hunting-for-dns-based-persistence
Hunt for DNS-based persistence mechanisms including DNS hijacking, dangling CNAME records, wildcard DNS abuse, and unauthorized zone modifications using passive DNS databases, SecurityTrails API, and DNS audit log analysis.
Best use case
hunting-for-dns-based-persistence is best used when you need a repeatable AI agent workflow instead of a one-off prompt.
Hunt for DNS-based persistence mechanisms including DNS hijacking, dangling CNAME records, wildcard DNS abuse, and unauthorized zone modifications using passive DNS databases, SecurityTrails API, and DNS audit log analysis.
Teams using hunting-for-dns-based-persistence should expect a more consistent output, faster repeated execution, less prompt rewriting.
When to use this skill
- You want a reusable workflow that can be run more than once with consistent structure.
When not to use this skill
- You only need a quick one-off answer and do not need a reusable workflow.
- You cannot install or maintain the underlying files, dependencies, or repository context.
Installation
Claude Code / Cursor / Codex
Manual Installation
- Download SKILL.md from GitHub
- Place it in
.claude/skills/hunting-for-dns-based-persistence/SKILL.mdinside your project - Restart your AI agent — it will auto-discover the skill
How hunting-for-dns-based-persistence Compares
| Feature / Agent | hunting-for-dns-based-persistence | Standard Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Platform Support | Not specified | Limited / Varies |
| Context Awareness | High | Baseline |
| Installation Complexity | Unknown | N/A |
Frequently Asked Questions
What does this skill do?
Hunt for DNS-based persistence mechanisms including DNS hijacking, dangling CNAME records, wildcard DNS abuse, and unauthorized zone modifications using passive DNS databases, SecurityTrails API, and DNS audit log analysis.
Where can I find the source code?
You can find the source code on GitHub using the link provided at the top of the page.
SKILL.md Source
# Hunting for DNS-based Persistence ## Overview Attackers establish DNS-based persistence by hijacking DNS records, creating unauthorized subdomains, abusing wildcard DNS entries, or modifying NS delegations to redirect traffic through attacker-controlled infrastructure. These techniques survive credential rotations, endpoint reimaging, and traditional remediation because DNS changes persist independently of compromised hosts. Detection requires passive DNS historical analysis, zone file auditing, and monitoring for unauthorized record modifications. This skill covers hunting methodologies using SecurityTrails passive DNS API, DNS audit logs from Route53/Azure DNS/Cloudflare, and zone transfer analysis. ## When to Use - When investigating security incidents that require hunting for dns based persistence - When building detection rules or threat hunting queries for this domain - When SOC analysts need structured procedures for this analysis type - When validating security monitoring coverage for related attack techniques ## Prerequisites - SecurityTrails API key (free tier provides 50 queries/month) - Access to DNS provider audit logs (Route53, Azure DNS, Cloudflare, or on-premises DNS) - Python 3.9+ with requests library - DNS zone file access or AXFR capability for internal zones - Historical DNS baseline for comparison ## Steps ### Step 1: Baseline DNS Records Export current DNS zone records and establish baseline for all authorized A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, NS, and TXT records. ### Step 2: Query Passive DNS History Use SecurityTrails API to retrieve historical DNS records and identify unauthorized changes, new subdomains, and CNAME records pointing to decommissioned services (dangling CNAMEs). ### Step 3: Detect Anomalies Compare current records against baseline to identify unauthorized modifications, wildcard records that resolve all subdomains, NS delegation changes, and MX record hijacking. ### Step 4: Investigate Findings Correlate DNS anomalies with threat intelligence feeds, check resolution targets against known malicious infrastructure, and validate record ownership. ## Expected Output JSON report listing DNS anomalies with record type, historical changes, risk severity, and remediation recommendations for each finding.
Related Skills
property-based-testing
Provides guidance for property-based testing across multiple languages and smart contracts. Use when writing tests, reviewing code with serialization/validation/parsing patterns, designing features, or when property-based testing would provide stronger coverage than example-based tests.
performing-threat-hunting-with-yara-rules
Use YARA pattern-matching rules to hunt for malware, suspicious files, and indicators of compromise across filesystems and memory dumps. Covers rule authoring, yara-python scanning, and integration with threat intel feeds.
performing-threat-hunting-with-elastic-siem
Performs proactive threat hunting in Elastic Security SIEM using KQL/EQL queries, detection rules, and Timeline investigation to identify threats that evade automated detection. Use when SOC teams need to hunt for specific ATT&CK techniques, investigate anomalous behaviors, or validate detection coverage gaps using Elasticsearch and Kibana Security.
performing-malware-persistence-investigation
Systematically investigate all persistence mechanisms on Windows and Linux systems to identify how malware survives reboots and maintains access.
implementing-deception-based-detection-with-canarytoken
Deploy and monitor Canary Tokens via the Thinkst Canary API for deception-based breach detection using web bug tokens, DNS tokens, document tokens, and AWS key tokens.
hunting-for-webshell-activity
Hunt for web shell deployments on internet-facing servers by analyzing file creation in web directories, suspicious process spawning from web servers, and anomalous HTTP patterns.
hunting-for-unusual-service-installations
Detect suspicious Windows service installations (MITRE ATT&CK T1543.003) by parsing System event logs for Event ID 7045, analyzing service binary paths, and identifying indicators of persistence mechanisms.
hunting-for-unusual-network-connections
Hunt for unusual network connections by analyzing outbound traffic patterns, rare destinations, non-standard ports, and anomalous connection frequencies from endpoints.
hunting-for-t1098-account-manipulation
Hunt for MITRE ATT&CK T1098 account manipulation including shadow admin creation, SID history injection, group membership changes, and credential modifications using Windows Security Event Logs.
hunting-for-suspicious-scheduled-tasks
Hunt for adversary persistence and execution via Windows scheduled tasks by analyzing task creation events, suspicious task properties, and unusual execution patterns that indicate T1053.005 abuse.
hunting-for-supply-chain-compromise
Hunt for supply chain compromise indicators including trojanized software updates, compromised dependencies, unauthorized code modifications, and tampered build artifacts.
hunting-for-startup-folder-persistence
Detect T1547.001 startup folder persistence by monitoring Windows startup directories for suspicious file creation, analyzing autoruns entries, and using Python watchdog for real-time filesystem monitoring.