27 DNS security statistics highlight the rise of cyberattacks

Domain Name System (DNS) helps your computer find the website you want to visit. It does this by online translating website names into Internet Protocol (IP) addresses.

IP addresses are like busy streets, malicious hackers can find ways to trick us and prevent us from reaching our destinations. DNS security acts like the police, keeping us on the legal path to our destination website.

DNS security ensures that we are not redirected to malicious websites where hackers can steal our information.Many organizations use DNS security software Redirect end-user network traffic through filters. They identify malware signatures and other characteristics of potentially dangerous websites and media.

Browse these statistics below to learn more about DNS attack trends and how organizations can protect themselves.

DNS security attack statistics

DNS security The attack exploits vulnerabilities within the infrastructure to convert human-readable domain names into machine-readable domain names IP address. Typically, their goal is to disrupt website functionality by redirecting traffic to dangerous websites.

Check out these statistics to see how much damage they can cause.

• Organizations face approximately 7.5 DNS attacks each year.
• DNS attacks disrupt 82% of enterprise applications and result in the theft of 29% of enterprise data.
• 60% of compromised IP addresses are located in the United States
• A successful DNS attack costs an average of approximately $1.1 million to recover an enterprise’s losses.

• 12% of new domains may maliciously impersonate Fortune 500 companies.

• 79% of malicious domains targeting Fortune 500 companies used emergency language such as “login” or “payment.”
• North America suffered the most losses from attacks in 2021, while losses in Asia increased by 15% compared to the previous year.
• 13% of new tax-related domains are harmful.
• DNS tunneling increased by 41% as vulnerability to new threats climbed to 44% in 2020.
• After the war began in 2022, new malicious domains related to Russia or Ukraine surged by 150%.
• 92% of organizations say their website is critical to operations.
• Akamai is a technology security company that handles 7 trillion DNS requests every day and blocks 2.8 billion harmful requests.
• Application downtime remains high, at 62% in 2020, little changed from 63% in 2019.

DNS security measures

Many organizations have added an extra layer of security called DNS security extensions to ensure that computers get the correct website address when looking for it. If you use a DNS provider, they will help you block suspicious traffic and notify you that they have detected inappropriate activity.

You need to constantly monitor your network traffic to detect strange behavior early on. Pay close attention to your website for unusual requests and follow best security practices.

Explore statistics about security professionals’ perspectives on DNS security.

• Only 31% of security professionals are very confident in handling DNS attacks.
• DNS hijacking is a top concern for 47% of respondents, leading to distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack.

• Between 47% and 55% of security professionals believe DNS attacks are a growing threat.
• 56% believe DNS is critical to cloud security, and 49% believe private DNS can reduce privacy risks.
• Integrating DNS, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and IP Address Management (IPAM) can reduce network management costs by 80%.
• 56% of respondents believe DNS is critical for anti-ransomware measures.
• The average cost of a DNS attack is approximately $950,000, with organizations experiencing seven attacks per year.

General DNS Security Trends

Modern technology has introduced new ways to connect domains to faster, more private websites. DNS over HTTPS (DoH) and DNS over TLS (DoT) are examples of technologies that ensure your activity on the Internet is protected from attacks. DoT and DoH are DNS encryption protocols that provide privacy, integrity, and authenticity to recursive DNS resolvers.

• DNS attacks on potential targets remained stable throughout 2022, but increased by 52% in December.
• Recovery from DNS attacks varies, with 58% of enterprises experiencing business outage for more than an hour.
• 57% of companies use automated solutions to ensure cybersecurity.
• 25% of companies do not analyze their DNS traffic and 35% do not use it for internal filtering.
• About one-third of companies are victims of DNS tunneling (35%) and cache poisoning (33%).

protect your name

Just like you protect your name from malicious use, you can also protect your domain from threat actors. Your domain name is your business’s identity. If your identity is compromised, you may lose some access to incoming traffic. Worst of all, when your users land on dangerous websites, they become victims of a ransomware attack, all while trying to find you.

In addition, you may suffer fines or other financial losses. The above statistics show that the cost of dealing with DNS attacks is huge.

Prioritize DNS security in your overall network security strategy to avoid situations like this and provide your audience with a safe channel to contact you.

Learn more about Managed DNS provider software Provide customers with computing power and facilitate their web-based traffic.