

Which Tools are Effective for DNS Spoofing Detection?

Certain programs work well at detecting DNS spoofing. The primary DNS spoofing detection tools are listed below:

1. Ettercap: Ettercap is a complete suite for man-in-the-middle attacks, and its tools are effective at detecting DNS spoofing. It has many other fascinating features, such as the ability to sniff live connections and filter content instantly. It contains numerous tools for network and host investigation and allows for the active and passive dissection of numerous protocols.

2. Bettercap: BetterCAP is an extremely strong, adaptable, and lightweight tool designed to carry out multiple kinds of man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks on a network, modify HTTP, HTTPS, and TCP traffic in realtime, sniff credentials, and much more. It can be considered an enhanced variant of Ethercap.

3. DNS filtering tools: DNS filtering options should be taken into account for DNS spoofing detection. DNS filtering solutions, such as pfBlockerNG and Unbound DNS, are highly favored in the field of IT security due to their ease of use, effectiveness, and affordability, particularly for residential networks. None of the DNS filtering systems can block every hazardous website because doing so requires identifying whether a webpage is dangerous, even though they block the great majority of bad websites. Verification and blacklisting take time when a malevolent actor creates a new phishing website. Consequently, a DNS filter can only lessen the risk; it cannot completely eradicate it.

   The most significant vulnerability in the DNS filtering mechanism is that it can be easily exploited by malicious actors. Curious individuals can endanger your network by evading the filtering process. Furthermore, hackers are able to track a user's DNS requests and reroute them to malicious websites. DNS spoofing. If you're employing DNS filtering, you'll have to deal with cyber risks like DNS tunneling, DNS poisoning, DNS over HTTPS, or DNS over TLS. To counter these threats, you'll need to take additional security precautions.

4. Next-generation firewalls: DNS filtering solutions should be used in conjunction with next-generation firewalls as an additional layer of protection in accordance with the defense-in-depth approach. DNS filtering solutions cannot provide complete network security on their own. Never consider it to be an enterprise-grade security mechanism. Instead, it is viewed as a supplementary mechanism that adds an extra layer of security, which is actually built into all modern NGFWs.

   We highly recommend the Zenarmor next-generation firewall if you're searching for a different approach to DNS filtering systems or an extra layer of security behind your DNS filtering mechanism. Zenarmor NGFW is quick, strong, affordable, and simple to install. It offers the security level that DNS filtering systems offer in addition to rich reporting and analysis capabilities, a large real-time cyber threat intelligence database, improved manageability, and flexibility. It uses technology to continuously improve its threat detection abilities and swiftly react to new cyberattacks. You can try Zenarmor Free Edition for free.

5. SIEM: For the detection of DNS spoofing, take into account Security Information and Event Management (SIEM). Combining security information management (SIM) and security event management (SEM) activities into a single security management system is known as security information and event management, or SIEM.

   Every SIEM system operates on the fundamental tenets of gathering pertinent data from various sources, seeing abnormalities, and taking suitable action. For instance, the SIEM system may record more data, raise an alert, and direct other security measures to halt an activity's progression upon detecting a possible problem.

   In order to collect security-related events from end-user devices, servers, and network equipment, as well as specialized security equipment like firewalls, antivirus software, or intrusion prevention systems (IPS), SIEM systems deploy several collection agents in a hierarchical fashion. Events are forwarded by the collectors to a central management console, where security experts sort through the clutter, make connections, and rank the security incidents according to importance.

How to Prevent DNS Spoofing and Cache Poisoning?

Since cache poisoning and DNS spoofing can impact both user devices and DNS servers, they might be challenging to identify. But both people and companies can take precautions to lessen the likelihood that they will become the target of an attack.

• Don't Ever Click on Strange Links: Phishing websites often encourage you to click on a link that contains fake alerts or ads. You run the risk of infecting your device with harmful viruses and other malware when you click on unknown links. You may sometimes encounter unknown links or ads on a website you frequently visit. It is recommended that you stay away from these sites.

• Encrypt data always: Making sure that all of the data in DNS queries and responses is encrypted is another crucial action you can take. If the data is encrypted, for instance, a hacker will not be able to read it and obtain the necessary information to replicate it for use in replying to DNS requests in the future, even if they are able to intercept it.

• Install DNSSEC: DNS security extensions (DNSSEC) can be configured by internet service providers and domain owners to authenticate DNS entries. In order to ensure that every answer is genuine, DNSSEC digitally signs DNS data and examines the certificates of a root domain. This guarantees that every DNS response originates from a trustworthy website. Unfortunately, DNSSEC is not widely used, which means that most domain names' DNS data is still not encrypted.

• Turn on secure DNS settings: By configuring your DNS in certain ways, your company can add an extra degree of security. First of all, the settings you make on your DNS servers should be such that they minimize the need for connections to other DNS servers. By doing this, hackers will find it much more difficult to connect using their own DNS server because it will no longer make sense to do so in the regular course of business.

  Secondly, you can set up your DNS servers to hold smaller data sets, enabling the operation of only specific services. By not exposing your server to more data, this configuration reduces the number of possible vulnerabilities that hackers could take advantage of.

• Check for and Eliminate Malware: It is crucial to routinely scan your devices for malware, viruses, and worms because hackers frequently utilize DNS spoofing to infect computers with these dangers. Installing antivirus software, which recognizes and assists in eliminating threats, is one way to achieve this. You need to install DNS spoofing detection software if you are running a website or DNS server. These are made to check that every piece of data leaving the system is authentic.

• Consistently perform system updates: Your DNS will be eligible for routine system changes, as is now the case with the majority of systems. As these updates frequently include new security protocols and solutions to any vulnerabilities found, it is crucial that you always execute these updates to ensure that you are using the most recent version of your DNS. Furthermore, sticking with the most recent version will guarantee that you can get upgrades in the future.

• Apply a VPN: Another security tool that stops hackers from monitoring your internet activity is a virtual private network or VPN. Using end-to-end encrypted requests, a VPN connects your devices to private DNS servers located all over the world rather than the local server of your internet provider. By doing this, you connect to DNS servers that are more resistant to DNS spoofing and stop hackers from intercepting your communication.

• Establish robust detection procedures: Although protection measures are undoubtedly crucial, you also need to have a solid plan in place in case a DNS poisoning attack occurs. Strong detection techniques become crucial at this point.

  The most effective detection systems use routine monitoring to check for certain warning flags. The two most significant red flags are (1) an increase in DNS activity about a single domain from a single source, which could indicate a birthday attack, and (2) an increase in DNS activity about multiple domain names from a single source, which could indicate attempts to locate a DNS poisoning entry point.

• Check That Your Connection is Secure: Although harmful websites can appear to be identical to trustworthy ones at first glance, there are a few ways to identify if you're connected to a secure website.

  Look for a tiny, gray padlock icon in the address bar to the left of the URL if you're using Google Chrome. This indicator conveys information about the website, such as declaring that it is legitimate and that Google has verified that it trusts the domain host's security certificate. If you attempt to access an unprotected website, your browser may occasionally notify you of this. You shouldn't disregard a notice alerting you to an insecure connection. It can indicate that the website you're attempting to visit is a fake one that lacks a valid SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate.

• Oversee end-user instruction: Users should be trained to check if websites are using a valid SSL/TLS certificate, stay away from clicking on unknown links or links from unidentified sources, periodically clear their DNS cache to guard against DNS cache poisoning and use security software that can scan their devices for malware.

How DNSSEC Enhances the Security of the Domain Name System?

To improve DNS security, DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions) was developed. The disadvantage of DNS is that it lacks internal security measures that guarantee data accuracy and integrity, but apart from that, considering its advantage, it is effective in directing people to appropriate websites.

By digitally signing data to help assure its legitimacy, DNSSEC defends against attacks. By encrypting DNS data, DNSSEC solves this problem by establishing a trust chain that extends from the domain's records to the root zone. Every step of the DNS lookup process needs to be signed in order to guarantee a secure lookup.

This manner of signing is comparable to someone using a pen to sign a legal document; that individual signs with a signature that is distinct from anyone else's, and a court expert can examine that signature to confirm that the document was signed by that person. The integrity of the data is guaranteed by these digital signatures.

All DNS tiers are covered by the hierarchical digital signature policy that DNSSEC provides. A root DNS server would sign a key for the.COM nameserver, for instance, and the.COM nameserver would sign a key for the authoritative nameserver of google.com in the event of a "google.com" lookup.

Although improved security is always desirable, DNSSEC is designed to work with older DNS servers so that requests can still be resolved correctly even when the added security is not there. As a component of a comprehensive Internet security strategy, DNSSEC is intended to cooperate with other security measures such as SSL/TLS.

By turning on DNSSEC, users may be certain that the DNS responses they receive are authentic and unaltered by bad actors. DNS-related attacks such as DNS spoofing and DNS cache poisoning are prevented.

How to Distinguish DNS Spoofing from DNS Cache Poisoning, DNS Hijacking, and Other DNS Attacks

There are some distinctions between spoofing and hijacking, despite their similarities.

DNS cache poisoning is a DNS attack that targets cache name servers. DNS spoofing is a DNS attack that modifies DNS records returned to a querier. DNS hijacking is a spoofed DNS attack that tricks the user into believing they are dealing with a valid domain name. The distinctions between these phrases are not great, and they are frequently used synonymously. Below is a more thorough explanation of every kind of DNS attack:

DNS Spoofing vs. DNS Poisoning

Although DNS spoofing and DNS poisoning are sometimes used synonymously, they are not the same thing. Attackers can compromise DNS by using a technique known as DNS poisoning, which replaces DNS data with a malicious redirect. The ultimate effect is DNS spoofing, in which a compromised cache directs users to the malicious website.

To put it briefly, the strategy is DNS poisoning, and the objective is DNS spoofing: hackers poison a DNS cache in order to impersonate a DNS.

The term "DNS spoofing" describes a wide range of attacks that forge DNS entries. It is a class of attacks (an objective of the attack as opposed to a specific attack method). A few ways to carry out DNS spoofing are hacking a DNS server, setting up a man-in-the-middle attack (if you can get network access), guessing a sequence number through repeated requests, assuming the identity of a phony base station, lying about which DNS server to use, and most likely a lot more.

One method of DNS spoofing is DNS cache poisoning. The term "DNS cache poisoning" describes the following situation: A forged DNS entry is injected into the DNS cache of a large number of end users by an attacker. An attacker is in business if he can figure out a method to trick the caching DNS server into caching the wrong record. This will enable DNS records to be successfully spoofed and affect all end users that depend on this cache.

DNS Hijacking vs. DNS Spoofing

Although they all occur at the local system level, DNS spoofing and DNS hijacking are two distinct forms of DNS attacks.

In order to route you to a malicious website, DNS spoofing, also known as cache poisoning, typically only entails replacing the values in your local DNS cache with phony ones.

Malware infections, on the other hand, are regularly employed in DNS hijacking, also known as DNS redirection, to seize control of this critical system function. Here, the malware that is hosted locally on the computer has the ability to change the TCP/IP settings to refer to a malicious DNS server, which will ultimately cause traffic to be redirected to a phishing website.

DNS spoofing, then, is the process by which malware or other programs replace real values in your local DNS cache (on your PC, for instance) so that your query would result in an incorrect response.

On the other hand, DNS hijacking involves altering TCP/IP setups such that your computer's DNS pointer is sent to a malicious DNS server that may send users to a malicious website rather than only assaulting your local DNS cache.

Case Studies: Notable DNS Spoofing Incidents

Eight of the most notable attacks against the Internet's domain name system in the last 20 years are listed here, along with key lessons learned:

1. "The Kaminsky Bug" endangers the entire Internet: The so-called "Kaminsky Bug" which first surfaced in July 2008 and is sometimes cited as the biggest security danger the Internet has ever encountered, caused a lot of anxiety and even more hoopla. After learning how simple it was to take advantage of a DNS vulnerability, researcher Dan Kaminsky created the necessary software. Because of this flaw, unscrupulous hackers could easily mimic any website or email account by manipulating the DNS data that Internet service providers cache. The risk from this flaw was greatly reduced before it was widely used, but only after a secret, well-coordinated effort by security experts, DNS software developers, ISPs, and Kaminsky himself. However, it was not completely eradicated.

2. DDoS assaults rock the DNS infrastructure: Over the past ten years, there have been two significant documented DDoS assaults against the DNS root servers, or master servers, of the addressing system. The first attack lasted just over an hour and had a total attack volume of 900 Mbps. It took place on October 21, 2002. Even though malicious activity was nothing new to the operators of the root servers, the attack was remarkable for its scope and for hitting all 13 DNS root servers at once, causing nine of them to experience performance issues.

   Although the incident did not significantly impact end users, it served as a warning to the DNS business. Immediately, efforts were made to use IP Anycast to broadly mirror servers in order to add redundancy to the root system. The same logical DNS server can be present in numerous physical locations at once, thanks to this technology. The 13 roots successfully developed into hundreds in a short period of time.

   In February 2007, a second massive coordinated DNS attack, more than twice as large as the 2002 incident, happened periodically over several days, almost as if to illustrate Anycast's efficacy. It could only considerably hinder performance at two of the thirteen roots that did not employ Anycast.

   The message is clear: organizations may decrease the impact of DDoS attacks by using Anycast to mitigate risk. If establishing Anycast would be too time-consuming, a managed DNS solution provides the same benefits at a considerably lower cost.

3. Conficker requires a worldwide response: Conficker, a worm, initially appeared in November 2008, targeting Windows devices that were vulnerable. It quickly gained popularity, becoming some of the most devastating spyware ever developed. Later versions of Conficker attempted to reproduce itself and distribute its command and control centers by producing a list of tens of thousands of domain names spanning 100 generic and country-code top-level domains at random.

   Only after a concerted effort by numerous agencies, including Microsoft, ICANN, law enforcement, and the impacted registries and registrars (including my firm, Afilias), was Conficker eventually neutralized. This spontaneous endeavor succeeded in lessening the threat posed by the quickly expanding Conficker botnet by disconnecting the worm's command and control centers.

   The takeaway from this is that, in certain cases, working together is the most effective method to counter a significant threat. The Internet is a collaborative environment.

4. Hackers make use of ICANN's domain names: On June 26, 2008, users of icann.com saw a message from a hacker group going by the name NetDevilz. Although these defacement attacks on Web pages are regrettably fairly common, this particular incident stood out because it was directed toward the DNS, and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, is the body responsible for overseeing the technical coordination of the DNS's stability and security.

   Through the use of social engineering, it was discovered that ICANN's domain name registrar was deceived into altering the name servers for icann.com and a number of linked domains to point to a server controlled by the attackers. Within twenty minutes, the alterations were spotted and reversed, but incorrect information had already spread throughout the DNS, leading users to the compromised page for as long as 48 hours following the first attack.

   The Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC) of ICANN was spurred by this occurrence and others to develop a set of best practices that registrars should follow in order to protect their clients' domain names. The guidelines state that, among other things, registrars overseeing portfolios of high-value domains should offer more robust password management systems, multi-factor authentication, finer-grained access limits, and back-channel notifications of significant changes.

5. A DDoS-induced commercial failure of a security firm: After suffering a widespread denial of service attack on its DNS services in early May 2006, the Israeli-American start-up filed for bankruptcy less than two weeks later.

   Blue Security's disputed anti-spam service prompted spammers to erase its clients from their databases by utilizing a large volume of complaints. Rather, a few well-known spammers retaliated by planning a significant DDoS assault against Blue Security's DNS infrastructure. In response, the business changed its DNS records to point users to its corporate blog, which Six Apart hosted. This redirection made ten million sites inoperable for several hours, mirroring the attack against Six Apart's well-known blogging services.

   Blue Security declared two weeks later that it was going to stop being an anti-spam company. The spammers prevailed, and the business realized that continuing to rely on DNS as a network bottleneck carries a risk that could have disastrous effects on a business and its associates.

6. Bitcoinn taken from MyEtherWallet by means of an Amazon Web Services (AWS) DNS spoofing attack: AWS was the target of a DNS poisoning attempt in 2018 that redirected traffic from many domains hosted on the platform. Among these attacks, the Bitcoin website MyEtherWallet was the target of one of the more prominent ones.

   In order to obtain login credentials, the criminals specifically diverted traffic from users trying to access their MyEtherWallet accounts to phony websites. The organization then gained access to those users' actual accounts and took money from them using the information they had provided. During the course of this DNS poisoning attack, the group stole roughly $17 million worth of Ethereum, a cryptocurrency.

7. Devastation and maybe stolen personal information from Malaysia Airlines due to a DNS poisoning attack: A hacker collective known as Lizard Squad attacked Malaysia Airlines in 2015 by using DNS poisoning. The attack routed users to a phony website that enticed them to log in, only to be met with a 404 error and an image of a lizard.

   First off, the airline suffered a great deal from this attack. It had just recovered from a challenging year during which two flights were lost. Furthermore, it sparked grave concerns about the possibility that the hacker collective obtained personal data from any of the individuals who took part in the assault and checked in to the fictitious website.

8. Censorship allows information to leak to other nations via servers in China: Internet users in Chile and the US discovered in 2010 that traffic to websites like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube was being rerouted due to servers in China coming into control. China had used DNS poisoning to deliberately modify its own servers in order to block content. In this case, users from outside China were redirected to the nation's servers and fell prey to its censorship, losing access to websites that the Chinese government had prohibited its residents from seeing.

What are the Best Practices for Preventing DNS Spoofing?

Although DNS spoofing attacks are certainly crafty, they are avoided with a few more security precautions and cutting-edge techniques. Here are a few practical suggestions to help you protect all attack vectors and stop a similar disaster from happening in your company.

• Configure DNSSEC: In order to prevent external manipulation of the server's register, DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) are commonly utilized. The DNSSEC system verifies answers to domain name inquiries using sophisticated encryption, digital signatures, and other techniques, making sure that dishonest redirections don't happen at any stage of the procedure.

  There are two basic procedures to enable DNSSEC for a specific domain. You must first add records to your DNS zone pertaining to DNSSEC. The modification will then take effect after you publish the corresponding DNS records, which could take up to 24 hours. See the specialized Google Support guide for further details on how to accomplish this on both Google and custom domain name servers.

• Vigilant Observation: It is crucial to keep an eye on DNS data for any unusual developments, such as the appearance of a new external host, as they could indicate the presence of an attacker.

• Locate the icon for a secure connection: The secure connection sign, which verifies the authenticity of a page, makes it simple to navigate the Internet safely. Look for the padlock icon next to the address bar when you access a website. This shows that there is security on your connection. To protect your data and other digital assets, it is preferable to avoid websites without a padlock since they may have been maliciously copied.

• Updates to DNS: Updated DNS versions contain cryptographically secure transaction IDs and port randomization to help thwart DNS attackers. Verify that the server always has the most recent version.

• Frequently update DNS servers with patches: Patching is critical for endpoints, applications installed locally on them, and much more. Because DNS servers have vulnerabilities of their own, they also require them. To prevent any breaches, make sure the DNS server you're using has the most recent fix applied. Patch management software that is automated can make this process go more quickly.

• Password Policy Policies: Password protection rules must be put into place. A misconfigured router password might put all of their organization's devices and users at risk.

• Carry out exhaustive DNS traffic filtering: Detecting and thwarting DNS-delivered assaults is best achieved by advanced DNS traffic filtering.

• Encryption from end to end: Hackers are deterred by this technique, which encrypts DNS requests for data and prevents them from replicating the website's exclusive security license.

• Never click on a URL you don't know: Sometimes users click on a URL that they don't know well. These links might show up in any email, post on social media, text message, and so on. Because URL shortening technologies may further obscure the link destinations, this should be avoided to the greatest extent possible. To be secure, the URL must be manually entered in the address bar. Viewing the website is secure after ensuring that the URL entered is real and official.

• Use a VPN: All web traffic is routed through an encrypted tunnel using these services. Additionally, it offers the end-to-end encrypted security needed for a private DNS server. It thus provides us with requests that are unblockable and servers that are far more resilient to DNS spoofing.