Recent hacks at registrars make it clear we need to be aware of our security on the internet. By continuing to invest in innovation, DNS Belgium tries to stay one step ahead of cybercriminals.
Voice phishing
In March 2020, scammers were able to deceive a number of employees of registrar GoDaddy via vishing, i.e. voice phishing or phishing over the phone, and gained control over a handful of domain names.
Last autumn, cyber criminals were once again able to deceive GoDaddy employees. Again, criminals were able to tamper with the domain name data of certain websites via vishing. One of the affected websites was a bitcoin trading platform. The hackers managed to change the DNS settings, which allowed them to divert mail and web traffic to their own environment or website and gain access to crucial documents.
It is important it is for companies to continue investing in security, research and innovation.
The IT team of the affected platform was able to quickly detect and contain the attack. They took immediate steps to prevent further damage and to secure their users' accounts. The malicious attackers presumably obtained personal information of users, such as an email address, name, address and encrypted password. Hackers also targeted two other cryptocurrency exchanges, resulting in similar breaches of user privacy.
Your data in the wrong hands
Because the attacks were detected quickly, the damage in all these attacks was contained. But they do show how ruthless cybercriminals are when they even set their sights on IT specialists such as registrars. And it shows once again how important it is for companies to continue investing in security, research and innovation. Users must also be alert for suspicious activities, regularly change their password, etc.
If cybercriminals succeed, they can steal the personal data of the users of a hacked platform or website. Cybercriminals can also target registrars to get hold of domain name administrator data and hijack their domain names and websites. Or they can use these personal data for carrying out more sophisticated phishing attacks that are more difficult to detect.
Preventing (Voice) phishing
We are working from home more because of the corona crisis which makes us an easier target for vishing. Hackers, for example, pretend to work for a competent authority to obtain personal or company data. This is a variant of the known CEO fraud, where cybercriminals pretend to be the CEO and instruct you to make a money transfer for the company.
This can have major consequences for the company where you work, such as reputation damage, but of course also for you. We cannot underline it enough: Cybercriminals can hijack domain names, transfer them or even delete them. Prevent this by requesting Domain Guard or Domain Shield for your domain name, when your registrar suggests it.
Domain Guard
Domain Guard ensures a registrar cannot change the data linked to your domain name without your explicit approval Whenever a change is requested, DNS Belgium calls the registrant or his/her representative personally.
Domain Shield
Domain Shield ensures people with malicious intents cannot update or change the data of your domain name without the consent of a specific person at the registrar. Nor can they move the domain name to another registrar or have it deleted. The registrar signs a separate contract with DNS Belgium for this.
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