June 16, 2010 by Trent Morgan
It has been announced today that the internet’s address system is to be made much more secure next month, in an effort to protect users from phishing and spam attacks. The change will be made through Domain Name System Security Extensions, (DNSSEC).
The Domain Name System (DNS) was launched over twenty years ago to enable computers to translate domain names for sites, but it had a number of flaws, including a complete lack of security. This failing left the web open to criminals looking to obtain information under false pretences. Currently, hackers are able to redirect users to phony websites and set up bogus addresses.
This loophole in the DNS security is now to be closed, preventing interception of data in a breakthrough step in technology which will enhance the internet.
Leslie Daigle, the Chief Internet technology Officer from The Internet Society, has commented on the move: “DNSSEC will improve the security of the web so we can have more confidence in the activities on the network as it increasingly becomes part of our working lives and home lives.”
The enhanced DNSSES will use digital signatures and cryptography to check if queries are genuine, and ensure that data is not intercepted through spam or phishing attempts.
The new security extension, DNSSEC, basically works by using cryptography and digital signatures to verify each query and ensure that each response that is made has not been compromised or intercepted. This will hopefully end illegal activities such as the use of fake DNS servers to intercept genuine data, preventing cyber criminals from obtaining personal data which they can use for financial gain.
Leslie Daigle commented further: “It acts like tamper-proof packaging to make sure if you type in the website name of your bank that you actually get to the machine that your bank wants you to use and not to a machine that looks like that of your bank but is operated by those who want to take you to a different website to steal your log-in details.”
Overall, this move is a great step forward for the unsuspecting surfing masses who have been at risk of unwittingly sharing personal data with web criminals.
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