DNS is the engine that drives the Internet. Almost all Internet activity makes use of DNS to properly route traffic. Most times, end users and service providers set up their DNS and promptly forget about the service. Rarely do they look at the log data or analyze traffic hitting their DNS servers. Providers can limit cache server exposure through access lists. Authoritative servers can gain some protection by using Anycast addressing. But in the end, DNS typically remains vulnerable to DNS amplification attacks, DDoS and other malicious traffic and is a lynchpin for almost every network.
As a DNS service provider, we faced unique challenges. How could we offer open DNS cache resolution while protecting the integrity of our service? How could we use data collected to uncover network compromise? How could we detect and mitigate DNS attacks before they impact customer-facing services? How could we give customers the tools needed to isolate compromised machines on their LAN? This is the abbreviated story of that journey. The answers are found in the data combined with the use of open source tools including Graylog, Elasticsearch and Kibana. My hope is that sharing our experiences can make life better for your network.
Jim is a Senior Systems Administrator at AppRiver, LLC. His team is responsible for global network deployments and manages the SecureSurf global DNS infrastructure and SecureTide global SPAM & Virus filtering infrastructure as well as all internal applications and helps manage security operations for the entire company. He is completing his CISSP certification. He is also well- versed in ethical hacking and penetration testing techniques and has been involved in technology for more than 20 years. He has expertise in and an understanding of a wide range of IT technologies. Jim has presented at Nolacon, iTen Wired and a number of smaller conferences. He regularly attends national security conferences. He is passionate about conveying the importance of developing, implementing and maintaining security policies for organizations. His talks convey unique and practical techniques that help attendees harden their security in practical and easy-to-deploy ways. He stays connected with the trend setters in the InfoSec and ethical hacker community and is well-known by his peers. When not at the computer, Jim can be found working out, playing guitar, traveling or just relaxing with an adult beverage.