Domain Hijacking: How It Happens and 7 Ways to Lock Down Your Assets

Domain hijacking occurs when an unauthorized entity gains control of your domain registration, redirecting all website traffic and corporate email to malicious servers.

1. Common Hijacking Attack Vectors

• Administrative Email Compromise: Attackers breach the email associated with your registrar account and trigger password resets.
• Social Engineering Registrar Support: Impersonating domain owners through fake documentation or unverified phone support calls.
• Expired WHOIS Email Drop: If the registrant email expires, an attacker can register that email domain and take over the account.

2. Seven Rules for Impenetrable Domain Security

1. Enforce Hardware Security Keys (YubiKey) or Authenticator 2FA on your registrar account.
2. Enable Registry Lock / Transfer Lock at the highest tier available.
3. Use a dedicated corporate email for registrations, never personal webmail.
4. Enable DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions) to prevent DNS spoofing.
5. Set up auto-renewal with multi-year registrations.
6. Enable WHOIS Privacy Shielding.
7. Monitor your nameserver records regularly for unexpected modifications.