Question 1

What is DNS monitoring?

Accepted Answer

DNS monitoring is the practice of tracking changes to your domain's DNS records (A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, NS, TXT). When a record changes — whether intentionally or due to hijacking — you receive an alert. This is critical because DNS changes can redirect your website traffic, intercept email, or break services without any visible server-side issues.

Question 2

Why are DNS changes dangerous?

Accepted Answer

DNS controls where your traffic goes. If an attacker changes your A record, visitors go to their server instead of yours. If they change MX records, they receive your email. If they change NS records, they control everything. DNS hijacking is one of the most effective attacks because it's invisible to traditional uptime monitors that only check your server.

Question 3

How does DNS hijacking happen?

Accepted Answer

Common attack vectors: compromised registrar account (weak password, no 2FA), social engineering registrar support, exploiting registrar vulnerabilities, BGP hijacking of DNS traffic, or compromised DNS hosting provider. Even accidental changes by team members can cause outages. Monitoring detects all of these.

Question 4

How quickly does upsonar detect DNS changes?

Accepted Answer

upsonar checks your DNS records with every monitoring cycle (1-5 minutes depending on your plan). When a change is detected, you receive an instant alert showing exactly which record changed, the old value, and the new value.

Question 5

What is DNS propagation?

Accepted Answer

DNS propagation is the time it takes for DNS changes to spread across the internet's DNS servers. It can take 1-48 hours because DNS records are cached at multiple levels (ISP resolvers, local caches, CDN edge nodes). During propagation, some users see old records and others see new ones.

Question 6

Does DNS monitoring prevent attacks?

Accepted Answer

DNS monitoring doesn't prevent attacks, but it detects them immediately. Without monitoring, a DNS hijack could go unnoticed for days or weeks. With upsonar, you're alerted within minutes and can respond before significant damage occurs — revoke compromised credentials, contact your registrar, or update records.

Free DNS Monitoring

Why DNS Monitoring Matters

DNS Hijacking

Silent Changes

Instant Detection

What We Monitor

Check Your Domain's DNS Records

Related

Frequently Asked Questions

Protect Your DNS Records