The Domain Name System was designed in an era when internet security was not a primary concern. DNS queries and responses travel without cryptographic protection, making them vulnerable to interception and manipulation. Attackers can insert fraudulent DNS responses, redirecting traffic to malicious servers without users knowing.
DNSSEC addresses these vulnerabilities by adding cryptographic signatures to DNS data. Resolvers can verify these signatures against published keys, ensuring DNS responses are authentic and have not been tampered with. This protection is increasingly important as sophisticated attacks target DNS infrastructure.
Understanding DNSSEC
DNSSEC extends DNS with public key cryptography, enabling verification of DNS data integrity and authenticity.
How DNSSEC Works
DNSSEC uses a chain of trust similar to SSL certificates. Zone owners generate cryptographic key pairs and sign their DNS records. The public keys are published in DNS, allowing resolvers to verify signatures on responses. A chain of signatures links each zone's keys to the parent zone, ultimately anchoring trust at the DNS root.
What DNSSEC Protects Against
Cache poisoning attacks inject fraudulent records into resolver caches, redirecting traffic for extended periods. DNSSEC cryptographic verification detects modified records and rejects them. Man-in-the-middle attacks that intercept and alter DNS responses are similarly detected since altered data fails signature validation.
DNSSEC Limitations
DNSSEC provides data integrity and authentication but not confidentiality—queries and responses remain visible to network observers. DNSSEC also does not protect against attacks on the authoritative server itself or compromised zone signing keys. It is one layer of a comprehensive security strategy.
DNSSEC Implementation at InternetAdresse
We make DNSSEC implementation straightforward by handling the cryptographic complexity while providing simple management controls.
One-Click Enablement
Enable DNSSEC for your domains through our dashboard with a single click. Our platform automatically generates appropriate key pairs, signs your zone, and publishes DS records to the parent zone. No manual key generation, signing, or DS record submission required.
Automatic Key Management
Cryptographic keys require periodic rotation for security. Our platform handles key rollovers automatically, ensuring your DNSSEC implementation remains secure without requiring manual intervention. Key signing key (KSK) and zone signing key (ZSK) rollovers follow best practices.
Algorithm Support
We support modern DNSSEC algorithms including ECDSA (P-256 and P-384) offering strong security with compact signatures. RSA is also available for compatibility with older validating resolvers. Our defaults represent current security best practices.
TLD Support
DNSSEC requires chain of trust from the root through each parent zone. Support depends on the TLD registry implementing DNSSEC. Major TLDs including .com, .net, .org, and most ccTLDs support DNSSEC. Our platform automatically detects support and only offers DNSSEC enablement for supported TLDs.
Best Practices
Maximize DNSSEC effectiveness by following these recommendations.
Monitor DNSSEC Status
Periodically verify your DNSSEC configuration remains valid by checking with online validation tools. Our dashboard also displays current DNSSEC status and alerts you to any configuration issues.
Test Before Production
If you manage DNS externally and are implementing DNSSEC for the first time, test on non-critical domains first. Misconfigurations can cause domains to become unresolvable for validating resolvers.
Consider DNS Provider
DNSSEC requires consistent signing of all DNS records. If using external DNS hosting, ensure your provider supports DNSSEC signing and DS record publication. Using InternetAdresse DNS simplifies DNSSEC since we manage the entire chain.