New EfficientIP DNS Intelligence Center: Fortifying DNS Security

Organizations are faced with two pressing security concerns today. Poor visibility over IT network activity has made them increasingly difficult to manage. And at the same time, cybercriminals are launching more attacks, often exploiting DNS, and using diverse tactics designed to exploit this lack of visibility. To address these challenges, EfficientIP is announcing the commercial launch of two groundbreaking products: DNS Intelligence Center (DNS IC) and DDI Observability Center (DDI OC). Read on to discover how they leverage DNS threat intelligence and DDI monitoring to fortify your network security and operations.

How the complexity of modern networks is harming visibility and observability

With the advent of Multi Cloud, IoT, and device proliferation, IT networks have become increasingly complex. It’s now very hard for organizations to gain effective visibility of such a multifaceted network landscape. According to a recent Q3 2023 report by EMA, most organizations only have full visibility into 40% or less of their technology stack.

This lack of visibility creates significant gaps in observability, making it difficult for IT teams to monitor the state and performance of their architectures, or to detect and respond to threats successfully. Without comprehensive observability, organizations are essentially navigating their networks in the dark, increasing the risk of undetected cyber threats or business downtime.

The rising tide of cyber threats

The cyber threat landscape has grown increasingly hostile in recent years. It’s estimated that there was a 38% increase in the global volume of cyberattacks last year. This includes more than 40 million ransomware attacks per month, a staggering 500 million phishing attacks over last year, and more than a billion instances of malware.

Threat actors are also continually developing and refining their techniques to slip through defenses, often exploiting DNS. The IDC 2023 DNS Threat Report found that 90% of companies surveyed have experienced one or more DNS-based attacks, a trend that shows no signs of abating.

The impact of DNS-based attacks

The critical role DNS plays in facilitating communication between devices on a network makes it an ideal target for cyberattacks. As a result, DNS is being actively exploited in a growing number of attack strategies. IDC found that 85% of malware actors are using DNS to develop their attacks, the most common being DNS phishing, ransomware and data theft. The average cost of a DNS-based attack is estimated to be $1.1 million. In addition, the reputational damage and loss of customer trust can have long-lasting effects.

To combat this ever-increasing risk, EfficientIP has developed its DNS Intelligence Center which provides enhanced visibility into networks, critical for today’s complex environments.

Introducing DNS Intelligence Center (DNS IC)

DNS Intelligence Center (DNS IC) is EfficientIP’s groundbreaking solution to the pressing issues of network complexity and the rise in DNS-based attacks. Designed as a cloud-based visualization service, DNS IC serves as a cornerstone in fortifying your organization’s DNS security solutions.

What sets DNS IC apart is its ability to provide insightful, actionable, and reliable analytics directly to CISOs, SOC, and security teams. This is achieved through a range of features designed to enhance DNS-centric threat intelligence. For instance, DNS IC can detect threats in near real-time by matching domain names from our unique DNS Threat Intelligence data with your organization’s DNS traffic. This provides invaluable contextual information that significantly accelerates the process of threat investigation and remediation.

Furthermore, the platform also allows for detailed, effortless investigation of domain names by offering insights and intelligence that include Indicators of Compromise (IoCs) and risk scoring. This enables security teams to quickly assess the malicious intent of a domain, accelerating threat detection and enhancing threat prevention.

EfficientIP’s DNS IC is designed to not only proactively defend organizations against damaging DNS-based attacks, but to facilitate integrations with existing security infrastructures, automating responses and fostering a more agile defense ecosystem. Leveraging AI-based and patented technology infrastructure, DNS IC meticulously analyzes DNS traffic to pre-emptively identify potential threats, ensuring robust compliance and network resilience.

In tandem with DNS Firewall, DNS Guardian and Client Query Filtering (CQF), DNS IC orchestrates a symphony of adaptive countermeasures, offering a proactive stance against evolving cyber threats.

DNS IC is built on an enterprise-grade platform that is highly scalable and sustainable, capable of absorbing any volume of DNS data. This ensures that the platform can adapt to the unique needs and architectures of any customer profile. By leveraging modern cloud technologies, DNS IC enables organizations to build an efficient, DNS-centric intelligence strategy, proactively detect cyber threats, and effortlessly investigate threats across their networks on a global scale.

Complement DNS Intelligence with DDI Observability for Comprehensive Network Observation

While DNS IC is a robust visualization portal for DNS Threat Intelligence, its capabilities are further enhanced when used in conjunction with DDI Observability Center (DDI OC). Another newly launched product from EfficientIP, DDI OC focuses on providing observability on the network side, offering consolidated, accurate, and up-to-date telemetry and analytics across any DDI architecture. By working together, these two products offer a comprehensive solution for investigating potential threats, ensuring that both network security and network performance are optimally managed.

EfficientIP’s DNS IC and DDI OC offer a powerful  solution against escalating cyber threats and increasingly complex networks. It’s time to stop navigating your networks in the dark! Get in touch to find out how our new solutions can illuminate your path.