The internet is a crazy place. Not only do marketers and advertisers follow your every move, but there are also hackers and scammers lurking in the dark corners, ready to pounce on your personal information.
At least marketers and advertisers want to make money off of you. The hackers and scammers I'm talking about, on the other hand, just want to flat out steal your money by way of stealing your personal information.
And as much as I don't want to admit it, these hackers are smarter than the average criminal.
They use clever tactics to trick you into clicking on something that has the potential to crash your system, spread malware and even steal your personal information. Tap or click to see how scammers are tricking Americans using fake IRS websites.
What the heck is DNS Hijacking?
One of these tricks is known as "DNS hijacking." Sound complicated? Yes, it's a little bit tricky. Let me explain.
A DNS, or domain name system, is often called the phone book for the internet. It translates names of websites, like Google.com, to an IP address, like 74.125.239.2. The communication between the two is critical in order to correctly direct web traffic.
What these clever hackers do is insert rogue DNS servers, so your traffic is directed to unsafe servers instead of the secure servers your internet service provider gives you.
This means cybercriminals can redirect you to fake versions of websites that you're attempting to visit.
For example, if your router's DNS settings have been hijacked, each time you visit your bank's website, you'll be redirected to a phishing website instead.
Criminals can also use DNS hijacking to modify ads you see while browsing. Instead of regular ads you should be getting, they're replaced with inappropriate or malicious ones.
This opens you up to a whole world where all your personal information is vulnerable and your system's chances of getting infected with malware go up.
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How to check your router for hackers and criminals
This helpful tool will help you make sure your internet connection is safe from outside dangers. All you have to do is head to the home page and your details will automatically load.
The site will tell you if your DNS server is the one making requests on your behalf. It will also tell you if the server has been reported for suspicious activity, who the IP owner is and what the Reverse DNS is.
Test your router using the free Who is My DNS?
Here's how it works
- When you visit Who is My DNS, it identifies the DNS server and IP address that made the request on your behalf.
- Who is My DNS then scans its database to see if that DNS server is recognizable or has been reported for any suspicious activity.
- Once the results load, check to see if the DNS server should correlates with your Internet Service Provider. If it doesn't, your router may have been hijacked.
Why would you want to use this tool?
WhoismyDNS.com makes checking your security quick and easy:
- Web-based - This tool is totally web-based. This means there's nothing to download! Just visit the webpage to start testing.
- Checks your DNS settings - This free tool will check your router's DNS settings for any signs of DNS hijacking. It's always bad news if your DNS settings are hijacked. For example, hackers can route your traffic to spoofed versions of websites. So it's important to double-check your router for signs of tampering.
To test your router, tap or click the blue button below.
Get better Wi-Fi by using these features on your router
It's tough to imagine life these days without Wi-Fi. Our routers serve all kinds of purposes, whether it's providing internet for guests in a storefront, interconnected workplaces, digital ads in stores, gaming, or security. Having all these different functions running through the same device makes you wonder just how much your router is capable of. Well, turns out you can get your router to work even harder for you than you thought. I'll show you how.
