EfficientIP DNS Guardian is a protective DNS security service designed to secure DNS infrastructure against attacks that traditional firewalls and intrusion prevention systems cannot adequately address. The product operates by performing real-time DNS Transaction Inspection (DTI) at the core of the DNS server — analyzing queries, responses, fragments, and recursions — to provide threat visibility beyond signature-based detection. It supports cache, recursive, and authoritative DNS servers. Key capabilities include: - Behavioral Threat Detection: Real-time DNS traffic analytics to identify stealth attacks and threats not covered by signature-based systems. - Adaptive Countermeasures: Graduated response mechanisms including block, quarantine (patented), and recovery modes to maintain service continuity while mitigating threats, minimizing false positives. - Predictive Threat Detection: Identifies zero-day malicious domains used for DNS tunneling, DGA (domain generation algorithm) malware, and command-and-control (C2) communications. - Data Exfiltration Prevention: Monitors DNS traffic to detect and block unauthorized data exfiltration attempts, supporting compliance with GDPR, US Cloud Act, NISD, and PDPA. - DNS Filtering (Client Query Filtering): Application access control at the DNS level, using whitelists and blocklists to control user access to specific applications, with use cases including IoT segmentation and parental control. - Threat Intelligence Integration: Works with EfficientIP's DNS Threat Pulse feed and third-party threat intelligence services for domain reputation analysis. Malicious domains are dynamically shared across DNS Guardian appliances. - SIEM Integration: High-performance logging capabilities compatible with leading SIEM platforms for enriched DNS event context. DNS Guardian addresses attack types including cache poisoning, DDoS, DNS tunneling, DGA malware, UDP flooding, DNS hijacking, and amplification/reflection attacks.