Speaker: Peter LaMantia, CEO of Authentic Web
Introduction
Peter:
Welcome everyone, and thank you for joining the fourth webinar in our DNS Security & Compliance series.
I’m Peter LaMantia, CEO of Authentic Web.
We provide modern control systems that make it easier for enterprise teams to manage domains, DNS, and TLS certificates—all in one secure environment.
Our goal is simple: to empower teams to improve security, compliance, and performance.
Today’s session will walk through DNS security exposures—what they are, what can happen if they’re not addressed, and how a new system we’ve built can help teams see and solve this problem.
We know your time is tight, so this session will run about 15 minutes. If you find it useful, you can view the earlier webinars in this series at authenticweb.com/webinars.
- In Webinar 1, we provided actual exposure data from enterprises.
- In Webinar 2, we explained how the problem grows, comparing DNS mismanagement to a “kitchen junk drawer.”
- In Webinar 3, we issued the CISO Directive, a business‑level guide to getting proactive about DNS risk.
Now let’s jump into today’s session.
Agenda
- Why DNS security is critical
- Examples of common exposures
- What can happen if they aren’t fixed
- Why these problems persist
- An introduction to DNS Inspector, our new service designed to help teams get control of DNS hygiene
At the end, I’ll share an exclusive offer available only to attendees today.
Why DNS Security Is Critical
DNS is often overlooked, yet it underpins every digital business function.
Nearly every cyber incident starts with the DNS.
DNS is a public network that exposes your endpoints and services to the world.
The challenge is that identifying where exposures exist is difficult—and without visibility, teams can’t fix what they can’t see.
It’s not a question of if, but when. For most organizations, vulnerabilities are already live—they just don’t know where.
You’ve probably heard the saying, “It’s always the DNS.” It’s become a meme, but it’s absolutely true: everything depends on the DNS.
If your organization isn’t paying attention to DNS hygiene, you’re exposed right now.
How Bad DNS Hygiene Leads to Compromise
Let’s look at four common exposure examples that compromise brand trust and customer safety.
1. Insecure Redirects
This is one of the most frequent DNS exposures we see. Redirect chains often contain one or more HTTP‑only hops.
Attackers can intercept these sessions, collect data or credentials, or execute a man‑in‑the‑middle attack—redirecting customers to fake websites that impersonate your brand.
This results in stolen data, lost trust, and reputational damage.
2. Lame Delegations
A “lame delegation” happens when a domain is registered but lacks a Start of Authority (SOA) record.
Attackers can identify these gaps, set up their own SOA records, and effectively hijack the domain’s DNS. From there, they can launch phishing or network intrusions without your team ever knowing.
3. Dangling CNAMEs and Orphaned DNS Records
This is one of the most common—and damaging—vulnerabilities.
A dangling CNAME points to a web resource that no longer exists, while an orphaned A record points to a decommissioned IP address.
If that resource or IP is repurposed, attackers can take control of it and impersonate your organization.
This often happens when cloud services are turned down or projects end—yet DNS records remain live.
4. Provider Complexity
Most enterprises have multiple registrars and DNS services in use. Over years of IT changes, mergers, and acquisitions, this creates a giant tangle of unmanaged systems.
Without centralized control, no one knows who has access, which credentials are privileged, or when records change.
That makes it easy for attackers to slip in through social engineering, modify a record, and lie in wait until the perfect time to strike.
Why This Problem Persists
Each of these exposures points to the same root cause: lack of visibility and automation.
Over time, DNS portfolios grow across multiple vendors. Teams may try to track records in Excel or internal databases, but those methods break down immediately in large enterprises.
DNS maintenance is meticulous, technical work—and it’s often deprioritized in favor of other security projects.
As a result, the problem keeps compounding. Legacy zone files keep expanding, leaving vulnerabilities hidden in plain sight.
The Reality of External DNS Risk
Research and government warnings confirm it:
- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.K. National Cyber Security Centre have both issued alerts urging organizations to address DNS hygiene.
- IDC research shows the frequency and impact of DNS attacks are growing each year, with attackers exploiting both DNS protocol weaknesses and misconfigurations.
The DNS is insecure by design. Without monitoring and change‑management systems, you are relying on luck.
Introducing DNS Inspector
At Authentic Web, we began performing DNS audits for enterprises years ago and consistently found security exposures.
However, gathering the data manually was complex and time‑consuming—so we built automation to streamline it.
That automation became DNS Inspector, a purpose‑built DNS vulnerability and penetration‑test system designed to empower teams to:
- Discover vulnerabilities
- Investigate the cause
- Resolve every issue
- Verify that gaps are permanently closed
Its mission: help teams get and keep control of their DNS.
Unlike typical data‑lake tools that mix stale and irrelevant data, DNS Inspector uses automated probes to cut through the noise. It provides live, relevant intelligence—clean, simple, and actionable.
The dashboard gives teams a single pane of glass view. You can see every issue, drill down into specific probes, interpret risk by context, make your fix, and then run a re‑verification scan.
Summary
Whether or not you choose DNS Inspector, you must get your DNS hygiene under control.
Visibility and automation are the only ways to close security gaps and maintain compliance long term.
Your brand’s trust depends on it.
If you’re responsible for enterprise security, compliance, or infrastructure, DNS hygiene should be a top priority.
Every day you delay, attackers gain more time to take advantage of overlooked records, redirects, or unmonitored domains.
Exclusive Offer
As promised, a quick note on our offer for attendees:
If your enterprise manages a portfolio of domains, we’re offering a free DNS Inspector trial to audit up to 100 domain names at no cost.
Simply send me an email with the subject line “Trial 100.”
All we need is your domain list, and within 24 hours you’ll have a detailed DNS‑security assessment showing exactly where you’re exposed.
Closing Remarks
Thank you for taking the time to join today’s session.
Remember: DNS remains one of the most overlooked but critical components of enterprise security.
It’s the foundation of your brand’s digital trust and customer confidence.
Cleaning up DNS hygiene doesn’t have to be complex—just make it visible and easy.
Tools like DNS Inspector exist to help your teams do exactly that.
I hope you found this webinar helpful.
Thanks again, and have a great rest of your day.
