What is DNS Hijacking?

DNS hijacking is a frequently encountered type of man-in-the-middle attacks allowing hackers to pose as unaffiliated domains with the goal of compromising any number of their unsuspecting clients.

Much like the name implies, DNS hijackers influence or outright take over resolutions of Domain Name System requests with the goal of redirecting targets to malicious domains posing as their intended destinations. This makes DNS hijacking a popular phishing technique, at least in the context of highly sophisticated attacks orchestrated by hackers capable of getting physically close to their targets.

By taking control of the DNS protocols, attackers are hence able to circumvent Internet Protocol Security. An even more prevalent form of DNS hijacking is using malware to reconfigure the TCP/IP configuration of the victim’s device.

VPNs as the natural predators of DNS hijackers

The good news for all prospective VPN users out there is that virtual private networks are essentially a natural predator of DNS hijackers. By fully embracing end-to-end encryption, your Internet communications are secured in such a manner that malevolent software simply can’t tell when you’re trying to access a domain it’s been programmed to hijack.

Of course, that’s a massive oversimplification of how things work in the real world, but it’s still an excellent reference point to follow for anyone whose job title doesn’t include the words “system” and “administrator”. Assuming you pick a trustworthy VPN in the first place, that is.