Cybersecurity Attack Varieties and Who Executes Them

Business owners should always think about cyberattacks and how to protect their companies from them. They can happen at any time. Luckily, several techniques for blocking them exist.

If you operate a business or own one, you should know about some different cyberattack varieties. We’ll talk about some of those right now, as well as the reasons hackers perpetrate them.

Stealth DoS Attacks

When you’re talking about types of cybersecurity attacks, you should certainly know about stealth or “slow-drip” DoS attacks. These attack types include:

• Pseudo-random subdomain attacks
• Phantom domain attacks
• Sloth domain attacks

A sloth domain attack occurs when a hacker sends out authoritative domain queries that slowly answer requests. If you have a recursive server, this can cause capacity exhaustion, and it will shut down. Then, you have to take the time to get it back online.

A phantom domain attack happens when a hacker targets DNS resolvers. They keep sending them subdomains with unreachable domain servers. This causes cache server capacity saturation. Again, the system can’t handle it and shuts down.

A pseudo-random subdomain attack occurs when the hacker attacks the subdomain using random query names. Like a phantom domain attack, authoritative server capacity saturation occurs.

This attack style uses DNS recursive farm ISP, or else it uses an open relay DNS. Either way, the attack exhausts servers as they wait for authoritative answers.

These are all coordinated, meticulous attack forms that require gifted hacker execution.

Protocol Abuse

Protocol abuse can take many forms. Some of them are:

• DNS hijacking or phishing
• Subdomain hijacking
• Domain squatting

DNS hijacking occurs when a hacker tries to modify registrar level DNS records. They’re not able to do that unless they’ve already gotten past your firewall, assuming you have on. Later users then get a malicious site redirect.

A subdomain hijacking happens when a hacker tries existing DNS entry reusage. They suppress a public cloud resource to do so.

Domain squatting occurs when a hacker uses a registered name with a common typo added. They capture or redirect legitimate traffic and send it to a manipulative or fraudulent website. This is a particularly clever attack type because the hacker never needs to access your system at all.

Why All the DNS Attacks?

You may notice that many of these attack varieties occur when a hacker misuses or manipulates the DNS in some way. But why is that?

The reason is that a business’s overall function always requires DNS control. If you don’t have that, it’s easy for a hacker to wreak havoc in various ways.

DNS resolution is how any of your communications start. An application directly using an IP address is one example.

When you don’t have that resolution service, the hacker has effectively compromised your system. The average application cannot function.

If a hacker knows how to use bugs, inherent system flaws, or knows about standard system bypassing protocols, they can cripple your network. Your IT department will probably have to work overtime to undo the damage and try to locate the entry point.

Why Do Hackers Do What They Do?

Hackers might have all kinds of reasons for doing what they do. They may not like your particular business because of the way you conduct yourself. Maybe they don’t like some of your political or social stances.

They might also have financial gain in mind. If they use ransomware to attack you, they may be able to secure some sensitive information, pictures, etc. They can attempt to sell them back to you if you don’t want them getting out.

Other hackers have anarchistic leanings. They might attack random sites and companies because they want to see if they can do it.

You’d think that this style of hacker attack would befall mostly big businesses, like eBay, Amazon, Target, and other large websites and multibillion-dollar companies. In reality, small companies get just as many cyberattacks as more prominent ones.

All this means you need stout DNS security protocols. You might hire a company that does simulated cyberattacks to determine system vulnerabilities. They can make a vulnerability list and then tell you how to close any gaps and stave off any future hacker efforts.

You can often write off these costs. Cybersecurity is critical, and you must find defensive measures in your operating budget.

If you don’t pay attention to this vital business aspect, you might find your website shut down and your client data in the wrong hands. That’s a potential public relations nightmare.