DNS in its original form was never built with security in mind. But ever since, DNS has gone through a series of upgrades, which has added an extra level of security such as DNSSEC and DNS over TLS to its design. Being created in 1983, when the internet was in its novelty, it was an easy tunnel for hackers to inject malicious code or obtain personal credentials through DNS Spoofing.
DNS spoofing is one of many ways to pose a deceptive cyberattack on organizations and individuals. Without understanding how the internet connects you to your browser, you may be forced to believe you are browsing safely.
Security teams must stay on their toes to not allow these faux IP addresses and servers to impact any users, especially in prominent positions.
What is Domain Name Service (DNS)?
DNS, also known as Domain Name Service, is one of the foundations of what the internet is built upon. You can think of it as a phonebook of the internet––More like a contact list on your phone that matches your contact number to their respective names.
In the heart of the internet, the DNS is responsible for resolving or translating the IP address in your network back to a domain name. Every device has its IP address which it uses to connect to the internet. DNS server makes it possible for you to input the domain name such as facebook.com instead of memorizing the IP address of every website.
What is DNS Spoofing?
DNS spoofing or DNS cache poisoning is a type of cyberattack in which corrupt data is infused into the DNS resolve cache to alter the DNS records. The attack exploits vulnerabilities in domain servers to redirect traffic to fraudulent websites that look like the intended destination.
These attacks have multiple forms. One example is when a hacker picks their target site, and either has a dummy site that unsuspecting users login to and effectively hand the criminals personal information. Another example is the “Man in The Middle” attack, where the interaction between user and server is redirected to a different and potentially malicious IP address.
Types of DNS Spoofs
Technically, there are different ways to carry out DNS spoofing. However, a predominant attack vector includes all forms of attacks that compromise DNS records to redirect user requests to a malicious website without their knowledge.
In general, there are two main ways attacks are carried out using DNS spoofing
- MITM Attack
- Direct Server Compromise
Man-in-the-Middle Attack (M.I.T.M)
A man-in-the-middle attack vector can mostly be found in computer network services and applications. Technically, it is an issue mainly in all communications between a user and a server, especially those that do not use cryptographic encryption or authentication.
In this scenario, the attacker positions between the client application and the server to intercept or eavesdrop on information as it transverses. The attacker could either choose to deny or alter the information at will, hence violating the integrity or availability of the service.
From the DNS perspective, the attacker sits somewhere between the end-user application and the DNS server and injects malicious codes. This then alters the DNS response to supply a different IP address for the requested internet address, effectively rerouting the user to a different destination. There is little or nothing to be done with this kind of attack using the regular DNS protocol. But protecting the pathway to the DNS message goes a long way.
Direct Server Compromise
A compromised DNS server can also be translated to DNS hijacking or user redirection attack. It’s a domain server breach that targets the vulnerability in your network domain server system. When your DNS server is compromised, many things can go wrong. One of those is redirecting incoming traffic to an illegitimate server where they can launch a series of attacks, including collecting traffic logs that contain sensitive data.
Another will allow attackers to capture all inbound emails to your organization. When this happens, they will be able to send and receive emails on your behalf, cashing out by leveraging your positive reputation.
Difference Between DNS Spoofing and Cache Poisoning
DNS Spoofing
DNS spoofing is a kind of attack that alters an organization’s domain name record in order to redirect traffic to fraudulent sites. Due to the faulty design of DNS, a resolver has no way of validating a response. The best it can do is check if the response is coming from an authoritative IP address. But since the authoritative IP address can be spoofed, it becomes easy for cybercriminals to redirect incoming traffics.
Cache Poisoning
Cache poisoning is more of an end-user attack than a server attack. Cache poisoning attacks the caching memory of an already cached IP address. This makes the DNS recall the IP address of a malicious site specifically for you. If an attacker manages to get the DNS caching server to cache incorrect IP addresses, the DNS records have been compromised. The impact can be huge to numerous users who rely on that cache.
How can Security Teams Avoid DNS Attacks?
Your security team must stay ahead by running cybersecurity assessments and fixing vulnerabilities to keep your organization safe from DNS spoofing. You can implement some security tools and protocols to keep cybercriminals at bay.
The following measures can be incorporated
- Deploy DNS spoofing detection tools
This helps secure endpoint user security products by scanning all data that must be sent out before sending them out.
- Implement DNSSEC technology
Domain Name System Security Extension (DNSSEC) helps keeps DNS registrars authentic and spoof-free. It uses public keys and signatures to validate the authenticity of a DNS request.
- Set up JA3 malware detection tool
The JA3 malware detection tool helps detect malware that abuses DNS over TLS by collecting fingerprints of any observable SSL client behavior. This is considered when TLS stripping is not possible.
- End-to-end encryption
Encryption offers two advantages to protect against DNS spoofing. The first is that it protects your data from authorized access from outsiders. Secondly, it ensures the authenticity of the other host.
Take Quick Action Now!
DNS spoofing is a cancer that affects vulnerable websites. Despite the effort to curb this type of attack, cybercriminals are always on the lookout for new ways to spoof your information and attack users and organizations.
Therefore, keeping an eye on your DNS traffic is necessary and can be a rich data source for your security team. NetQuest’s Streaming Network Sensors can help protect your DNS infrastructure and help detect DNS-based spoofing using advanced tools and algorithms. Our tool detects malicious incoming traffics and DNS tunneling attacks through DNS data exfiltration and reputation filtering.
Contact us today for a demonstration of NetQuest’s DNS related visibility sensors.