ExtraHop named a Leader in the 2025 Forrester Wave™: Network Analysis And Visibility Solutions

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DETECTION OVERVIEW

New Local DNS Server Activity

Risk Factors

Setting up a successful rogue DNS server is a complicated endeavor. While uncommon, the presence of a rogue DNS server on a network indicates that clients might be vulnerable to other attacks, such as man-in-the-middle, phishing, or pharming, which might lead to information exposure.

The system might change the risk score for this detection.

Category

Command-and-Control
Detection diagram
Next in Command-and-Control: New Meterpreter C&C Session Activity

Attack Background

A rogue DNS server is a powerful technique for directing victims to attacker-controlled servers. First, the attacker either gains access to a device on the network with admin privileges, or the attacker connects a new device, such as a Raspberry Pi, to a network through an ethernet cable or to a wireless network. Next, the attacker configures the device to store malicious domain records and act as a DNS server. Finally, the attacker employs various techniques that configure network clients to communicate with the rogue DNS server. When the client tries to resolve the domain name of a legitimate host, the rogue DNS server responds with the IP address for the attacker-controlled host. The client is now redirected to the malicious host, enabling the attacker to send malicious content to the client or trick users into revealing sensitive information.

Mitigation Options

Quarantine the potential rogue DNS server and check for other malicious activity

Require all DNS clients to send queries to a legitimate DNS server that filters or blocks suspicious domains and IP addresses

Check the domain records stored on this device for IP addresses that match threat intelligence data

Associated content

Announcing The Forrester Wave™: Network Analysis And Visibility Solutions, Q4 2025

Network analysis and visibility solutions remain underrepresented in enterprises. Find out why in this preview of a new Wave report.

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ExtraHop® Named a Leader in First-Ever Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Network Detection and Response — ExtraHop

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News

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The 2025 ExtraHop Global Threat Landscape Report: The Alarming Reality of Threat Actor Dwell Time and Deeper Network Access — ExtraHop

This analysis exposes the critical link between an organization's lack of internal visibility and the escalating cost of compromise, demanding an urgent re-evaluation of how core business assets are protected.

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ExtraHop RevealX MITRE ATT&CK Coverage 2024 — ExtraHop

Learn why you need to be wary of the claims certain network detection and response providers make about their coverage against the MITRE ATT&CK framework.

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MITRE ATT&CK - Network Detection & Response with RevealX — ExtraHop

Learn how NDR from RevealX helps security teams detect and investigate more adversary TTPs in the MITRE ATT&CK framework than rule-based tools.

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