DNS hijacking: what you need to know about this attack

Warned – means armed. Right? And this means that if we know how DNS interception occurs, we can prevent attack by intruders and protect ourselves. Now we will talk in essence about one of the varieties of the DNS attack, which can be implemented in several ways. This may be hacking a DNS connection, taking control of routers, installing malware on the victim's device. After that, the attackers change the IP-address of the resource associated with a specific domain name, and then all that remains is to send the "victim" to your site instead of the one requested by the person. After that, he is prompted to enter his own credentials, or even bank details.

Agree, the situation is very unpleasant. And the most unpleasant thing is that any person can be in it – no one is immune from such actions. Now let's dwell in more detail on how not to become a victim of Internet intruders. In particular, let's look at how to recognize DNS interception, get acquainted with the main stages of such an attack. We will tell you how DNS hijacking differs from DNS spoofing and DNS cache poisoning, and how to protect yourself from such actions of intruders, including using a tool such as mobile proxies.

Learning to recognize DNS interception

First, just a few words about how DNS interception works. So, if you register a domain, then at the appropriate registrar you choose for yourself one of the available names, to which the IP address of your site is attached. It turns out that if some unscrupulous person gets access to the data stored by the registrar, then he can easily replace your real address with his own, as a result of which your potential customers and visitors will be automatically redirected by the system to the hacker's website.

Here are a number of signs that indicate DNS hijacking:

• pages of the site began to load noticeably slower;
• pop-up advertising messages began to appear where they should not have been a priori;
• Pop-ups have appeared informing you that malware has been found on your device.

If you are even a little more careful in your work, you will definitely be able to notice these symptoms and recognize DNS hijacking. There are several ways to check whether this is really an attack or some kind of glitch. So, you can ping the domain that caused you doubts. If it turns out that such an IP-address does not exist, then your DNS is not intercepted. You can also use the admin page to check your router settings. If it turns out that changes have been made to the DNS settings, then there is a high probability that the interception did take place. There are also online services that can show through which server requests are made to your site. If the results of the check show a completely unfamiliar DNS-server, then this should also be a reason for additional checks.

Varieties of DNS-interception

DNS interception can be done in several ways:

1. Local interception. A hacker is supposed to install a Trojan-type virus. to the user device. As a result, the settings of the local server change, which will subsequently redirect a person to malicious Internet resources.
2. Using a router. In this case, attackers use weaknesses in the firmware of the hardware, not very strong passwords, especially those that were set automatically by default. By hacking the router, the hacker makes the appropriate DNS settings in it.
3. MITM. This attack is known as the "man in the middle". That is, it turns out that the interception of requests is carried out in the process of their transmission between the user and the DNS server. As a result, the user's request does not reach its real purpose, but is redirected to a malicious resource.
4. Make changes to data records in DNS servers. We have already talked about this point above, because. today this is quite common. It turns out that user requests are redirected to malicious sites directly from the server.

And one of the main problems is that the average user will not be able to understand what site he has landed on – to the right one or still to the resource of the attackers.

DNS spoofing and DNS cache poisoning: what is it?

It is difficult for an ordinary user to navigate all the dangers that await him every day when working on the network. And very often, DNS hijacking is confused with malicious activities such as DNS spoofing and DNS poisoning. Yes, all three of these options have a common moment – all of them are illegal actions that are widely used by Internet attackers. But there are differences.

Thus, DNS spoofing does not imply a special disconnection of the victim's resource from the public network. During the attack, the attacker simply changes the data in the DNS in order to redirect to a malicious page. But DNS poisoning is built on vulnerabilities in DNS server configurations. So, if the server does not provide for automatic checking of answers for correctness (authority of the source), then it will cache incorrect answers locally and subsequently provide them to other users who send similar requests. Also, for those who work with social networks, instant messengers, message boards, and are fond of online games, it will be useful to know what account brute force and how to deal with it using mobile proxies.

Now let's focus on how to protect against DNS interception

Effective Ways to Prevent DNS Hijacking

Here are 5 tips that will minimize the chance of DNS hijacking and help you protect yourself from a hacker attack.

1. Make it a habit to periodically check your router's DNS settings through the admin page. You also need to understand that unscrupulous individuals often resort to searching for vulnerabilities in the firmware, a weak password, in order to gain access to user data. Routers are very often attacked, because these devices themselves do not have special protection against unauthorized access. Attackers are well aware of this feature and use it everywhere. Along with checking your settings regularly, also change your access passwords frequently.
2. Use the Registry-Lock status in your work. This is what will help protect domains from transfers, changes you didn't request, deletions without your permission. Believe me, in this case, the work of a cracker will be very difficult and many of them will simply abandon such an idea.
3. Use reliable anti-virus software. Attempts to access user data in order to perform DNS hijacking by running malware on their device – a common ruse for intruders. A reliable antivirus application will minimize the success of such actions.
4. Keep the so-called password hygiene. This is true not only when working with a router, but also when registering on certain sites. The more complex these passwords are and the more often you update them, the less likely it is that attackers will help hijack DNS.
5. Connect reliable dynamic mobile proxies to work with the Internet. In this case, the intermediary server will replace your real data (IP-address and geolocation) with its own parameters, thereby preventing an attacker from penetrating your device: no IP – no access.

Let's dwell on the last moment in more detail, because it deserves special attention.

Better mobile proxies from MobileProxy.Space

I want to draw your attention to the fact that you should use only reliable private proxies in your work. Free analogues – public, they will not provide the required level of security and stability. In addition, it is highly likely that most of their addresses are already on the "black list"; systems, that is, your attempt to enter from them will be immediately blocked. The use of mobile proxies from the MobileProxy.Space service will help prevent many problems, ensure stable and efficient operation. In this case you will get:

• absolute privacy and security of the Internet;
• a personal channel with unlimited traffic and access to almost a million pool of IP addresses, which you can change either automatically (on a timer) or forcibly (via a link from your personal account);
• the ability to change the geolocation and the operator of cellular networks directly in the work to bypass regional blockings;
• simultaneous operation on HTTP(S) and Socks5 connection protocols due to connection via parallel ports;
• the ability to work in multi-threaded mode, including using programs to automate routine tasks.

To learn more about these mobile proxies, their functions, current rates for different regions and countries, follow the link https://mobileproxy .space/user.html?buyproxy.

Share this article: